Stage 3: Seeing and Correcting

• Seeing: Distinguishing good from poor movement mechanics and identifying gross and subtle faults whether the athlete is in motion or static
• A skilled trainer assesses mechanical positions effectively, a capacity known as "seeing."
• "Seeing" is the first step for a trainer to improve a client's mechanics and relies on the trainer's teaching knowledge.
• Trainers must understand optimal mechanical leverage and the impact of anthropometrics.
• A trainer will not identify correctable issues without knowing what to look for.

Static Faults

• Visual-recognition skills apply whether the athlete is static or dynamic.
• Static positions occur when the athlete is briefly not moving, typically at the end of a motion's range.
• These positions are often where speed decreases or direction changes, like the setup of a deadlift or the bottom of a squat.
• Identifying faults is easier in static positions due to longer assessment time.

Dynamic Faults

• Dynamic positions involve athlete movement between static positions, often at high speed
• Dynamic faults include failing to reach full hip extension during a clean's drive phase, pressing early during push press, or initiating a the squat with the knees
• Dynamic faults are harder to spot due to less assessment time
• Trainers need to know when and where to identify faults during movement.
• Use the profile view of the athlete, offset by about 45 degrees, to assess athlete mechanics
• Identifying dynamic faults becomes more difficult as the athlete's movement speed increases and the faults become more subtle.
• Study film and slow movement to identify faults
• Focus on one fault at a time and watch to see if the athlete is driving through their heels.

Correcting

• Correcting is improving athlete mechanics through visual, verbal, and tactile cues; it involves prioritizing faults based on their relationships.
• The ability to improve mechanics depends on teaching and "seeing" skills, both of which are based on solid knowledge and identification.
• Limited capacity in either teaching or seeing weakens correcting ability.
• Correcting enhances performance and reduces injury risk.
• Mechanics can be continuously refined to improve efficiency.
• Strive for excellent mechanics and don't settle for "OK" movement
• Correct gross and subtle deviations for all athletes.
• Maintain high movement standards and continuously seek improvement

Correcting hinges on the trainer's ability to:

• Use successful cues
• Know multiple corrections for each fault
• Triage faulty movement
• Balance critique with praise

Cues

• Any cue that improves movement is effective, and its value is based on the result.
• Cues help athletes execute perfect mechanics rather than perfectly describe the mechanics.
• Example cue: "weight in heels" to shift weight back and improve foot pressure distribution.
• Short, specific, and actionable cues achieve higher success.
• Example: “Push your knees out” is short, specific to the body (knees), and indicates the direction (out).
• Trainers can confuse cueing with fault identification.
• Avoid technical language that is vague
• Keep cues simple and understandable for everyone.
• Avoid imprecise directions like “Get tight!”

A basic three-step process for developing short, specific, and actionable cues:

• Identify the fault
• Specify what is out of place (name the body part)
• Give the direction to that body part

Strategies

• Use multiple cues until the fault is corrected because effectiveness varies among athletes.
• Develop corrective strategies for faults, building verbal, visual, and tactile cues.
• Macro-Micro-Macro coaching presents the big picture, zooms in on specific corrections, and returns to the big picture to connect details to overall goals.

Triaging Faults

• Correcting one fault at a time is best achieved by triaging faults.
• Prioritize faults affecting risk for injury for the greatest potential to limit performance
• In loaded environments, the priority fault would be loss of a neutral spine, usually in flexion
• After fixing one fault, move onto the next.
• After choosing what fault to address, the trainer needs to know how the various faults are related.
• Address rounded back with the cue to “Push the knees out" to help the pelvis create a neutral spine.

Assess and Give Feedback

• After giving a cue, assess its result, and provide feedback.
• Inform the athlete if the movement was the same, better, or worse with acknowledgments like, "That's better” or, “Good correction," to helps improve the athlete develop kinaesthetic awareness.
• For improved movement, encourage more in the same direction. For unchanged movement, tell the athlete, “Not there yet.”
• Do not repeat unsuccessful cues, find a new one
• If movement worsens, recognize this and reverse it.
• Monitor the effect of a cue and provide feedback to help improve movement.
• Precision in word choice is crucial; reserve “good” or “better” for actual sound or improved mechanics only.
• Praise effort to reinforce hard work, but clarify that it is not praise for the athlete, but their willingness to work hard and helps the client remain willing to continue to work hard.