Are your coaching cues helping or hindering your athletes?
How often do you think about the language and coaching cues you use in your training sessions with your players? Do you change what you say and when you say it depending on the task? Most coaching scenarios involve huge amounts of verbal communication with the athlete. When we think of our role as coaches, one of the key areas we can have an impact is by providing coaching cues to our athletes and players in an attempt to improve their performance.
However, some of the cues we provide may be doing the exact opposite and hindering our athletes. In order to delve deeper into this subject we need to firstly mention some key concepts. When we say something to our athletes we are trying to draw their attention to thoughts which will enhance their performance of a task. Often as coaches, we give certain cues to the athlete that seem simple and beneficial, yet the performance of the task is no different. This can lead to frustration as the coach may feel that the athlete is not paying attention to their cues. One of the key elements of coaching is developing relationships with our athletes in order to impact their development. In terms of coach-athlete verbal communication, there are three main areas – verbal instruction (usually prior), verbal cues (before or during) and feedback (during or after the task). When we provide cues, we are seeking to optimise our athlete’s attentional focus prior to or during the task. Attentional focus can be defined as an individual’s conscious ability to focus their attention through explicit thoughts in an effort to execute a task.
Art v Science
Many regard coaching as an art form but the science behind the role of attentional focus in motor learning is now well documented. Gabriele Wulf has been at the forefront of much the research around attentional focus and coaching cues and her work is now having an increasing impact in how we cue our athletes. Wulf outlines some of the key differences in the use of cues by categorising them into two main areas – Internal cues and External cues. Internal cues tend to focus the athlete internally on their own body’s movements, for example in the bench press – “Extend your arms fully on the upward motion”. An external cue tries to focus the athlete on elements such as the environment or outcome of the task – “Drive the barbell to the ceiling”.
Cues – Internal & External
Extensive research has shown that providing external cues can be more beneficial than using internal cues. Many studies led by Wulf have shown external cues enhancing performance in tasks involving balance, jumping, speed, agility and strength. So why do external cues work you may ask. The explanation can be found in understanding the constrained action hypothesis. Essentially, when we receive internal cues it draws our thoughts to the body and can lead to a more mechanical response where the motor system is constrained. The flip side is that with external cues our motor system behaves in a more automatic manner and the processes that would normally take place to solve the task are more likely to occur. With external cues we focus on the outcome of the task instead of the individual movements that may need to take place to reach that point. In key sporting moments, we aspire to find that automatic or flow state that is described by many top athletes. Automatic, outcome focused responses that occur appear more natural and fluid. Internal cues may hinder our athletes and focus their attentions incorrectly. We may feel that we are giving precise and valuable information by using phrases like ‘Extend at the hips, knees and ankles” when coaching a hang clean for example, but in reality, the message may confuse the athlete and direct their attention to processes that are unhelpful. Replacing this internal cue with an external one such as “Snap the bar to the ceiling” may provide the athlete with a short, meaningful message that they can relate to.
Creating the right cues
Further analysis of the literature on external cues suggests that there are three key features which coaches should be aware of when designing their own external cues.
Direction: Provide the athlete with a direction to target the movement.
Distance: Provide the athlete with target distance.
Description: Use of ‘active’ verbs that create an image for the athlete.
Let’s look at example that might be used in a gym setting for the bench press:
“Drive the bar toward the ceiling"
Description Direction Distance
By using this approach, we are providing the athlete with a short cue they can quickly understand and use during the task. Use of ‘active’ verbs which evoke images of being fast and explosive fit well in a sporting context. However, there may be exercises that require a more controlled approach and therefore the choice of verb can be altered to reflect this. Manipulating how you use description, direction and distance will be based on your own coaching relationship with each individual athlete and what has most impact for them.
There are many ways the above cue can be adapted but what is most important is that it creates a more effective performance for the athlete. Tapping into their interests and making the cue meaningful to your athlete is a skill coaches can develop. Experiment and speak with your athletes to find out more about them and what cues work best for them. When we make the cue relevant to the individual we have a greater chance that it will stay in their long-term memory and impact their performance when used in the future.
Beyond the gym
Cues can be used in any coaching setting and are not exclusive to gym-based sessions. Thinking about our use of words during pitch training sessions is a worthwhile exercise as it forces us to reflect more on the messages we are sending to our players. Are we overloading our players with information that makes sense to us but not to them? Are we providing short, specific and meaningful cues for pitch base activities and making them relevant for our players? Head of Athletic Performance and Science for Irish Rugby, Nick Winkelman, has looked extensively at this area and provides some excellent advice in his paper entitled “Coaching Instructions and Cues for Enhancing Sprint Performance”. Since sprint speed is a decisive factor in many sporting contests it would make sense that we optimise our training approaches to develop this quality in our athletes. Providing external cues that are relevant to the stage of the sprint appears to be more beneficial for the athlete. For example, in the acceleration phase the athlete may be cued to “Explode off the ground” or “Push the ground away” in order to produce the high ground reaction forces that underpin effective acceleration. In contrast, when the athlete reaches the max velocity phase of a sprint, cues may be altered to reflect the faster ground contacts needed in these positions. Some examples include – “Snap the ground down and back” or “Explode off the ground like the crack of a whip”. Again, these examples may not resonate with every athlete and coaches can develop their own cues alongside their athletes to best fit their own situation.
Conclusion – Reflect, Refine and Review
Practical application for coaches should see a reflection of your own use of language and how you cue your players in different exercises and scenarios. After this reflection, coaches can refine their cues and look at making them relevant to their players. Alongside implementing external cues in your sessions, close communication with your athletes can help you to develop cues that are effective and meaningful in enhancing performance. Finally, a review can take place after sessions where coaches can learn more about how their athletes interpreted their cues and which ones they found most beneficial. What we say as coaches matters and finding better ways to communicate with our athletes is always a worthwhile exercise.
References
Benz, A., Winkelman, N., Porter, J., & Nimphius, S. (2016). Coaching Instructions and Cues for Enhancing Sprint Performance. STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING JOURNAL, 38, 1-11.
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