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What Will My Kid be Learning in Youth Wrestling Practice?
There are a few questions that most parents ask when they sign up their child for youth wrestling. Some of those common questions are listed (and answered) below.
What will my kid be learning?
Most wrestling coaches live and breathe wrestling, and while each coach has their own style, most coaches teach a combination of wrestling skills, wrestling rules, and life skills. Wrestling is a technical sport that involves training the mind and body.
Technical Wrestling
Your kids will be learning technical moves that involve manipulating their own bodies and the bodies of their partners (in practice) and opponents (in competition).
Coaches will be teaching your children the technical aspects of the sport – how to perform wrestling moves and how to do that safely so they do not hurt themselves or those whom they wrestle. A double leg takedown involves one wrestler shooting and then grabbing and locking around both legs of their opponent, then taking that person down to the mat. To execute this move, a wrestler must first understand how to do a proper shot, also called a penetration step, then how to finish that shot, and cover on top of their opponent when the takedown is finished. That kind of skill takes time to develop and this is one of the aims of every wrestling coach – to demonstrate technical moves.
Wrestling Rules
Your kids will be learning the rules of wrestling. Which moves score points and which moves are violations and cause points to be taken away. They will learn which moves are not allowed and they will learn the sport’s decorum. In wrestling, every match starts and finishes by shaking your opponent’s hand. The referee will not blow the whistle to start a match until competitors shake hands. The referee ensures kids shake at the end too. It’s a sign of respect for your opponent. Wrestlers fight hard, but they respect their opponents. They will learn how to respect themselves and their opponents during practice.
Life Skills
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, coaches will teach important life lessons during practice. They will teach your kids how to be confident in their abilities, how to respect their bodies and the bodies of others, how to carry themselves, how to listen and pay attention, how to conquer some of their fears, and the difference between being hurt or being scared, among many other lessons. Wrestling is a mental sport as much as it is physical and coaches will teach your kids that they can do anything if they apply themselves. Wrestling is not an easy sport, and it is not for every kid. But if they work hard, listen to the coaches, apply themselves and come to practice they will improve. They will see success, on the mat and elsewhere.
Should I stay for practice?
Parents are welcomed to stay in the wrestling room during practice. Some parents sit and watch, others bring a laptop and get work done, some stay outside the room and chat with other parents. Some parents with wrestling experience even stay and help out from time to time..
Should my kid be competing with kids of another gender?
Organized wrestling has boys and girls divisions. Our clubs have both boys and girls teams as well. We pair kids first by weight and size, then by age and skill level. Boys and girls will wrestle together, usually up until middle school or high school when they then usually wrestle with partners of their own gender – though there are exceptions. Girls wrestling is growing as a sport, so most tournaments have girls divisions which only allow girls. Also, most tournaments allow girls to cross-bracket and wrestle with the boys in first-year, novice, and open tournaments. But the boys are not allowed to wrestle in girls-only divisions or tournaments.
Ask Questions
Some clubs post their curriculum online or hand it out in practice so you know what your kid will be learning each practice. If your club does not publish their lessons, take a moment and ask a coach or administrator what your kid should expect at practice and at matches or tournaments. They’ll also tell you things like the cost of wrestling and what equipment might be required, among other things.
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