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3 Ways to Re-frame Setbacks in Sport
“I treasure the memory of the past misfortunes. It has added more to my bank of fortitude.”- Bruce Lee When it comes to successfully dealing with adversity, injury or failure, the first thing I’d like to express is that these things are all relative. What one person considers as a failure or adversity, another person might not. I am by no means an expert on these topics, and much of what I will share in this post is based on my personal experience with leg injuries that I have encountered in the past 5 years. While I have dealt with some significant injuries that have required reconstructive surgeries, my path still looks like a walk in the park compared to others who have dealt with more significant adversity. This leads me to my first point. 1. Don’t be a victim. Instead consider that adversity can actually be a good thing. When bad things happen (losing a basketball game, getting hurt, etc) sometimes these things are out of our control. Sometimes they aren’t. In my experience, it’s usually it’s a mix of both. It doesn’t hurt to reflect on the things we may have done (or not done) that could have contributed to our shortcomings. Once we identify what those variables are, we can take responsibility for them. Once we take responsibility for them, we can start taking the necessary actions to make sure we don’t continue to make those same mistakes in the future. 2. Use past setbacks as motivation. While it’s probably valuable to reflect on our failures, I don’t think it’s beneficial to replay them in our heads over and over again, beating ourselves up over the mistakes we made. “I should have hit that foul shot.” “I shouldn’t have called that play at the end of the game.” “I should’ve followed that weight training program.” It’s only really a mistake if we do the wrong thing a second time after we know it’s wrong, so don’t crush yourself with guilt. Use the past pain you experienced to propel you forward to create a different outcome in the future. 3. Fail on purpose. Well, don't purposely fail but the more we can expose ourselves to adversity, the better we become at handling it. A good way we can use this to our advantage is by voluntarily putting ourselves in situations where we will face adversity and situations where failure is a probability. That could mean practicing with players who are older and stronger than we are. It could mean setting high standards for ourselves when we are practicing alone. For example, setting a goal of making 40 out of 50 three-point shots and not leaving the gym until it’s done. It could mean pushing ourselves to failure in the weight room, so our body is better equipped to handle physical stress on the court. By exposing ourselves to adverse conditions today, tough situations we face in the future may seem easier by comparison. So don’t be afraid to fail, and be thankful for the adversity in your life. It can only make you stronger. This post was written by Right Way coach, Sean Stoqua, who currently plays for the University of Ottawa Gee Gees Men's Varsity Basketball Team and is currently completing his Master's in Physiotherapy Degree.
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4 Things Coaches Can Learn From Teachers
When I started coaching I still had a player’s mindset. I knew how to play and could demonstrate skills, but I soon realized my players needed more from me. If my team was going to reach their potential, I was going to have to expand my perspective so I could explain the game in a way they would understand. And this is where I think I have lucked out: beyond the coaching education I have completed, I am currently enrolled in the Teacher Education program at the University of Ottawa. I would say it is common knowledge that being a teacher and a coach is a natural combination, but I do not think everyone realizes how transferable many of the skills are between the two positions. I feel confident saying that my coaching experience has made me a better teacher, but I would like to share how being trained as an educator has helped with my development as a coach. Coaches, here are a few current educational concepts you can try to elevate your “basketball classroom” to the next level: 1. (Teacher) Consider Your Learner’s Developmental Stage = (Coach) Familiarize Yourself with the LTAD Model Who are you coaching? How you interact with a bunch of 14 year olds going through growth spurts and mood swings will be quite different than a team full of energetic 9 year olds who do not know how to control their own bodies. Not only do teachers need to know the curriculum for their grade, they have to be aware of the social, emotional and physical stage their students are in to best engage their class. Now, I am not suggesting that all coaches take a course in Child Development, but the Long-Term Athlete Development Model is a fantastic resource that every coach should absolutely read. From windows of optimal training for speed and strength to which sport specific skills should be introduced at each age level, Canada Basketball’s Athlete Development Model will help you understand, and therefore serve your athletes better. 2. (Teacher) Flip The Classroom = (Coach) Develop A Player-Led Team The current message for teachers-in-training is that they should limit their “front-of-class” talking time because students become more engaged in lessons when they have a larger role in the learning. While teachers might do this by including more hands-on activities, coaches can similarly cut down on their speaking time in practice. I know it can be tough to give up reigns sometimes, but try allowing for some controlled chaos in your practices. Seeing how your players organize a new drill without explaining all the details will provide some fantastic teachable moments. If you want to take it a step further, next time a practice is not going according to plan ask your players what they think they need to work on, why they think a drill is going poorly or how they think they could improve their next rep. I have been amazed at the improvements made by students and players when they start thinking for themselves. 3. (Teacher) Differentiate Lesson Plans = (Coach) Scale/Load Drills Another similarity between teaching and coaching is that one size does not fit all students or athletes. If you want to be a great coach, you can not treat every player the same. The goal is equity (giving everyone what they need to be successful), not equality (giving everyone the same thing). One of the biggest challenges, whether leading a classroom or a team, is dealing with the fact that you have individuals at various skill levels. You may have a drill in mind for practice, but the question is how will you alter it to suit your players’ needs. And let me tell you: it is completely fine to have some of your team going through a scaled version, while some others work on a loaded version. Ideally you will hit that sweet spot where every athlete is feeling confident and challenged at the same time. These separated skill development times can be balanced by other drills where players of different abilities are working together to improve the team as a whole. In the “mixed-ability groups” you can even challenge your stronger players to be leaders by helping their teammates get to the next level through reminders and encouragement. 4. (Teacher) Build Relationships = (Coach) Build Relationships If you are only able to implement one suggestion, let it be this one. Get to know your athletes - what motivates them, how do they learn best, what is going on in their lives outside of the gym. It is amazing what students/athletes can accomplish when they feel seen and respected. Find common ground to connect with them on, be a role model and show some vulnerability so they know it is okay to do the same. Everyone’s basketball career will end at some point, so you may want to ask yourself a question. What are you leaving your players with that will stick with them for life? Many have said it before and I will say it again: people may forget what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel! This post was written by Right Way coach, Clare Murphy, who is currently completing her Bachelor of Education degree at the University of Ottawa while also serving as an assistant coach the Women's Varsity Basketball Team. How to Stay Injury-Free This Season  Keep the glutes tight, lean forward and try not to arch the lower back. 1. Stretch the front of your hips We spend so much time sitting in chairs everyday that the front of our hips get super tight and pull our pelvis out of its ideal alignment. Sitting can cause our glutes to get lazy and shut off which isn’t favourable for either athleticism or injury prevention. Holding a basic lunge position for a couple minutes after long periods of sitting, practices and games is a good place to start. 2. Ditch the basketball shoes outside the gym Wearing bulky basketball shoes all day inside and outside the gym can give our ankles so much support they no longer feel the need to be strong on their own. Spending more time in less restrictive footwear, or even barefoot, can give your feet and ankles a chance to get strong again. 3. Warm-up Taking 5-10 minutes to do some dynamic stretches, get our heart rate up and prepare your joints for the wide variety of positions basketball requires is a great way to reduce injuries. Try to avoid holding static stretches before practices and games as this may relax the muscles too much and increase the odds of injury.  4. Work on ankle dorsi flexion everyday There is research out there that says the further we can get the knee over the toes, the less incidence of knee injuries. The movement of pushing your knee past our toe is called ankle dorsiflexion and we need a good degree of this to run and jump effectively. We can work on this movement with the knee to wall drill. When performing this drill you should make sure you don’t have a collapsed arch in our foot. Aim to track the knee over the second or third toe. This is a great exercise to include in your warm-up.  Gently pull toes towards ground to get a stretch in calves and hamstrings. 5. Cool down Taking 5-10 minutes to do a cool down is great way to help our body begin to recover from a practice or game. As opposed to the warm-up, the cool down is a perfect time for holding static stretches and getting our heart rate down with some controlled breathing. Both of these goals can be achieved in the position below. Hanging out in this position for a couple minutes and doing some deep breathing is a good place to start a cool down. 6. Lift weights Strong muscles help protect your joints from injury. When it comes to basketball, strong glute and thigh muscles are particularly important to take stress off the knees and ankles. Pick one lower body exercise you like such as a back squat, front squat or trap bar deadlift and try to get one good session in every week. If you have games on the weekend, it may be a good idea to take a day or two off after your games before your weight training session. This will allow your legs to recover from your games as well give your body some time to recover from the weights before your next game. For younger athletes you can do these exercises with just your body weight or light dumbbells. 7. Get some sleep Sleep is the most important time when your body recovers from the physical stress of basketball and weight training. Ideally you get 7-9 hours of sleep every night. Naps are a great way to make up for a lack of sleep as well. Just be careful about napping after 3pm as this can make it more difficult to fall asleep again at night. This post was written by Right Way coach, Sean Stoqua, who currently plays for the University of Ottawa Gee Gees Men's Varsity Basketball Team and is currently completing his Master's in Physiotherapy Degree. |
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