Holistic Coaching – Coaching the Whole Athlete

Published by Wayne Goldsmith on June 24, 2020June 24, 2020

Holistic Coaching – Coaching the Whole Athlete.

For the most part, coaching is focused almost exclusively on the physiological development of athletes.

It’s easy for coaches to be centered on the physiological aspects of athlete development as they can be seen, be measured, be counted, be observed.

Yet, human beings are so much more than just blood and muscle and bone and oxygen transport carrying capacity.

Holistic coaching is about coaching the whole athlete.

Holistic coaching of course considers and includes the training and development of the physiological aspects of practice and performance but it incorporates the mental, emotional and even to an extent the spiritual elements of human existence.

The majority of coaches focus on training the athlete from the “neck-down”. They spend most of their time training, developing and conditioning the parts of the body that are below the neck, i.e. the body.

Holistic coaching is all about what’s happening from the “neck-up”. It’s about coaching the athlete as a human being: about connecting, engaging and inspiring the athlete to be all they can be.

Ultimately it’s the connection between the mind and body: between the “neck up” and “neck down” sections of the human being that result in optimal performance.

A simple technique coaches can incorporate into their daily training and practice environments is called the FOURTH COLUMN.

Most coaches write their daily workouts using THREE “COLUMNS”: The three core physiological “pillars” of Volume, Intensity and Frequency. These three pillars are the fundamental variables of training physiology and together form the exercise prescription framework used by coaches around the world to train the body.

But by simply adding a FOURTH COLUMN – a “mental” column, coaches can easily and effectively incorporate “neck up” coaching in their workouts and practice sessions.

For example, a running training set could be:

NECK DOWN:

• 10 X 400 METRES at 80% INTENSITY ON A 3 MINUTE CYCLE: Volume  =10 x 400, Intensity = 80% effort, Frequency = 3 minutes.

NECK UP:

• 10 X 400 METRES at 80% INTENSITY ON A 3 MINUTE CYCLE, Volume = 10 x 400, Intensity = 80% effort, Frequency = 3 minutes WITH a focus on relaxation, smoothness and moving at an even pace, being mindful and aware of a tall body position and breathing control over the final 100 metres each lap.

By integrating the training of the body and the coaching of the mind, coaches can learn and master the concepts and principles of Holistic coaching.

In this Podcast, Wayne Goldsmith discusses Holistic Coaching and offers practical solutions for coaches to incorporate Holistic Coaching into their programs every day.