A Constraints Led Approach To Swim Coaching

Motor skill acquisition and athlete development practices are rapidly evolving. Positioned at the forefront of this evolution, the constraints-led approach encourages practitioners to consider the athlete as a whole person, with unique traits, abilities, and capacities. Accordingly, an athlete’s competitive success lies in the practitioner’s ability to adapt their programming to the unique needs of each athlete and to develop an understanding of the athlete-environment relationship. A Constraints-Led Approach to Swim Coaching applies contemporary motor skill acquisition and athlete development practices to swimming. This book encourages coaches to reconsider how they approach skill development in a sport that requires considerable physical training and highly efficient movement. It presents a framework for identifying the various constraints that determine the ability to perform at a high level. It then offers coaches practical examples to navigate the manipulation of constraints to support the development of physical capacities and the ability to effectively utilize those capacities through efficient movement. These frameworks are broadly inclusive to the global sports programming market. This book is written through a “conversive” voice and is accessible to a broad audience interested in athlete development and programming such as coaches, sport scientists, support staff, athletes, and parents. At the same time, academics and students in the areas of sport coaching, biomechanics, motor skill acquisition, strength and conditioning, and related disciplines will find interest in the insights provided from this underrepresented niche in sports.

Explores the fundamental processes of motor learning and skill acquisition in sport. This book examines the interaction of personal, environmental and task-specific constraints in the development of motor skills, and demonstrates how an understanding of those constraints can be applied in a wide range of specific sports and physical activities.

For more than a decade, top coaches have turned to one resource time and time again. Collecting the wisdom, insights, and advice from the sport’s legendary instructors, The Swim Coaching Bible immediately established its place in the libraries of swim coaches around the globe. Coaches, it’s time to make room alongside that classic for a new resource! The Swim Coaching Bible, Volume II, picks up where the original left off, providing more instruction, guidance, and expertise on every aspect of the sport. Inside, you’ll learn the secrets, strategies, and philosophies of 27 of today’s most successful coaches, including these legendary leaders: • Jack Bauerle • George Block • Mike Bottom • Bob Bowman • Sid Cassidy • John Urbancheck • Bill Rose • Vern Gambetta • David Durden • Brett Hawke • Gregg Troy • John Leonard • Dick Shoulberg • David Marsh • Teri McKeever • Bill Sweetenham From developing swimmers to building a winning program, teaching the nuances and refining stroke techniques to applying the latest research to training and conditioning programs, it’s all here. Endorsed by the World Swimming Coaches Association, this new collection is another landmark work in competitive swimming. If you coach the sport or want a competitive edge, The Swim Coaching Bible, Volume II, is a must-own.

For the last 25 years, a constraints-based framework has helped to inform the way that many sport scientists seek to understand performance, learning design and the development of expertise and talent in sport. The Constraints-Led Approach: Principles for Sports Coaching and Practice Design provides students and practitioners with the theoretical knowledge required to implement constraints-led approaches in their work. Seeking to bridge the divide between theory and practice, the book sets out an ‘environment design framework’, including practical tools and guidance for the application of the framework in coaching and skill acquisition settings. It includes chapters on constraints-led approaches in golf, athletics and hockey, and provides applied reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students of motor learning, skill acquisition and developing sport expertise. Providing a thorough grounding in the theory behind constraints-led approaches to skill acquisition, and a foundational cornerstone in the Routledge Studies in Constraints-Based Methodologies in Sport series, this is a vital pedagogical resource for students and practising sports coaches, physical education teachers and sport scientists alike.

The Constraints Led Approach: Principles for Sports Coaching and Practice Design provides students and practitioners with the theoretical knowledge required to implement constraints-led approaches in coaching and skill acquisition settings.

Each chapter in this reference explains why a particular sport science is important, discusses the central concerns of the science, and provides specific coaching applications for swimming. In addition, the book features over 50 illustrations, a dozen charts, and numerous sample practice plans.

The concept of positive pedagogy has transformed the way we understand learning and coaching in sport. Presenting examples of positive pedagogy in action, this book is the first to apply its basic principles to individual sports such as swimming, athletics, gymnastics and karate. Using the game based approach (GBA) (an athlete-centred, inquiry-based method that involves game-like activities), this book demonstrates how positive pedagogy can be successfully employed across a range of sports and levels of performance, while also providing insight into coaches’ experiences of this approach. Divided into three sections that focus on the development, characteristics and applications of positive pedagogy, it fills a gap in coaching literature by extending the latest developments of GBA to activities beyond team sports. It pioneers a way of coaching that is both efficient in improving performance and effective in promoting positive experiences of learning across all ages and abilities. Positive Pedagogy for Sport Coaching: Athlete-centred coaching for individual sports is invaluable reading for all sports coaching students as well as any practising coach or physical education teacher looking for inspiration.

The Swim Coaching Bible offers you an all-star, international cast of swimming experts sharing their knowledge on producing the most successful individual athletes and teams in the sport. This book is sure to be a classic—one that swimming coaches reach for again and again. Specifically, The Swim Coaching Bible covers the key principles of coaching and program administration, conducting effective practice sessions, teaching techniques for every stroke, and training programs for every event. Endorsed by the World Swimming Coaches Association, the book shares the wisdom of the world's best coaches, who address the topics they know best. Contributors include: Richard Quick: Believing in Belief Jean Freeman: Putting Fun Into the Swimming Experience Peter Daland: Coaching With Integrity John Leonard: Tailoring Your Approach to Specific Competition Levels Jack Bauerle: Administering and Marketing a Winning Program Skip Kenney: Developing a Successful Team Bill Sweetenham: Maximizing a Swimmer's Talent Development Jill Sterkel: Long- and Short-Range Planning Bruce R. Mason: Putting Science Into Practice Deryk Snelling: Applying the Art of Coaching Rick DeMont: Freestyle Technique Dick Hannula: Backstroke Technique Pablo Morales: Butterfly Technique David Salo: BreaststrokeTechnique John Trembley and Gary Fielder: Starts, Turns, and Finishes Michael Bottom: Freestyle Sprint Training Doug Frost: Freestyle Middle-Distance Training Dick Jochums: Freestyle Distance Training Eddie Reese: Backstroke and Butterfly Sprint Training Bill Rose: Backstroke and Butterfly 200-Meter Training Jon Urbanchek: Breaststroke Training Dick Shoulberg: Individual Medley Training David Marsh: Relay Training Randy Reese: Power Training Don Gambril: Preparing to Excel in Competition This is, without question, the most prolific and authoritative group ever assembled in a single swimming book. The Swim Coaching Bible is a book that will be treasured for many years to come.