Learning to Improvise as a coach: Learn the Rules, then break them
There are a lot of misattributed quotes that go something like: “You have to know the rules before you can break the rules.” I’m pretty sure people attribute variations to both Picasso and the Dalai Lama. I’m not sure if either of them said it, but there’s truth in the sentiment.
Good coaching is often good preparation, but even the best plans fall apart when they confront reality. When you’re a new coach, you’ll need to spend a lot more time planning your sessions and anticipating problems, but as you gain experience, you’ll find yourself more and more comfortable with improvising on the fly.
Today’s post is on the importance of improvisation, and how to build up your coaching improv early, so you can stress out a bit less and have more fun in class.
Improvisation is simply an appropriate reaction to people, events, and the environment around you. Something happens and you act based on what you observe. This seems simple but can be quite tricky for a new coach. When we first start coaching, we focus so much on ourselves, it can be hard to look at what is happening.
A classic example is when new coaches are running a warm up, and they’re so focused on delivering their demonstrations and cues, they forget to pay attention to what the class is doing. Are members reproducing the movements you’re conveying? If not, make a few corrections or change the way you’re communicating the movement.
Improvisation can happen on multiple levels in a WildStrong class:
Quickly making up a new cue or correction to help one client with a specific issue.
For example the elbow clap cue wasn’t working as a cue for the kettlebell clean, but I remembered that the stinky armpit cue worked well with this client.
Changing your teachable chunk progression during a demonstration because you realise that your current strategy is either too advanced or too remedial for the current group.
One time Gill and I planned to run a slam ball workout but the group wasn’t strong enough, so we replaced the balls with smaller tyres.
Deciding to pull an entire component or progression out of a class because you realise it’s inappropriate or you’re running out of time.
For example, deciding to skip the second peer coaching element because you only have 15 minutes left to run the conditioning.
Deciding to change the conditioning format as you’re running it.
Realising that 4 rounds for time is way too much, so reducing it to 3 rounds for time. Or changing a 14 minute AMRAP to 12. Or reducing a run distance from 150 metres to 100 metres.
Common forms of Improvisation in Class
In a class, improvisation will generally take 3 forms, though I’m sure there are more variations.
What to take away.
What to add.
What to substitute.
What to take away.
By far the most common form of improvisation will be subtracting elements from a class. We generally over program components rather than under program. Everything takes longer than you think and it’s much easier to accidentally plan 90 minutes worth of content for a 60 minute class than it is to accidentally only program 30 minutes worth of content. You’ll almost never finish a class with 10 minutes to spare.
Remember your classes are usually going to be 60 minutes long. A general break down might look like this:
0-10: Introductions, Why, QOD.
10-20: Warm Up
20-35: Peer Coaching
35-45: Movement Prep and Conditioning Prep
45-60: Conditioning and debrief.
Everything looks nice and tidy but classes will rarely run so exactly. An actual class might look like this:
0-5: Chat and wait for everyone to show up.
5-7: Start QOD but then see 3 more people show up, so wait and welcome them.
7-15: Have a really good QOD with some chat and a few funny stories reliving past glories.
15-30: Warm up, plus a few corrections and refreshing some movements.
30-45: Peer coaching.
45-56: Movement prep took a bit longer than expected and some people needed to wee.
56-70: Conditioning.
You ran 10 minutes over. Not the end of the world, but might affect some people’s plans. It will definitely make it hard to start the next class on time.
Before you start a class, you should assume that you will start running over time and you should think about what you can cut or condense to get back on track. Have a rough schedule in your head. I generally estimate how much time I’ll need for movement prep and conditioning, round it up and try very hard to ensure I hit that mark. I think of this time as my soft cut off. Remember that movement prep and setting up the workout always take about 5 minutes longer than you expect.
Once I know my soft cut off time, I start to develop a hierarchy of components. What can I cut, what must I keep?
Some components of the class will ensure a smooth delivery, some can be considered redundant. For example, almost every warm up will include variations of movements that will show up again in the conditioning. Try not to cut those movements as they’ll save you coaching time. Similarly almost every peer coaching will have some element that is relevant to the final conditioning piece. On the other hand, there are usually supplementary movements or peer coaching elements that are important for long term development, but won’t directly tie into the success of your session.
Try to keep:
Components that are crucial for a smooth class.
The Why and a brief session explanation will convey important information and reduce the general level of confusion. This knowledge will also pass via osmosis to peer coaching partners and other members during warm up. It’ll keep confidence levels high.
Warm up movements that directly prepare members for movements or concepts seen in the peer coaching and conditioning. For example if the peer coaching and conditioning have lots of hinging work, keep it in the warm up so members are prepped ahead of time.
Warm up movements that will help with form and specific mobility. Many clients will need direct squat mobility work before they can achieve deep squats later in the class.
Peer coaching that teaches a relevant skill or concept that will help in the conditioning component.
Keep plenty of time for movement prep to demo and check movements used in the conditioning.
Consider cutting:
If you start late, keep the QOD short. Try not to ask too many follow ups, let people answer and move on.
In the warm up, try to identify the most important movements that will help with the peer coaching and conditioning. If some movements take a long time to run or coach and aren’t necessary, consider cutting a few out. For example squat complexes if there is no squatting in the rest of the class.
Aspects of peer coaching that don’t relate to the condition but instead focus on big concepts like back health or global positions.
Teachable chunks or progressions that are below the current level of the class. For example if everyone was hinging well during the warm up and seem to be comfortable with kettlebell swings, don’t feel obligated to do a full kettlebell swing introduction. Focus on the coaching elements that will refine problems you observe.
If you’re really behind, see if you can shave a few minutes off of the final AMRAP or take a round off of the final Rounds for Time.
What to add:
This is a rare problem. It’s unusual that you’d have the capacity to add components to a class. The only time I find myself adding components is if I’m testing a workout and it ends up being much quicker than I anticipated or if I’m demonstrating a movement and the class learns it much quicker than expected.
Examples:
I designed a workout that was 4 rounds for time. I assumed each round would take about 3-4 minutes so I was expecting a 12-16 minute conditioning. The first 2 rounds came in at about 90s each and nobody seemed to be slowing down. I announced that I would change the workout to 5 rounds for time and made a note for next time I run the session.
I had a session where I was planning to teach kettlebell swings during peer coaching, but it quickly became obvious that everyone in the group was competent in them. I changed the Peer Coaching Goal to establishing a new 15 rep max on KB swings and pushed everyone to try going heavier than they normally would.
What to substitute:
Substitutions will be one of the most improvisations you end up making. Most commonly, you’ll need to swap out contraindicated movements for more appropriate choices. We’ve talked about this elsewhere, so for brevity I won’t got into too much detail.
You won’t be able to fix everybody’s problems all at once. Some members won’t be able to perform a movement to your satisfaction. This is most important when thinking about safety.
Develop a roster of likely substitutions for common issues.
Examples include: goat hinges for swings, upper cut swings for snatches, safety cleans for kettlebell cleans, lunges for certain bilateral squat restrictions.
You’ll learn what substitutions work in different contexts.
Keep substitutions positive and encompassing. Try to ensure members get a similar experience.
Observe what is actually happening in the class, this may deviate from your lesson plans. If something doesn’t map over your expectations, feel free to change things up.
Know your whys and maintain the stimulus or the spirit of the programming.
Consider changing the goals of a peer coaching session if your original goal was naive.
Compromise between ‘perfect’ and good enough.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately improvisation builds on good preparation. If you know your whys, anticipate problems and think about likely substitutions, your improvisation will be much easier.
Remember to really observe what is happening in the class. Reality will quickly diverge from your lesson plans. Be sure to react to changes in timing, exercise selection or conditioning challenges. Make notes about what works and doesn’t work and try to incorporate your lessons into future sessions.
Overtime, improvisation will become more natural and your preparation load will decrease and your enjoyment will increase as you gain confidence and experience.
