So.............

Is anyone else nervous about answering your coaches questions even when your pretty dang sure you know the answer? I have this huge fear about being wrong. The sad thing is I actually DO get it much of the time. As an adult I'd like to think I wouldn't be worried about this.

Also, the very first day you learn something can you do it with your coach telling you but second guess yourself the next time alone? If so, why do we do this?!

Chico

__________________
"I truly believe, when God created skating, he patted himself on the back."

The fact that you care and that you're paying attention is all your coach cares about. If you saw some of the kids they have to teach--who get told the same thing 50 times and still give the coach a blank look--you would have a little more perspective, LOL! I used to worry about those things, but then I saw how clueless some of the kids were and it made me feel a lot better.

Chico: I think a "pop quiz" at any age could spark some anxiety. I am impressed that your coach asks questions. I assume about skills. My coach does not really seem to ask anything....about skills or even about me. I find that kind of odd as I have been working with her over 6 months and have the impression that she does not have a clue as to who I am. Appears to be a social skill problem as she does not seem to relate well with anyone. She does seem to appreciate my taking a social lead with her but it can be exhausting at times. She is not shy, just self absorbed or something. She is technically very good so I am forgiving of her style. Your post made me think that perhaps I should be questioned! lol.

I definitely relate to some second guessing of new skills introduced. No matter how I feel I understand something new in lesson, I am more hesitant that I did it "right" in practice. Skating is hard because you can't really "see" your form....and until you have repetitive muscle memory on something it is easy to get and then lose something. (I never know if my spiral is fully extended to this day!) I have found that I am a very verbal learner in skating. It helps to see something new but I do better remembering or even getting something in the first place if it is also described in detail. I feel more confident reviewing my practice if I have a "script" of it in my head.

I totally do...love my coach..funny guy...but he'll ask me questions about geometery in regards to skating and I feel like an idiot that I cant remember back to 10th grade and what that means haha. He's used to me now, so I'm pretty sure he doesnt think I'm "slow" just because I cant always answer anymore But I agree- as long as you pay attention and if you dont know the answer show interest in learning the coach will be happy. if you knew everything, you wouldnt need lessons right?

Better to be safe than sorry. If you're unsure of something, then definitely ask.

I actually know the answers to my coaches questions much of the time. I have this weird fear of being wrong. When I don't know, I'm okay on asking, but it's when I DO know that I choke. I think it in my head and usually hold my breath. I then tend to wait for her to confirm what I'm thinking or sometimes show her doing the skill. She has spent a few years with me now so maybe she's figured out that I have a issue with this. Maybe someday I'll get over this and in the meantime I'm glad I have company. And yes, DallasSlater. having your coach ask questions and actually talk to you about skills is great. I appreciate this aspect of my coaches teaching even if I don't handle it well. Try asking your coach if she could do this for you. Might be a new teaching idea.

Chico

__________________
"I truly believe, when God created skating, he patted himself on the back."

Asking is only a problem when the person who you're asking tells you that you're going overboard with questions, or finds you annoying if you're asking too much. If you really know the answer already, then just make a habit of not asking. And if the coach teaches things, then it's a good idea to write down in a note-pad the most important things that you're taught. Also, if you're doing something that's not quite right, the coach will probably ask you why you're doing it like that already.

My problem was never that I didn't know the answer to what my coach was asking. It was that I couldn't make my body do what my brain knew.

I find it helpful when my coach asks me questions - because when I mess up it makes me realize why - like when I first started I didnt realize I was dropping a hip or a shoulder and thats why I would fall, now I am slowly starting to feel when I do these things myself

My driving instructor (all those years ago) used to asked me questions, I found it a really good way to learn. It wasn't like putting pressure on me to know the right answers, the point was to make me look at mistakes I made, an analyse for myself why I was going wrong, rather than just being told 'do/don't do x y z'.

S xxx

__________________
There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness"