Boxercise Articles

Get the Best From Everyone You Teach
by Andy Wake, Director of Boxercise Instructor Training

The facts are that coaching and instructing are closely linked whether it is a gym instructor coaching a member how to do bench press, a group exercise instructor explaining new moves, or a personal trainer improving a client's technique. The effect each of these people will have will be directly in line with skill level of their "coaching". It is interesting to look at the sports world and see that some of the problems faced by the coaching system over the years have been mirrored in the fitness industry to its detriment. It is my opinion that we have in fitness industry the same problem that we had in coaching 15 years ago ego problems! In the past many sports coaches would not share their coaching ideas in case either their ideas were laughed at or someone used their ideas to improve their own athlete's performance. I will point out the same observation now that I made then you are not in competition with each other - there is no world coaching / instructing championship! Until there is, we should remember we are on the same team!

In the fitness industry we are surrounded by egos some undoubtedly justified and some not. If you are laughing and I hope you are, you are in the first group, however if, right now you are feeling defensive, you are in the second!

Often fitness instructors are expected just to pick up coaching skills, but how can they if nobody shows them? It is unfair of any fitness manager or fitness co-ordinator to expect this, coaching skills like any other needs to be learned. It is important that instructors who have been in the game for a long time should be willing to share the expertise that they have gained. Those who are just starting out in the industry should respect their expertise. But most importantly time and energy should be devoted towards development of skills, and networking amongst instructors so that a team mentality develops. So just to get the ball rolling here are some of my tips for improving coaching skills.

"They just don't seem to be able to follow me!" - VARY YOUR COACHING ANGLES

What thrills every group exercise instructor, personal trainer or gym assistant is when they see their technique mirrored back by their client/s. It is a wonderful feeling to have everyone you are working with whether it be 50 or just 1 demonstrating correct technique. 'They've Got It'. The thing is there are ways to make sure that this process happens quickly and efficiently. It all has to do with the instructor. When demonstrating a new move you need to be seen from a variety of angles. I am going to use Boxercise Training elements for this feature but whether you are teaching a punch, a 32 count combination or how to use a free weight, the importance of the coaching skill is the same. For example when coaching a hook (punch) to a group, the participants outside of a 45 degree angle from the centre of where you are standing have a different line of sight than the other participants and therefore perceive the punch to look different. (See Diagram 1 Positions X and Y). This fact can lead to confusion as to what is the correct technique. (See Photo 1 & 2).

The worst scenario is that those practicing with incorrect technique, which will make the movement less effective, may compromise safety. By the instructor moving from position 1 to position 2 when demonstrating a new move, all participants can see a good, clear demonstration. This allows them to get the vital information they need to start working on their own technique.

Seeing is believing and sometimes you have to give more than one view to make sure that everyone understands what they are supposed to do. For example when demonstrating a boxing move such as a straight punch, the instructor must face the group to show the body balance and knuckle position (See Photo 3). But for the participants to fully understand how the arm and feet should be placed it is important that the instructor turns sideways to show the safety points of a flat wrist and lifting of the back heel (See Photo 4). These points are not seen easily when the instructor is facing the participants front on! The message I am trying to get across is that learning in our situation is not just through hearing the instructions but also mimicking the movements. So not only do they need to be able to hear you but they must see you at different angles and from different points within the room to really understand what you want them to do. It is not a bad idea to sometimes video tape a class or working with a client so that you can see your demonstration quality and how well the client's mimic you!