Don't Tell me how Rough the Seas are....Just Bring the Ship in! Providing Feedback is not Excuse making .

As a developing athlete being coachable didn't come naturally for me. If I didn't do something correctly , often times an excuse would be the first thing out of my mouth. Our head coach loved the saying " Don't tell me how rough the seas are, just bring the ship in!" . What he was telling us was , either we got it done or we didn't. It did not matter why we didn't make the play , it just mattered that we didn't . The coaches job was to figure out what went wrong, it was our job to listen to the coach on how to correct it .  This concept was so ingrained in me that I became a sponge for feedback. If I didn't get something right , I wanted to know how to improve, then I would take steps to fix whatever I was missing.  I had started to develop a growth mindset. 

A Growth Mindset: Individuals who believe their talents can be developed through hard work, good strategies, and input from others .

So what the heck does this have to do with Weightlifting?  Coachability is the number 1 trait you need to be successful in the sport of Weightlifting . There are a lot of super talented athletes out there but the ones that truly succeed are those who embrace coaching and feedback in order to continue to evolve and grow as an athlete. 

One of the quickest ways to stop your development as a lifter, is to start finding excuses for why you "can't" do the things you're being coached to do. But what happens when there are legitimate reasons that you can't perform the task being asked of you? How do you know when you are just making an excuse or providing beneficial feedback that your coach needs in order to get you to your end goal of lifting better? 

Feedback

1. Comprehension: When given a cue and you are not sure what the coach means . Every athlete is different and responds different ways to different cues and commands. If a coach tells you something that you really do not understand, ask for clarification or for them to word it in a different way. Do not be embarrassed to asked for clarity , the coach is there to get you better. If you don't understand you cannot improve. 
2. Injury: Is there an injury or pain  holding you back from hitting the proper positions or performing the tasks required of you during a training session? This is extremely important feedback to provide your coach. It could be something as a simple as a mobility issue holding you back or something more serious. You are the only one who can feel what you are feeling. Let your coach know where you are stiff or in pain so that the appropriate steps can be taken to make improvements for the day. 
3. Stress/Fatigue: These two can often go hand in hand. Life happens and we all go through periods of extreme stress. Everything we go though can either add to or take away from our stress levels. Even positive life changes can contribute to this. Physical fatigue is very similar , remember that everything you are doing in you week is contributing to fatigue. Some sessions athletes come in and are warn down either physically , mentally , or both. Let your coach know so they can modify the workout accordingly . There is nothing wrong with scaling back your workout for the day because outside factors have worn you down.

*REMEMBER at certain points in the program you will feel beat down. This is how the program works, but letting the coach know how you are feeling will ensure that things are going as they should. 

Excuses:  Nearly all of these problems come down to not being coachable . Typically most of the athletes we have run into do not have to be encouraged to work harder. For the most part they need to be told to pull it back and focus more on good movement ,rest, and recovery. 

1. Routine:  This is how I always do __________, so thats why I lifted that way. NEWS FLASH: You're here to get better, if you didn't need to improve your current technique you probably wouldn't be here. If you do what you've always done , you'll get what you've always gotten . Get out of your own way and grow! 
2. Insert Olympian here Does it this way: Instagram and Youtube are wonderful tools to learn about all sorts of subjects . As a coaching group we have learned a ton from watching good lifters and coaches on the internets. You are not whatever lifter you just watched, their technique will not necessarily be the best for you. Trust your coaches to put you in the best position to succeed. If you don't , find coaches that you do trust and listen to them. 
3. It Feels Better this Way: This one is really common. A lot of Weightlifting technique it very counter intuitive initially .  Some people instinctually 'get it' but this is the exception not the rule.  Be open and learn the technique being coached , don't lift by feel. It takes 1000's of reps and years of practice to be able to really feel .

Your coaches job is to make you the best weightlifter you can be. You can help them do this by providing proper feedback , being coachable, and finding a way instead of finding an excuse. 

Find a way to better lifting technique by scheduling a FREE Barbell Assessment today!