K4C Let's Play Athletics

Coaching at VRS

Dear Parent
Thank you for your inquiry and interest in extra coaching for your child. As I feel that it is extremely important to know ‘who is ‘working’ with your child’;
..... just a little bit more about myself:
-I am a qualified primary school teacher with a deep love for working with children. Training and sport is important and beneficial for children...but children must enjoy it and grow in confidence. A coach must ALWAYS build up, and not break down, a child. Only a person with a true love, understanding and ‘calling’ to work with children can do this.
-I am a qualified children’s life coach, most people focus so much on the achievements in sport that they tend to forget that sport achievement is 50% training and 50% emotional/psychological development and strength. We will talk about respecting your body, healthy eating, etc during warm ups. A whole ‘holistic’ approach to sport!
-I coached sprints, hurdles, long jump and middle distance for 5 years at a primary school in Table View, the Veledrome and at the Parrow track.
-I assisted in training my daughter who made the Western Province team in primary school (long jump, 75m hurdles, 150m hurdles and 800m), the Western Cape team (75m hurdles & 150m hurdles), 2 x top 10 at South-African championships and the Boland team (300m hurdles in high school).
-I did provincial participation in long jump, hurdles and middle distance myself. I do feel that this is important as you remember and understand emotions, feelings, fears....
-I designed a training program for primary school children (sprints, long jump, middle distance and hurdles), based on a lot of research, muscle development studies, emotional development research, talks with physiotherapists and more. This program was accredited by Let’s Play (according to strict criteria). I also completed a level 2 coaching course through Super Sport, specialising in these 4 events.

More about the training program:
My training program is definitely not only for very serious athletes or athletes who shows talent & potential. It is for any child (aged 8-13) who wants to train, learn a hurdle-, long jump- or running technique or who just love sports and want to stay strong, active, fit and healthy. All athletes will be treated equally important and will work towards their ‘own’ individual goal.
The new athletics season (according to the education department) actually starts next week with club meetings for primary schools in October already. The ‘winter training season’ for primary school children starts 1 June (at clubs and in most other suburbs). Athletes take 5-6 months to ‘peak’; meaning to run and achieve to their full potential. This is when they follow a steady constant, gradually ‘building-up’ training program that is suitable for their age. The zonal meetings take place end January already (5 months from now). Training double as hard for 2.5 months (does not equal)≠ steady training for 5 months. Some parents wait for winter sport to finish, and then let their child train very hard for 2 months expecting them to reach full potential because of extra hours put in during the 2 months. This is just ‘over loading’ muscles and no athlete can perform at their best potential and performance level like this. The muscles are developed (and growing) in such a way that they perform at top/best level after steady training and development over 5-6 months.
The training program will start Wednesday 30 August at Van Riebeeckstrand primary (17:30-18:30)
(use the small gate at the aftercare)
Mondays: Speed/Sprint training & Endurance for middle distances (choose one)
Tuesdays: Hurdles & fitness for athletes who doesn’t do hurdles (choose one)
Wednesdays: 800m, 1200m and 1500m training & Speed/Sprints (choose one)
Thursdays: Long Jump and Endurance/strength for sprinters & middle distance athletes who doesn’t do long jump (choose one)
(Some Saturdays)- Will be confirmed by Wednesdays: Strength, conditioning and fitness for all athletes.

*Training will be 17:30 – 18:30; Mon-Thurs. Saturdays will be 9:30 – 10:30
*We will warm up for 20-25 minutes; (jogging, stretching and ‘run throughs’ –short distances, high speed, doing different techniques)
*Training sessions will be with 15 athletes at a time. Our log book will be present and updated at every session. It is very encouraging for athletes to see their progress...and a very important ‘tool for a coach.
*Please book for your child at least 1 day prior to session he/she wants to attend. Should your child decide, last minute, to attend a session you are welcome to inquire availability. Should session not be full with 15 athletes yet your child will be welcome to join the session.
*Should you book a session, but for some reason your child can’t attend any more a 2 hour notice time is required. If you don’t inform me at least 2 hours prior to session you booked for, you will unfortunately be responsible for the R45 fee payable for this session.
*Should the weather not be suitable for training (we will never train in the rain), I will inform you via sms/whatsapp.
*We will choose a ‘best progress’-athlete every 2nd week (only athletes who attended at least 6 sessions during the 2 specific weeks will be considered). Chosen athlete will receive a meal voucher and certificate.
*As most meetings will be on tartan tracks it is important for more serious athletes to get the ‘feel’ of these tracks and also to get the confidence needed to run on these tracks. I will organise training sessions on a tartan track closer to the first meetings. I will also arrange for transport if you are unable to take your child.
*Training will carry on during October school holiday (times might change), we will also train for a certain time period during December/January (dates to be confirmed). Athletes mustn’t ‘loose’ their ‘hard-worked-for’ fitness and strength during this l-o-n-g holiday. So if you are going away or if we don’t train for a certain period, I will work out a training program for your child to follow during this time.

**Cost; R45/athlete/session; payable on the last day of training weekly. You can send the cash in a clearly marked envelope. Should your child book his/her last day and for some reason can't attend the session, fees for that week is payable at the first training session of the following week.
I will send out sms/whatsapp notifications.

I am busy getting everything sorted and in order to register as a club. This way we will enter club meetings from October already (great experience for the athletes), and lots of fun as athletes on ‘any’ and ‘all’ levels take part here.

I will have Club running tops ready to order soon.

To book please whatsapp/sms your child’s name, surname, age, chosen training item and day (084 5308543).
OR
e-mail to [email protected] / [email protected].

I will ‘actively’ update our page with videos, photos etc. of our hard working athletes!
I will also frequently keep parents updated on children’s progress, give recommendations, etc.

To ‘kick-off’ my very exciting coaching program at VRS your child will get 1 session free for every 2 friends he/she bring along during the month of September.

Mr. Pelser is 100% supportive of my program and just as excited!

Regards

Christelle Geustyn