is it worth it to hire a badminton coach?

Discussion in 'Techniques / Training' started by reytave, Jul 1, 2013.

  1. reytave

    reytave Regular Member

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    hello fellow badminton enthusiasts! :D what's your opinion on my question as stated on the subject? i've been playing badminton for exactly one year and i'm really addicted to it. i rarely miss our club's weekly games. ever since i started a year ago, i've made a lot of improvements. from a total beginner with 0 knowledge about badminton, i'm now able to play at least at par or sometimes beat those players who have been playing for years when i first started. i've watched countless badminton tutorial videos on youtube including all videos of lee jae bok and ZhaoJianHua & XiaoJie. i then try to practice them whenever i can during our badminton games. However, i know that I'm still doing a lot of things wrong. haha! i really want to refine my game to master at least the basics especially the footwork. my plan is to join in a group session first with my friends, obviously to save cost. after that, i'll go for a few sessions of 1 on 1 to further improve my game. this way, the coach can inform me even of my slightest mistakes. so back to my question, is it worth it? and do you agree with my plan? any input would be valuable. :D
     
  2. reytave

    reytave Regular Member

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    by the way, i rewatch these videos once in a while and evaluate whether i'm able to implement them on my game. so far it's been effective. i'm able to improve my game slightly week by week. of course that's just me. i don't know what a badminton coach has to say. hehe.
     
  3. MSeeley

    MSeeley Regular Member

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    If you are serious about improving, hire a coach. You will not succeed without one. If you are happy just enjoying the game, don't bother. You can still reach a reasonable standard through self learning, but you will never be an "elite" player (county standard +)

    Good luck :)
     
  4. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    There are a few things about coaching to bear in mind:

    1) each coach and student have different teaching and learning styles. So a good coach for one student may not necessarily work for another.
    2) it takes a bit of time for the coach to work out what a student can or can't do in terms of physical limits.
    3) learning depends on the student's motivation. A well focused attitude during the lesson will get you further
    4) taking a notebook, scribbling some notes and looking back at them goes a long way. Even a smartphone video of racquet techniques would be very helpful.
    5) 1 on 1 is good, IMO 1 coach in 2 students gets you more. The student who has a rest can pick up shuttles whilst the other is training an vice versa. You then get more value for money out of the coach! (Apologies to the coach who would have to work harder!!:p)
    6) frequency is important. Once a week is OK, but difficult to groove a shot at that frequency. So having some weeks of two lessons per week will see a tremendous improvement.
    7) you don't see short term benefits, it can take a year or more. The worst part is trying to unlearn bad habits.
    8) set a specific target - that helps the coach adjust a level for you. Saying 'I want to improve' is too vague - the coach may think 5-10% improvement will satisfy you. Tell him 'I aim to win district tournaments/get to A grade' and he's going to take you seriously
    9) show the coach an intense learning attitude and he'll show you more
     
  5. MSeeley

    MSeeley Regular Member

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    That is an excellent post.
     
  6. Orangie

    Orangie Regular Member

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    Ain't you hooked now:D Your journey seems so similiar to mine.

    Here's my POV.

    Things ought to do before looking for a coach:

    Lose some weight if need to. Target BMI to be within healthy range. 18-23.
    Train up stamina. Run long distance and burst sprint.
    Build stronger arms, shoulder, fingers, abs, back, tighs and calf... bla bla... ie overall fitness and strength.
    Stay injury free.

    Once you are fit and strong, get a coach to help polish your skills and technique.
    Have seen coaches toying with the fitness of trainees.

    I always believe that one has to be fast to the correct spot in order to excute a good return. A good return would not put you in a difficult spot.

    My 2cts. Enjoy tour journey!;)
     
  7. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    Thank you:)

    Good points with the following

    - yes, it's true some coaches work on the fitness. I see it happen more in group classes rather than one to one.
    - you do not have to be fast all the time. Fast is good but other aspects such as rhythm, balance, controlling your centre of balance and knowing how to destroy your balance are equally important to maximising your efficiency of movement.


    For my personal opinion, although group classes are cheaper, you don't actually pick up much in terms of technique. You can find out what is correct but the second step of doing the correct technique yourself few people can master in a group class. Why? 1) Because it's difficult for the coach to give each person in the group enough individual attention to correct the technique, 2) the rate of feeding shots is much lower. e.g. a group class you may only get 30 attempts at a particular shot, one on one/two coaching gets you possibly double that number of attempts.

    Group classes does have some benefits - socialising, judging your progress against others in the group develop insight when you see other people's imperfect technique.





    Take learning a new language as an analogy - in a group class, you learn how to say words imperfectly, smaller classes, you learn how to say it better. With very small classes, you get to practice your speech much better with someone who is interacting with you.
     
  8. reytave

    reytave Regular Member

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    thank you very much cheung! these are very valuable inputs. i'm very passionate about the sports and i really want to learn and excel. i'll make sure the coach knows that. hehe. i also think having a partner on the coaching session is best. we split the cost but the coach will still be able to give enough focus to each one of us. i will also have a training partner outside of the coaching sessions. i'll make sure to ask the coach for drills that the 2 of us can do. i'll also make sure to get a partner that is as passionate and determined as me. that way, we influence one another and we both excel. :D
     
  9. reytave

    reytave Regular Member

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    thank you for pointing that out orangie. i really need to improve my physical fitness so i can make the most out of the coaching session. i cannot continue with the drills if i get tired easily. i think i'm slightly above my bmi so i need to lighten up big time. i'll do a lot of jogging and sprinting as well as weight training. :D
     
  10. reytave

    reytave Regular Member

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    by the way, could you give me an idea on how much the cost is per hour for a 1 on 1 coaching? a range will do.
     
  11. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    You are welcome.

    I had the experience of two different coaches in group classes - both very well known locally producing some excellent players. But I felt it was difficult to follow their technique - was it because of being in a group class? I followed another coach for one on two lessons for about a year and half. It gave me time to absorb and reflect technical details that I cannot get from the group class. But it was hard to start from the beginning again, to try and build stronger basic technique and footwork. Had to accept my game would get worse for a while in the process of building up.

    I also started off with singles training. You need to train proper basic footwork and balance for this so the coach has to be very clear on how to place the feet in different situations. The advantage is that if this is taught well, moving around to the shuttle is much easier in all situations.
     
    #11 Cheung, Jul 1, 2013
    Last edited: Jul 1, 2013
  12. Ton-Min-Bad

    Ton-Min-Bad Regular Member

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    If the coach really knows his stuff and is able to explain it to you, then I'd say yes. *;-)*
     
  13. captaincook

    captaincook Regular Member

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    Can you expand on the destroy your balance and its application? Get ready to dive for slice smash ?
     
  14. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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  15. vajrasattva

    vajrasattva Regular Member

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  16. gundamzaku

    gundamzaku Regular Member

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    whether coaching is worth the money is really personal, depending on how much you're willing to pay for coaching as well as how important it is for you to improve and your goals.

    i've trained a few months under a coach for college open tournaments mainly to get myself up to the level of my partner's. and since i got the basics down pretty good, i just train with a partner to improve on consistency. now that i don't participate in local tournaments, i don't feel that i need a coach even tho i want to improve.

    i do think, however, that some form of coaching is beneficial for you, as a beginner, so that you can get instructions on the basics and to execute them correctly, most importantly your footwork, and your stroke. :)
     
  17. captaincook

    captaincook Regular Member

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    Can't agree more.
     
  18. Rykard

    Rykard Regular Member

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    personnaly I think getting some coaching is a good idea - correct technique should lead to less injuries
     
  19. shooting stroke

    shooting stroke Regular Member

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    Hi there,

    Excellent and valuable pointers have been highlighted here. Should by itself be another specific thread as a guideline for those who has an intention to hire a badminton coach.

    Its always has been the criteria that when it comes to the issue of "is it worth hiring a coach", the quality of such coaching outcomes derives from the perspectives of how their student/s evaluate their coach's coaching style, knowledge, personality etc. If we carefully understand that in any process of learning, the effectiveness of any information delivered regardless if it is a theory or practical in nature, it requires an effective 2 way mutual communication between a teacher and his student, in this case between a badminton coach and his learner. This effective way of connection will then create "a bond" between coach and his student which will then drastically influences much of the outcome of the coaching delivered. The closer and more harmony the bond similarly like a father to a son (i.e Datuk Misbun and Datuk LCW), more improvements will follow. One most important criteria that will much influences the nature of such bond is the character that you have inside you as a learner as far as if you're dedicated to learn badminton is concern.

    You can have the best coach available on earth but then, if his student don't have the right attitude inside his heart and mind then no theory and practical knowledge that his coach teaches him will be as beneficial as he hope since he hasn't set within himself first the correct character and quality as a quality learner in order to facilitate and support his coach quest in guiding him to become a better player at the first place. In the other words, before a student want to evaluate whether is it worth hiring a coach, it is very important also at the same time that he must evaluate himself whether he has the right mental and character attitude inside him to become a motivated and highly discipline student as his student. If such character exist then it will be a very valuable asset to have a coach with you to guide you since you have already what it takes to become a better player mentally and it is just a matter of your pure dedication and motivation towards following your coaching structure to further improve how you play.

    SS
     
  20. reytave

    reytave Regular Member

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    hello guys! thank you very much for all your input here. I've already got a coach and had 2 sessions with him. I think we're getting along very well. My game has definitely improved which my group has noticed. hehehe. Thanks to my coach! :D
     

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