About 8 minute read
Before practice
Plan to arrive about 10 minutes early. That gives wrestlers time to check their weight, get dressed if needed, put on wrestling shoes and be ready when practice begins. Bring your own water bottle.
Weekly weight checks
Wrestlers may check their weight at every practice. Jr Wildcats expects each wrestler to weigh at least once each week, preferably at the wrestler's first practice of the week.
Knowing and recording current weight helps coaches enter wrestlers into appropriate tournament weight classes and acceptable brackets. Jr Wildcats generally discourages weight cutting, particularly for younger athletes. Our priority is healthy wrestlers learning and competing.
Once a wrestler has already been entered for a future tournament at a particular weight, maintaining that registered weight may matter. Tournament policies vary: some events can move a wrestler when weight changes, while others may scratch an athlete who does not make the entered weight, which can also mean losing the entry fee. Talk with a coach before making decisions about tournament weight.
Parents and other spectators
Parents and other spectators normally watch regular practices from our designated viewing areas rather than remaining inside the wrestling rooms. Parents may come in when needed to help a young wrestler with shoes, approach the Board table for club business, or when coaches invite families in for an activity such as King of the Ring.
Our parent room has a two-way observation window so adults can watch while wrestlers stay focused on practice. Video monitors also provide views of the main and back practice rooms. Coaches and wrestlers therefore remain observable while unnecessary distractions are kept away from the mat.
Keeping parents and other spectators outside the wrestling rooms reduces conversation, movement and interruptions while coaches are teaching technique or talking about mindset, effort and sportsmanship. It also helps young wrestlers learn to listen to their coaches and work through manageable bumps, frustrations and disappointments without immediately looking across the room for a parent's reaction.
Board members may be seated in the main room to assist with club operations. Parents may approach the Board table when needed, but should not pull up a chair or remain in the room to watch regular practice.
What happens at practice?
Practices follow the coaches' training plans and commonly include:
- Warm-ups and movement
- Technique instruction
- Motivation and mindset discussions
- Drilling and repetition
- Live wrestling
- Games or competitive activities when appropriate
Games are not necessarily part of every practice. They may occur toward the end of the week or when the group has progressed far enough through the planned instruction.
Wrestling shoes stay inside
Put wrestling shoes on inside the building and take them off before going outdoors. This protects both the wrestlers and our mats. See Wrestling Hygiene & Equipment Care for why this matters.
At the end of the week
After the final practice of the week, families should be prepared to help return our Lions Club facility to its weekend configuration. See Our Wrestling Home: Caring for the Lions Club Facility for more information.