Wednesday 7 January 2015

Better Coaching...

Better...

I've started learning a new language for Paraclimbing coaching and it is great to be doing this again. I have been learning Spanish for two years now and enjoyed the fact that it is fonetic. I'm in the very early stages of learning BSL (British Sign Language) with the alphabet cracked, some emotional word groups and colours (for climbing holds). I'm loving this and it has reminded me why I love the work I am trying to do with climbing.

Coaching is communication and not to be able to communicate and motivate a climber who is deaf would be like trying to coach a Spanish climber in Glaswegian! I used to work alongside a chap who was deaf when I was younger. He taught me a few signs but I used to watch how he watched others around us in the work place. This was interesting to me because I used to watch people closely (due to trust issues) trying to read their personality, their integrity, by how they were visually, not from what came out their gob. Actual words are just metaphorical anyway! Anyway... Long way to go and loving it...

See https://m.facebook.com/deafclimbinguk?_rdr

What?

Referrals from clients:



"...This training season I decided to get all the help I can to speed up my improvement. I needed guidance to work towards my goals in long term. I also needed more vision and opinions about my exercises and weak links. I am glad I can share my training with Mark..." (Ville Mustonen, Finland)


" I met Mark in Glen Nevis on his return to climbing to check out some lines he had in mind for me, I wasn't really training at this point but after a day or two talking and training with him I had a much more structured idea of what to do to improve and I did" (Kev Shields)