Coaches Corner Article: Summer Training: Choosing the right camp

Coaches: Summer Training: Choosing the right camp

First, a word about summer wrestling. There are many different training methods utilized during summer, ranging from open mats and tournaments, to lifting and summer camps. I believe that a mix of all of those, is important for the development of an athlete. There are numerous live wrestling opportunities to choose from, including open mats, tournaments, and various camps that stress live wrestling over instruction. While live wrestling is an important part of the equation, I believe it is always important to work on improving skill and learning new technique as well. This is where your wrestler can really stretch himself and improve.

When you are evaluating camp options for your athletes, there some factors to consider, and disturbing trends I see in many camps today.

Trend #1: Name camps where the name coach isn't training the athlete. If you are attending Jeff Jones' camp, Jeff Jones should be the guy coaching you, rather than just making an appearance now and then.

Trend #2: Bringing in Star Attractions - big name athletes or coaches, to draw in a lot of athletes, then they teach a session or two, and leave. You never really get to learn their technique, or drill it enough to get it down - but you got a nice autograph.

Trend #3: Big Camp Factories (usually University camps) with lots of numbers - too many for a staff to work with. These camps are big money-makers for those running them, but athletes don't tend to learn much, and the coach-athlete ratio is very poor.

I've always favored camps that will actually train athletes in a system. Camps that emphasize core techniques and continue to go over these techniques, do a lot more for your kids than camps that throw tons of moves at them and never go back to those techniques.

Whatever camp you choose for your athletes, you should strongly encourage them to drill the technique when they get back home. Set up an open mat for the athletes to come in, and drill and compare techniques learned recently in camp. Then try to get them to stick with it and review at least once a week. Even athletes in a fall sport can do this. They don't have to wrestle live but drill what they've learned so they don't lose it over the 4 months that the other sport may be in session.