“What does good coaching look like?”
It’s a question I’m asked often. And I can’t say I have a definitive answer. I’ve had coaches who were laid back and patient and coaches who were not that, and made a tornado look like a gentle Spring breeze.
In health/fitness circles, much like athletics, there’s a gamut of coaching personalities. On one end you have those coaches who are more observant and calculated with their feedback, seamingly Obi-Wan’esque with their cues and commentary.
And on the other end you have those who, for lack of a better phrase, come across as bat-shit crazy.
To their credit (“their” = celebrity/tv trainers): they do motivate people, and they do get results. Kinda. And they’re on tv, so they clearly know what they’re doing. (<— note sarcasm).
Who am I to say which “version” of a coach is better than the other? There are success stories on each side of the spectrum. However, I find the most successful coaches/personal trainers, and the ones I respect the most, are those who get results, but are also empathetic towards their clients.
There’s a time and place to be the drill sergeant. But it’s a time that’s few and far between. And, just to toss it out there: if these so called “celebrity/tv trainers” many people look up to as the creme of the crop were so good and so effective, why then do a large percentage of their “clients” tend to regain their weight back?
But then the counterpoint can be made that many of these shows – like The Biggest Loser – only exist because the objective is to see who can lose the most amount of weight in “x amount of time.” In that sense, the coaches are doing their job. Very, very well mind you.
It’s a massive catch-22 of Hellerian proportions.
However, if you ask me…it’s less coaching and more a crash course in clusterfuckery. But I’m getting off on too much of a tangent. Shane McLean did me a solid and put together this excellent guest post today on the idea of what entails “good coaching?”
Enjoy.
What Does Good Coaching Look Like?
Recently, I was watching my 10-year-old son play his rec-league soccer game. To say they were getting beaten was an understatement, and everyone on our sideline was getting frustrated.
The coach was screaming at the kids, the refs and pretty much anything else that moved. In the second half, with the result absolutely in no doubt, one of our kids misplayed a ball and the coach snapped.
Copyright: franckito / 123RF Stock Photo
“SHIT,” he screamed, loud enough that everyone could hear. My oldest son thought this was hilarious, and I had to explain to him why this was not good coaching.
Swearing in front of children to get your point across is an example of poor coaching in my humble opinion.
However, people who haven’t been exposed to a lot of quality coaching in their lifetime may think all coaches behave like
- Middle school P.E teacher.
- Swearing soccer coach.
- Weight loss coaches on reality TV.
- Lou Gossett Jr in an Officer and a Gentlemen.
Or
- All the above
Warning- Colorful language alert.
Since becoming a coach, I have witnessed the good, the bad and the ugly side of coaching. I’m inspired by great coaching. However, I wanted to beat my head repeatedly on a brick wall when I witnessed this incident back in 2013.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=MmD_KbwX8IE
No coach who draws a paycheck should ever behave like this. Intidation and fear is not the way to get the best out of people, and it’s coaching at its worst.
Good coaching, on the other hand, mostly happens behind the scenes. It is out of the spotlight where a coach motivates, inspires and pushes the athletes or clients to become the best they can be.
With that in mind, I reached out to some experienced coaches and asked them to give their thoughts on what good coaching is and what it should look like. You may be surprised that it’s nothing like drill sergeant Lou.
1) Tony Gentilcore (The man needs no introduction)
Good coaching should like coaching. How’s that for playing the Captain Obvious card?
What I mean is: good coaching is ACTIVE. It’s about being engaged and present. When I coach, I coach at 90 degree angles; I’m moving, I’m like shark. If someone’s squatting I’ll take a peek from the front, from the side, and from the back.
I’m not just standing there passively counting out reps like a drone.
Also, to speak candidly, I think a lot of shitty coaches’ mask how shitty they are by playing the rah-rah, excessively boisterous card. You know the type: always yelling and being way too loud.
There’s a time and place for that kind of behavior or course, but I find the “good” coaches tend to be more mild-mannered, meticulous, and reserved in their style.
They’ll watch a set, let the client/athlete marinate in their thoughts for a few seconds, and then offer feedback. Less is better often than not.
What’s the best pieces of coaching advice you’ve received?
- “You have two ears, two eyes, and one mouth, use them in that order.”
- “It’s not about you, it’s about the client.”
2) Robbie Bagby, MS, CSCS, Pn1.
Good coaching is making and building a connection with the athletes or clients you train. It’s not 
just counting reps and throwing some exercises together and calling it a program. It’s training people with an intent to make an impact on their lives.
What’s the best piece of coaching advice you’ve received?
Clients don’t know how much you know until they know how much you care. This is something that I’ve heard from several others and I think it took a while before I realized how true it was.
You can have all the certifications and education in the world but if you don’t know how to treat those you work with, they won’t stick around for long.
3) Pat Rigsby – Father. Husband. Entrepreneur. Coach. Author
Good coaching looks a bit like good parenting. It’s a combination of everything from teaching and motivation to providing boundaries and developing habits…all with a focus on helping the client become a better version of themselves and ultimately achieve their potential. So, coaching is no one thing…it’s a combination of many things.
The best piece of coaching advice you’ve ever received?
That it’s not about what you know, say or do. It’s about what the client or athlete gets from the interaction. Did they improve? Did they move closer to their goals?
As a coach, your role is to facilitate the improvement of those you serve, not simply to collect information.
4) Lawrence Judd – Shredded By Science
Good coaching isn’t just about crunching the numbers. Appropriate exercise prescription and 
nutritional counselling are just a small part of a successful coach-client relationship – “Good Coaching” also considers client education, appreciates the value of effective communication and looks to empower the client in as many ways as possible.
The best piece of coaching advice you’ve ever received?
It’s very hard for me to pinpoint one single piece of advice – I’m fairly sponge-like when it comes to soaking up advice and information. However, I can honestly say that the tutelage I received from Dr. Mike Zourdos as a part of the SBS Academy completely revolutionized the way I write training programs.
I’ve also been incredibly lucky to spend time with the 3DMJ team, the Lift The Bar team and the other coaches who make up Shredded By Science – I’ve learnt countless things from all of them.
5) Nick Tumminello – CPT, author of Strength for Fat Loss and Building Muscle and Performance.
Coaching is about communication of your knowledge of the X’s and O’s of training and programming. So, “good coaching” looks like a good relationship between the trainer and the people they’re currently working with.
A good coach isn’t just someone who has great technical knowledge, but is also someone who recognizes how best to communicate with each individual in a way that they’ll buy into and get the cited about they’re training direction.
What’s the best pieces of coaching advice you’ve received?
The best piece of coaching advice I’ve received is from Bruce Lee. Although he was talking about different styles of martial arts, his advice to not be married to one style applies perfectly to the training and conditioning arena.
All training styles have different benefits and limitations, so taking a mixed approach to training – an approach that looks at different reasoning styles as mutually complimentary instead of as mutually exclusive – is ultimately a smarter approach.
6) Kimberly Mills – Personal Trainer/Nutrition coach
As someone who has had some outstanding trainers guide me toward my goals, and now as a trainer myself, it is my belief that a good trainer is someone who avoids cookie cutter programs where they are doing the same exact workout with each and every one of their clients.
Each client has different goals and different needs based on those goals. Each client also has other personal considerations (including exercise background) and personal exercise preferences that should also be addressed when designing their client’s program.
To me a good trainer/coach will take all these factors into account and develop an exercise program individualized to the client, starting the client where they are and guiding them towards their goals in a safe, efficient and effective manner that will help the client successfully reach their goals.
What’s the best piece of coaching advice you’ve received?
One of the best pieces of coaching advice I have received is from my mentor Nick Tumminello: When working with a client, instead of trying to fit individuals to certain exercises, you should instead fit the exercises to the individual.
What Do YOU Think?
Share your comments, opinions, stories in the comments section.
