An Open Letter to Athletes: You MUST advocate for yourself. Here’s how.
Dear Athlete,
Whether you’re 10 or you’re 22, it’s important to speak up for yourself.
Today, I’m talking to you about your physical health. Coaches cannot read your mind or feel what you feel. If something feels uncomfortable, off, or painful, it’s up to you to alert them.
“But Coach J, I’ve gotten used to ‘playing through the pain.’ It’s fine.” you say.
I get it. I have been there as an athlete, and it led to injuries that took me out of my sport for months at a time. It resulted in expensive surgeries and a lot of aches and pains as I have gotten older. All because I kept the pain to myself and didn’t tell my coach because I was afraid that I would disappoint them.
Advocate (noun): the ability to speak up for yourself
That’s what advocacy means. And you’ll face situations like this in your athletic career, guaranteed.
Pain is like an Engine Light on a Car Dashboard
Playing through the pain is not something that your coach should expect you to do habitually. Pain is the way your body tells you that something is wrong, and something needs to be fixed. It’s like the engine light on a car dashboard. You see it come on? You better be going to a mechanic.
Does the idea of talking to your coach about this feel intimidating, or does it make you feel anxious? That’s normal. This is one of those moments where you get to grow. Your coach will respect you more and be proud of you if you are up front with them.
Advocacy Rules of Thumb
Follow this blueprint.
Address the WHAT, WHERE, WHY, and HOW when advocating for yourself
Address the “what:” What your body is feeling
Address the “where:” Where you’re feeling it
Address the “why:” Why your body feels this way (only if you know— it’s okay if you don’t)
Address the “how:” How you want to solve the issue in the short term
ROLEPLAY
Let’s pretend you’re an athlete that is feeling some knee pain after doing something new at practice.
You:
“Hey Coach, I’m starting to feel some pain (what) in my knee (where). This isn’t something I’ve felt before, and I’m not sure why it’s feeling like this. Can I sit out a few minutes and do some mobility and stretching and then get back in (how)?”
A Good Coach or Trainer:
”Thanks for telling me. Take a break, do some stretches and mobility (or go see the Athletic Trainer) and let me know when you can get back in. If you can’t, that’s fine, too. We’ll figure out how to help you get better.”
Assuming you aren’t a person that cries wolf all the time, this is how most of your conversations should go. However, sometimes coaches don’t respond this way. Let’s talk about red flags to look out for and how to handle it.
Red Flag Behaviors
If a coach responds to your advocacy in any of the following ways, it may be time to involve a parent, guardian, or another coach on your behalf.
Tells you to put some tape or a brace on it as a long term fix with no evaluation
Tells you to push through pain habitually with no evaluation
Tells you not to “get bulky” after you tell them you are lifting weights (this isn’t gonna happen if you are female by the way, you don’t have enough testosterone)
Tells you to put more weight on the bar or to keep going when you’ve told them that you need to shut it down for the day
Threatens to negatively affect your grade or your playing time based on how you are training outside of school
If any of the above happen, it’s probably a good time to let your parent or guardian know, or at least another coach that you trust. They can help you address the issue further.
How Raymer Strength helps athletes advocate
An athlete performing an overhead squat - one of the Functional Movement Screeen evaluations
Our strength coaches run every new athlete through a Functional Movement Screen (FMS) that identifies imbalances in the body. This can inform us on what an athlete needs to avoid doing, or keep an eye on, until a mobility issue is corrected. We then provide mobility programs to help the athletes correct this imbalance.
When signed off on by a parent or guardian, we go the extra mile to partner with an athlete’s support team (doctors, physical therapists, athletic trainers, school strength coaches etc.) to help plug into the overall wellness or recovery strategy of the athlete.
We encourage our athletes to be upfront about their FMS results with their coaches they see outside of our facility. Here’s how we encourage them to approach the topic.
ROLEPLAY
Let’s pretend that you’re an athlete with poor ankle mobility. You’d need to keep an eye on any surrounding ankle pain during sprints, change of direction, and deceleration while you work on improving it.
You:
”Hey Coach, my private strength coach assessed my mobility and movement and told me that I have poor ankle mobility. They told me to keep an eye on any pain around my ankles while sprinting, doing cuts, or rapid deceleration. So, if I experience pain and let you know, now you have some context. I’ve got some drills to work on the issue, but it isn’t fixed yet.”
Coach:
”Awesome. Thanks for letting me know about it ahead of time. What can I do to help you improve your ankle mobility?”
Conclusion
Athletes, your long term health and wellness is a marathon, not a sprint. Being proactive about an issue now can mean more playing time, and more opportunities to get better at your sport in the long run.
Coaches and trainers should be in your corner with the end goal of supporting your long term health. A coach that responds with the red flag behaviors we’ve listed could mean that you are playing for or training with the wrong person. Your health and safety is more important than any game or any training session.
You are your best advocate. You got this!
Interested in receiving a free movement assessment so that you can better advocate for yourself?