Alright- I was wondering what or how to go about coaching girls?

I have always been one that thinks- coach them the same way you coach boys- because they are all athletes and on the softball field this works but was wondering about wrestling.

I noticed alot of leg riding by the girls- is this because of leverage and lack of strenth or is it just something alot of these girls feel comfortable with.

I also think having them sweep a single or master a low single would help them. But maybe I am not right- we have 2 girls now in the club and I am wanting to learn how I can best teach/coach them.

Another move I noticed alot was the headlock but haven't seen it work in the High School circle against boys, but it was successful this past weekend in McPherson.

Any thoughts or lead of direction would be appreciated

The first thing I noticed when Karissa started wrestling other girls is that 90% of them were headhunters. I am not sure if this is because they were not comfortably shooting or if they were taught to go for the headlock. After I saw this I went right to work teaching Karissa how to defend the headlock. You will never see Karissa try to throw the headlock.
As for leg riding Karissa just learned this from her Middle school Coach and she loves to do it because of the diff. moves she can work off of it. Personally I would rather see her try a bar arm half first before going to something else.
As for Coaching, Karissa is treated and coached just like the boys are but just because she responds to this kind of coaching does not mean they all will. In fact she probably gets pushed a little harder then the boys and she responds to this real good.

I think one of the things needed to work on first with the girls is brining the arms in tighter to the body and not getting long when in neutral and hanging. There was tons of talent in McPherson this week, but that's one aspect that needs working on.

Leg rides are great for girls, because we don't always have the upper body strength we need, but I've personally found it more difficult for girls to use leg rides against other girls, simply because with a little flexibility, one can bridge up fairly high and spin in toward your opponent for a reversal and almost guarenteed back points. I wouldn't let that discourage you from teaching a leg ride though, for the most part, it's a great move in conjunction with a cross body ride and a power-half.

Sweeps are great against both genders of competitors. The idea of getting sprawled on or stuck under your opponent is almost eliminated with a good sweep.

The coaches who have impacted my wrestling career the most have treated me just the same as the boys, giving me no special treatment, but also realize that many moves that work for the guys have to be slightly modified to fit my strengths. Get to know what your girls can do (Flexibily, leg strength, good balance, perhaps a specific move or series, etc.) and try to cater moves to her style.

Scooby,

I might be able to help you some on the coaching of girls. First off forget the idea that girls learn at the same rate as a boy. It can be said that their retention rate is a little higher. It has been proven to me many times over the years. They have some of the strongest hips because a female carries her weight and muscle mass on her hips. Its been a little over 10 yrs. since I started coaching girls. The one problem I do run into is, most girls try to wrestle girls the same as they do boys. "DOESN'T WORK". Girls are too flexible and their muscle tone, on the average girl, is too light compared to a boy. Using the legs inside can dangerous for girl on girl wrestling. The best thing to teach them is the art of leverage which most boys and coaches don't even know. Also teach them how powerful their hips really are, and get them into wrestling freestyle. It is better suited for their muscle structure also that is what they wrestle in college. The last thing is, they will be hurt by the smallest criticism, but they will do anything you instruct them to do in a match, and give you their undivided attention during the match to help correct a mistake. I myself really enjoy coaching the girls, but keeping them motivated to train and compete is a rough road.
I would suggest that you approach them with kid gloves, and have a strong drive of your own for them to draw strentgh to compete.

Coach ED
Kansas Krusaders Coach

I agree with Coach Ed, the most important thing to teach a female wrestler is to use their hips. We don't ride legs for that reason, hips are way too high. It's pretty easy to swim a girl to their back when they throw the legs in. Keep the hips back and ride tight body. In our experience, most girls have a real hard time getting out of a good tight body. Most girls aren't real good on bottom, so teaching a good ride will win alot of matches for you. Also, having a good bottom game is a must. You just don't see girls sitout, cutback, scissorkick, etc. You will see some granbys and switches, but mostly just standups. Regarding takedowns, most girls wrestle above the waist. So you see ALOT of headlocks and arm spins. My opinion is, you live by the head, you die by the head. Teach your girls to shoot. But not down the middle, girls are hard to take down shooting doubles and inside singles. Those HIPS! Shoot to the outside, use sweep singles, high croutches and heel picks. Against the top girls, getting caught underneath happens alot. Teach reshots. Use your shot to set up duck unders and throw bys. And FREESTYLE as much as possible. It cuts into their summer break, but to take it to the next level you have to freestyle, period. I agree with Coach Ed again, the hardest thing about coaching girls is to keep them motivated. Girls hate to do roadwork. We swim 3 times a week. The main thing to remember is these girls have a huge battle to just be accepted in the wrestling room. They need more support from their coaches and parents than a boy wrestler does. Good luck!
Steve Martin
(brute552001@earthlink.net)

Great post Steve. I know Coach Ed totatlly agrees. I will have him respond after he gets home from the gym.

Ms. Jenni

Steve,
The only thing I can add is to have a very supportive parent or parents. If you really wnt your girls to be a threat teach them to throw. Any girl can throw if they are taught to use their hips. I also wanted to state a big thanks to the 15 girls that ahowed up to practice on Sunday. We will be having another one on March 12, at Burlingame from 1:00 pm to 4:00pm. See all you Krusaders and want to be Krusaders at practice.

Coach Ed
Kansas Krusaders

My daughter seems to throw a headlock a lot and it has been effective if she doesn't use it all the time. You mentioned that the hs boys don't seem to use it but at kids state I was watching the 16 and under mats for most of the weekend. I saw a lot of headlocks and throws. In fact I saw one thrown in the heavy wt division. It wasn't fast but wow what strength the guy had to pull that one off. After watching kids state I wouldn't say that boys don't use it, but probably school coaches don't allow it or say that there is better technique to use. I'm not putting club wrestling down but it's more relaxed and a little more "if it works use it". Sort of like summer basketball is more freelance then winter bb.