Focus for Private Training

[Anonymous]

What is the best way to utilize private training?
Just let the trainer identify what to focus on? Or to request trainer focus on specific weaknesses.

A lot of trainers I see from afar seem to just run their own set routine irrespective of what player they are working with

[Anonymous]

What do you want to get out of private training? Overall improvement or something specific?

The best trainers will be able to identify your players weaknesses and create a plan to make improvements. Sometimes the full evaluation can take 3-5 sessions.

The worst trainers treat the training like a general workout which can be great but not worth the $$$ imo.

[Anonymous]

Any recommendations for private training/trainers in Virginia?

[Anonymous]

worst trainer is builtbyrome03

[Anonymous]

Work in specific weak areas - particularly that the team is working on in practice, but also what your kid is having trouble with comparatively so. Examples, crossing passes with both feet at speed. Receiving a crossing pass (one touch shot or control) at speed. Bringing a high ball down and trapping. In an hour’s session a kid can get a couple hundred reps with tips and instruction.

Will that make them an expert? Of course not. But, it will give them confidence that they can do it in a practice or game.

[Anonymous]

At a minimum, I would give the trainer some areas to focus on. And ask your kid what they would like to improve on also.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:worst trainer is builtbyrome03

Why?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At a minimum, I would give the trainer some areas to focus on. And ask your kid what they would like to improve on also.

+1 unless your private trainer is your coach, I’d absolutely show up with areas of focus. Otherwise you will get a generic workout.

[Anonymous]

Second the request for recommendations. Anyone have a private coach they think develops players well?

[Anonymous]

none... all they care about is making that extra money. they will sell you what you want to hear.

[Anonymous]

You will get something generic but probably at least age specific for your player.

The coach should ask to see a few games on video of your player, identify their position, identify areas to improve. Or they will ask you to ask your coach what to work on.

Otherwise you're just going to get some individual training with whatever that trainer likes to do with other players.

[Anonymous]

Private trainer here.

My take?

Most private trainers are not worth the money or time. Some are counterproductive and teach bad habits. A handful are step up from doing cone drills from YouTube. A few are very good.

The ones who are good typically are not cheap, have limited availability since players who start training tend to continue with them for longer periods of time, and are less flexible on location due to volume. I can tell you from my own experience it doesn't take that many players to completely fill reasonable training hours on a weekly basis when you don't have much turnover.

My recommendations for starting out:

First off, set realistic expectations. To see anything actually stick to the point it translates to the field consistently, you're usually looking at a minimum of 4-5 sessions. Think in seasons, not in weeks. If you think a few private training sessions is going to dramatically impact a player's performance in a game setting, it's time for a reality check. If a private trainer tells you 1-2 training sessions will turn your kid into Messi, run.

If you're serious about training, try a few trainers for trial sessions. Pay attention to how they communicate with you, how they structure and run the session, whether the drills are related/progressive at all, what they are emphasizing with coaching points, how they communicate with the player, etc. Ask them WHY they did certain drills and what the point is (you don't need to know enough to challenge them on it, you just need to use your BS meter to see if they know, or if they just give you a generic answer). It's shocking to me how few trainers can articulate this when I talk with them. Most importantly, ask the player what they think. They'll know pretty quickly whether they vibe with the trainer's coaching style and should be able to tell whether they want to continue and think it'll help them improve or not.

As others have said, a conversation with the team coach to understand what they are looking for from the player and specific areas they should work to improve on their own is the best place to start. Actively communicating this to the trainer as your starting point, and asking questions about how the trainer will teach this in an individual training setting will go a long way (and again, use your BS meter).

If the trainer is any good, they will start to identify things to work on going forward during the initial sessions and will talk with the player to find out how things are going, where they need work, what they want to improve, etc.

Hope this helps.

This actually has me thinking a dedicated thread that goes deeper into how private training works as an industry and more details on how to make it worthwhile, maybe even with a AMA component, might be helpful for parents. (Any takers?)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Private trainer here.

My take?

Most private trainers are not worth the money or time. Some are counterproductive and teach bad habits. A handful are step up from doing cone drills from YouTube. A few are very good.

The ones who are good typically are not cheap, have limited availability since players who start training tend to continue with them for longer periods of time, and are less flexible on location due to volume. I can tell you from my own experience it doesn't take that many players to completely fill reasonable training hours on a weekly basis when you don't have much turnover.

My recommendations for starting out:

First off, set realistic expectations. To see anything actually stick to the point it translates to the field consistently, you're usually looking at a minimum of 4-5 sessions. Think in seasons, not in weeks. If you think a few private training sessions is going to dramatically impact a player's performance in a game setting, it's time for a reality check. If a private trainer tells you 1-2 training sessions will turn your kid into Messi, run.

If you're serious about training, try a few trainers for trial sessions. Pay attention to how they communicate with you, how they structure and run the session, whether the drills are related/progressive at all, what they are emphasizing with coaching points, how they communicate with the player, etc. Ask them WHY they did certain drills and what the point is (you don't need to know enough to challenge them on it, you just need to use your BS meter to see if they know, or if they just give you a generic answer). It's shocking to me how few trainers can articulate this when I talk with them. Most importantly, ask the player what they think. They'll know pretty quickly whether they vibe with the trainer's coaching style and should be able to tell whether they want to continue and think it'll help them improve or not.

As others have said, a conversation with the team coach to understand what they are looking for from the player and specific areas they should work to improve on their own is the best place to start. Actively communicating this to the trainer as your starting point, and asking questions about how the trainer will teach this in an individual training setting will go a long way (and again, use your BS meter).

If the trainer is any good, they will start to identify things to work on going forward during the initial sessions and will talk with the player to find out how things are going, where they need work, what they want to improve, etc.

Hope this helps.

This actually has me thinking a dedicated thread that goes deeper into how private training works as an industry and more details on how to make it worthwhile, maybe even with a AMA component, might be helpful for parents. (Any takers?)

Yes, yes and yes. Don’t stop here. I’m interested in goal keeper training specifically.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
This actually has me thinking a dedicated thread that goes deeper into how private training works as an industry and more details on how to make it worthwhile, maybe even with a AMA component, might be helpful for parents. (Any takers?)

I think this would be very helpful for this board. Everything you said rings true from a recent (excellent) experience we had. He was expensive...but because he's getting back into it after a short break, we were fortunate to be able to get a slot. He wanted to know her primary position and big picture ideas of what she wanted to work on...but from there, the first session was designed as an "evaluation via training" session so he could begin customizing her sessions going forward (if we were to continue). Drills were progressive. Every touch was evaluated and very specific corrections made/practiced. Between drills, he asked if she liked the previous drill. I think that helped pull her into the training even more. It was very easy to see how what was being taught would translate into game day. And last, to some degree I feel like he was evaluating whether she was the type of player that he could help and wanted to work with.

I contrast this to several sessions we had with a former collegiate soccer player. Those sessions were absolutely personable, well-intentioned, and very good overall. But now in retrospect, they looked more like "practicing" vs. "training" (perhaps a subtle but very important distinction). I have no doubt that this is going to truly elevate her game and now makes me wonder if some of the truly great players we see out there have the benefit of this kind of training.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Private trainer here.

My take?

Most private trainers are not worth the money or time. Some are counterproductive and teach bad habits. A handful are step up from doing cone drills from YouTube. A few are very good.

The ones who are good typically are not cheap, have limited availability since players who start training tend to continue with them for longer periods of time, and are less flexible on location due to volume. I can tell you from my own experience it doesn't take that many players to completely fill reasonable training hours on a weekly basis when you don't have much turnover.

My recommendations for starting out:

First off, set realistic expectations. To see anything actually stick to the point it translates to the field consistently, you're usually looking at a minimum of 4-5 sessions. Think in seasons, not in weeks. If you think a few private training sessions is going to dramatically impact a player's performance in a game setting, it's time for a reality check. If a private trainer tells you 1-2 training sessions will turn your kid into Messi, run.

If you're serious about training, try a few trainers for trial sessions. Pay attention to how they communicate with you, how they structure and run the session, whether the drills are related/progressive at all, what they are emphasizing with coaching points, how they communicate with the player, etc. Ask them WHY they did certain drills and what the point is (you don't need to know enough to challenge them on it, you just need to use your BS meter to see if they know, or if they just give you a generic answer). It's shocking to me how few trainers can articulate this when I talk with them. Most importantly, ask the player what they think. They'll know pretty quickly whether they vibe with the trainer's coaching style and should be able to tell whether they want to continue and think it'll help them improve or not.

As others have said, a conversation with the team coach to understand what they are looking for from the player and specific areas they should work to improve on their own is the best place to start. Actively communicating this to the trainer as your starting point, and asking questions about how the trainer will teach this in an individual training setting will go a long way (and again, use your BS meter).

If the trainer is any good, they will start to identify things to work on going forward during the initial sessions and will talk with the player to find out how things are going, where they need work, what they want to improve, etc.

Hope this helps.

This actually has me thinking a dedicated thread that goes deeper into how private training works as an industry and more details on how to make it worthwhile, maybe even with a AMA component, might be helpful for parents. (Any takers?)

Yeah that sounds interesting. I've got four boys and one of them has genuine talent, and love for, soccer; he's on an MLS Next team. He's told me that a couple of players on his team have been working with private trainers for years. While it's probably not something that we can afford anyway, I wouldn't even know where to begin looking for supplemental private training or what to look for -- I'm not a soccer guy myself.

But I got him a rebounder and he has fun "training" on his own in the driveway, so at least that's something!