Little Grapplers

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     If you have ever watched any youth sports you know that it comes with a set of challenges. Coaching children comes with a completely different set of their own. Unlike team sports, wrestling is a sport with only one winner. There isn't a team to share your win with and in many cases your losses. The most important lesson to coaching youth wrestling is to make it as fun as possible and for them to understand that you either win or you learn.

Warm Ups

     While this is the most important lesson to be taught it is not what keeps them interested in the sport. Running your practice must have a balance between lessons and fun activities. Most children who have taken interest in wrestling are usually no strangers to rough play with friends or family. Start each practice with a good solid warm up. Wrestling is a contact sport and most states start competition at the age of five. Wrestling takes stamina and endurance so a good warm up is important.

Fun Drills

     Each drill or lesson at any time should be followed up with a game or some sort of fun competition. Each wrestling match starts on the feet with both opponents trying to take each other down. This is the best way to start with new wrestlers and the best way to begin a new season. Work wrestling drills into your warm up with sprawls and shots to get the body prepared for what is to come. Try to warm them up and add some fun activities to keep them interested as much as possible. A boring practice does not keep your wrestlers happy and they will lose interest in the sport.

Start from the beginning

     Once you have learned your drills and practiced a single leg, double leg or other take downs it is the perfect time to work on the most important lesson. Children want to know that what they are learning works. There should be time at the end of each practice for live wrestling and applications to their growing skills. Start with simple take downs with everyone watching, two out of three take downs win. This gets them used to one on one competition where all eyes are viewing them. Once it is over and one winner is decided have everyone watching clap for both participants and find something good both competitors did and something they both need to work on. This has one clear winner but it still shows that every loss is a chance to learn and not make that same mistake again. Number one rule is stressed again, you either win or you learn.

Stick to the basics

     Continue to do this throughout the beginning of the season. Standing positions is the initial step, followed by top and bottom. Have each practice structured to the important things you want your little grapplers to learn. Stress the basics because good fundamentals and basics win matches. By the time the first tournament comes for the season your team should be ready for their first matches. If it is their first time they will be plenty nervous, so there is no reason to add any unneeded stress. Match day should be the funnest days of the season. All the hard work comes to a close and you either win or you learn.

Win or Learn

     In the end, the best way to get better at wrestling is to wrestle. Wrestlers need to know what actual competition feels like. The movement of another competitor, the yells of the crowd and every win and loss is a chance to get better. Every mistake they make will teach them more than any quick pin. Each time they forget to sprawl or get out of position they are learning to not make that mistake again. Shake off the loss with a teachable moment and move on to the next match. You either win or you learn and remember above all else, to have fun.

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Drive Through Horror

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     These stories of mine usually seem to catch a little bit of frustration or a laugh depending on your opinion. The drive through at the fast food restaurants scare me. I know it sounds different to hear someone say that but it's true. It's not the process or how it all works but it's the question that I know is coming. “Sir, can you please pull up?” This single question has become terrifying for me for a couple of reasons.

     I was very young the first time this happened to me. I ordered a cheese burger, fries, and a coke. Didn't think anything of it and there was no one else in line. I drove up to the first window to make my purchase then proceed to the next and pick up my unhealthy but delicious food choices. Someone strolls over to the window, opens it up and asks me to pull forward and they will bring my food out to me.

     I stopped for a second and looked in my rear view window and there is no one behind me. Then I turned my entire body and looked over my shoulder, just to make sure my mirror wasn't broken but there is still no one there. This was when I made my official and final decision to never pull up again. This usually brings up a lot of questions on to my reasoning and the normal, why. I only ordered one burger, one fry and drink. There was nothing special about the order, there was no one behind me, there was no justification for me to pull up. It is a drive through, not a drive through and park, or drive through and we will bring the food out to you. There are some services where this is expected and the system is set up that way, but not many are.

     If I go through a drive through and order one purchase of something and the person behind me orders two, then they are giving them mine. I know this doesn't seem rational but I found out the hard way that usually when your being asked to pull up it is the simple fact of trying to beat the clock. They are on a timer and instead of being honest about the time, they want you out of the window to stop the clock. Learning this was very interesting when I was asked to pull into a handicapped spot. I calmly told them that I am not handicapped and I have no problem waiting. This was also another time where there was no one behind me.

     A second person came to the window and then a third and I was being yelled at. “Sir, you are ruining my time.” I know I probably shouldn't have told them to move faster but I have to admit that it slipped out. I have no problem getting my money back and going elsewhere, there is no harm in that. For some reason this seems to be a bigger issue and the food miraculously shows up. Checking my food has become a very serious business after an incident like that but after doing it for so long, I can't really go back on it. I made the decision and I kind of have to stick with it. I think the best one that makes sense to me is a place with a third window. They have a system in place for you to pull up. I am still in the drive through and I don't have to be afraid of the dreaded “please pull up.” I now know that every time this question gets asked I am in trouble and my food might be too.

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