Focused on: following directions, developing athleticism, and having fun!
These children are not yet ready for physical contact, it wouldn’t be safe to let them wrestle without direct supervision; better to use the time helping them to learn their bodies. Practice is about exercising, having fun, and learning to follow directions. Do they know what their elbows and knees are? Can they hop on one foot? Can they run around the cones? Can they do a bear-crawl? How about a tumblesault? Let’s have fun and get sweaty!
Mantras: “Try your best!” “You can do it!”
Key Fundamental Movements: Gymnastics
Key Wrestling Movements: None
Focused on: athleticism, fun, and safety!
These future champions need to learn their bodies and get used to rough play. Most of the class will be spent on athletic exercises like bear-crawling, duck-walking, hopping on 1 foot, tumbling, cart wheels, crab-walks, etc. They need to get stronger and more coordinated so that they can learn to wrestle next year. There will be a little bit of wrestling, but mostly wrestling based games like toe touch, sumo, dragon tails, “can you get off your back?”, “can you grab his wrist first?”, etc. No technique should be taught at this level (in the group setting); they are not ready for drilling at this age. They may be ready for live wrestling at this age, but only with direct supervision. This age is where wrestlers are the most delicate, as it only takes one hard fall for them to never want to wrestle again. These are our babies, and we are very protective of them. Let's get them sweaty! Every practice ends with a game.
Mantras: “Try your best!” “You can do it!”
Fundamental Movements: Gymnastics
Key Wrestling Movements: None
Focused on: athleticism, basic wrestling fundamentals, drilling, discipline.
This is our first real wrestling practice for children. They will learn the basics of wrestling, continue to develop their athleticism, and start learning the champions credo: “hard work pays off.” All movements drilled in practice are part of the Video Curriculum. Every practice ends with hard work.
Mantra: “Hard work pays off” “level change, head up”
Key fundamental movements: Stance and motion, level changes, shots (with a
level change), sprawl, bridging, proper gripping.
Key wrestling movements: Double leg, single leg, high crotch, half nelson (sink
it deep finish), switch, cement mixer, t-rex, dump truck, sprawl.
Focused on: athleticism, discipline, staying in their stance when they are drilling (no talking), setups, hard work.
Most of the technique shown should be based off the curriculum, but coaches can begin veering towards what they see as necessary. Kids are to be kicked out of practice for fooling around. They are not allowed to talk. This is a competition team. This team has a strong focus of preparing for state and national level events. Every kid should leave dripping in sweat. All pushups are always expected to be perfect.
Mantra: “I’m always in my stance when I’m drilling” “level change, head up”
“all shots involve a setup” “I only do perfect push-ups”
Key wrestling movements: setups leading into doubles, singles, and
high-crotches. Crab ride tilts (different entrees), half nelson with short hook finish (from the
knees and from flat), basic defensive strategies.
Focused on: explosiveness, intensity, chain wrestling, knowledge of finishing positions and defense.
This group is disciplined. These are the wrestlers that we are preparing to be varsity state champions. We only allow winning attitudes and positive roll models into this group. The purpose of this group is to build technical super-athletes who win; they will be pushed, a high standard is our expectation. They will understand the intricate details of finishing and defense. Every kid leaves practice dripping in sweat. All pushups are always perfect.
Mantras:
Key wrestling Movements: chain wrestling from neutral and top, leg riding,
tilts. Complex understanding of finishing/defense from critical positions.
Key wrestling positions: T-rex, single on the mat, single in the air, high
crotch on the mat (both wrestlers on both knees), high crotch with one wrestler on 1 knee and
the other standing, crackdown position.
Focused on: autonomy, chain wrestling, speed changing (slow and fast drilling), impenetrable defense.
In season workouts will be felt out by the coach. Depending on how the athletes feel and their upcoming competition schedules, practices will either be technical and light, or intense with a lot of live. Autonomy is encouraged, and each wrestler may be drilling different things related to a concept (ex: offense from the russian, tilts from top, chain wrestling from bottom, etc.). Partners should be meeting on their own outside of scheduled practice time to get their own workouts in.