Teaching Technique - Laying the Foundation for Sporting Excellence
Demonstrating good technique from a sporting perspective involves applying optimal movement ability in order to accomplish or solve a particular task effectively. A young athlete, for instance, who demonstrates sound technical ability while running is getting from point A to point B in an effective manner. Technical ability in a sport is typically the underlying measure for potential success. Good athletes are more often than not technically sound athletes. This reality, however, does not start and stop with respect to sport specific skills; this fact extends itself into the realm of general athletic development and the promotion or advancement of general movement abilities.
Sports ALL Kids Should Play
One of the questions that I get asked most routinely is which sports I believe offer the best development capacity to young athletes. This is a loaded question for several reasons... First of all, ANY sporting activity lead by a quality-based coach is wonderful for kids. That being said, the true crux and efficacy of that statement is based largely on the 'quality-based coach' comment. It is only when poorly educated and over zealous parents and coaches (i.e. adults) get involved too heavily in youth sports that the experience can become sour. Parents often push too hard and seek success at a young age;
Coordination and Movement Skill Development - The Key to Long Term Athletic Success
The key ingredient to working with pre-adolescent and early adolescent athletes is providing global stimulation from a movement perspective. Younger athletes must experience and eventually perfect a variety of motor skills in order to ensure both future athletic success and injury prevention. Developing basic coordination through movement stimulus is a must, with the eventual goal of developing sport-specific coordination in the teenage years. Coordination itself, however, is a global system made up of several synergistic elements and not necessarily a singularly defined ability. Balance, rhythm, spatial orientation and the ability to react to both auditory and visual stimulus have all been identified as elements of coordination.
Sport in Barcelona
Barcelona has always been a city that lives and breathes sport and today there's no shortage of sports in Barcelona! Thanks to the 1992 Olympics Games, facilities have improved drastically to offer all types of athletic activities. A quarter of the city's population now regularly is doing some type of sport and have included physical exercise in their habitual activities. The people of Barcelona have seized the city's public spaces, squares, parks and new beaches and turned them into focal points of sports activities. And Barcelona continues to advance in this direction. The City Council promotes and stimulates sport at all levels - from amateur to professional, from school to retirement, from 'fun runs' to summer activities - building and remodeling facilities, equipping districts and educational centers.
The Mentally Tough Athlete
'Mental toughness' is like good food or good weather - it often means many different things to many different people. Like 'mental training, ' 'peak performance training, ' and 'sports psychology, ' the words and pictures that these terms connote are incredibly diverse. Despite the broad range of definitions, most coaches and athletes alike agree that a fairly common definition is the athlete who is able to compete to their full potential in the big games that count the most - namely the playoffs - regardless of the distractions they may encounter. Sounds fairly easy, doesn't it? But when we consider a full post-season game, chock full of opponent intimidation, fan noise, external pressures, heightened media attention, clutch situations (that demand clutch focus and composure), not to mention the fear of injury due to elevated playoff aggression, mental toughness for many individuals and teams and athletes is a little more elusive.
Managing The Rope When Belaying
The two ways of managing the rope when belaying are the body belay and the mechanical belay. The body belay is used when the belayer must stop a fall without any other means. The rope is wrapped around the body and uses the belayers body to cinch down on the rope to arrest a fall. All body belays are suited for normal rope handling. However they are rarely suited for the interception of severe falls. The energy produced by the fall is, in part, absorbed by the belayers body. Which could cause injury to the belayer. Mechanical belay methods (sometimes termed dynamic-mechanical belays) have been developed in order to avoid, or decrease, the inherent dangers of body belays.
Trampolines And Their Safety Aspects
Trampolines are one of the most popular recreational outdoor toys being purchased by consumers today. Drive through any neighborhood and you'll likely see trampolines of every size, shape and color in several backyards. Trampolines are marketed as a recreational outdoor toy that provides a fun way for children to get exercise. However, just as you would explain the safety rules for a climbing gym to your children, there are rules that apply to trampoline safety as well. LOCATION OF THE TRAMPOLINE It's vital that the trampoline be placed in an area away from poles, trees, fences and any other outdoor toys.
Adventure Sports - Not For You If You Are Looking For The Thrills Without The Spills!
This is strange to me. How come some people don't feel or experience fear at all? . They can do almost any adventure sports in the world without fear. Just thinking about the stunt man performing in action movies. These guys are not afraid of anything or what? I'm sure you would ask them to join you in any adventure sports and they would follow you right away. I don't think of myself as a brave person. I don't like heights, fast speeds or defying gravity. I need my feet to be firmly on the ground. The only vaguely exciting activity I have ever done is skiing, which I loved. Adventure sports are not really for me but I wish I could get over my inhibitions and go for it.
Ultimate Game Time Psyching
The myriad of reasons why we play sports and relish competition lies deep within an emotional well commonly called 'commitment, ' 'drive, ' and 'motivation.' For most of us, this motivation stems from a deep passion and love we have for the sport(s) we play. We very rarely ever fall 'out of love' with our sport, so why is it that our motivation levels sometime seem to dip a little or even remain very low? The answer to this question is far from easy. It could relate to many different factors, including excessive stress, an excessive amount of self-imposed pressure, a negative shift in our self-image or a combination of these things.
The Two Methods Of Controlling The Rope When Holding A Fall
Following on from my first article on belaying. The two methods of controlling the rope when holding a fall are the static belay and the dynamic belay. The static belay does not allow the rope to run. It is used when a climber falls from a position below the belayer. When using this method, the belayer should bring their brake hand across his body immediately after the fall. Firmly holding the rope so that no rope runs through their hands. The belayer must prevent any slack between themselves and the climber if the static belay is to be effective. The energy produced by the fall is absorbed by the rope.