Progression of your child’s diving

Three thoughts for me to share with you about your child’s progression:

Why does my child do so many jumps in practice?  When are they going to do some REAL dives?  The old adage of practice makes perfect really takes hold here.  To learn how to do a good front dive, they have to master a simpler skill – a good jump.  And even when the jump is mastered, they have to apply it to the take-off of the dive; which is not always the same.  Repetition is the key.  The same skill over and over and over.  If you want to see what happens when a simple skill is not mastered before going on, watch a HS diving meet.  Too many of those kids jump or skip skills and it is apparent in their dives.

How does my child overcome their fears?  This is the million dollar question.  Coaching age group divers is a challenge for coaches as much as it is for the diver to learn to get over their fear.  There is no answer here.  It can take 10 minutes, or 10 months.  The BEST solution to this, is to build confidence.  The more “new” dives they learn pain free, the easier it will be to tackle a harder dive.  Building confidence (along with having some guts) is the best way to go.  Each diver is different.  Some need to be pushed more than others.  However, the bottom line, is your diver will not do the dive until they make themselves do it.  Coaching age group is about fear management, where as coaching college is about improving technique.

A question from me to you as a coach to a parent?  WHY does your child dive?  From a coach’s standpoint, we emphasize safety first to prevent smacking.  Fear management is tough.  Then we try to work in some technique while keeping the environment safe and happy.  Is diving for your child just a social event for them?  It is definitely great for your child to work on social skills, and learn how to interact with other children of different ages and ability.  Is it a way for them to overcome obstacles?  There are not too many sports that deal with fear management like diving.  It is a true mental challenge for them at times.  Is it because they love the sport and want to win?  I think this is the case for VERY few of our divers.  Diving is “fun” for them.  However, if they want to take it to a competitive level, then this will have to develop in time.  How much better is your diver going to get?  That all depends on how much better they want to be.  Some divers want to learn and learn and learn.  Some, will never get out of their comfort zone.   Everyone is on a different path.  There is a wide range of skill and talent on our team.  As a parent, you can suggest things to make your diver better.  But the bottom line, is that they need to find something inside of themselves to make them want to learn more and get better. 

Just thoughts for you and your diver.  Have a good weekend.