Do female athletes need female coaches?
Often athletes come to us with a view that they must have a male or a female coach. Regularly, there are prejudices associated with that conclusion. In this article, Coach Diogo reflects on it from a coach’s viewpoint.
The first question we should ask is: “What do you want from a Coach?”
Coach Alan recently wrote that ‘All athletes should be treated uniquely’, and I can’t agree more. Every athlete, male or female, is a unique person, and one of the principles of training is Individualisation; the same recipe will not produce the same result. This is true for all athletes, regardless of sex, age or experience. Generalising that a female coach can only coach female athletes is the same as suggesting that any coach can coach any athlete. It simply isn’t true and misses the point of coaching an individual.
The physiology is different
There is a difference in physiology between the sexes. The degree that it impacts female athletes is yet to be fully understood, but there are many differences. Arguably male coaches have a lot more to learn here, whereas female coaches will be more aware of practical solutions to any practical problems. For example, on a recent course, the female tutor spoke about always having a small sponge bag of tampons and other items in case a young athlete’s period started. It is a lot harder to think like this as a male coach because we haven’t been in that situation. Nevertheless, anyone can become a subject matter expert when it comes to the science behind female hormone fluctuations.
Perhaps some men are uncomfortable discussing these matters. Still, it is fundamental for a good coach working with female athletes to understand how physiology differs and affects their performance. This can be different from person to person. In fact, we would go as far as saying that if you can’t have that conversation, you shouldn’t be coaching female athletes.
Athletes are more than a physiological specimen
However, athletes aren’t just about physiology. In one of my blogs about the Coach-Athlete relationship, I wrote that “People engage with people, not theories or methods” – I genuinely believe in this. As humans, we tend to build relationships with other humans; we develop our relationships in many ways. We don’t just see the physical or physiological part of someone, we see them as a whole person, and this works the same way for the Coach-Athlete relationship. Someone’s sex must not be the reason why a coach and an athlete shouldn’t work together, and it can actually be positive to work with someone from the opposite sex men and women tend to see things from different perspectives. This can be a massive plus in a Coach-Athlete relationship as both will help each other in doing things in a complete way.
Choosing a coach to help and guide you can be a difficult task; however, coach Kevin wrote in one of his blogs (you can read it here) the top tips to look after before making this decision, the coach sex is definitely not one of the top things to take in count. The truth is that any coach, male or female, may have strengths in their character, which will complement what you need in a coach irrespective of their (or your) sex.
Athletes should choose a coach who can bond with them, listen and understand them, know their goals and what they need to do to achieve them, who understands the sport and the reality they live in. Men and women are different. It’s a fact, but this should not be a barrier or an excuse for someone doing their job properly! As a head coach with Tri Training Harder, I marvel at how we strive to make our new coaches think outside of their own experience and perspective to challenge their own beliefs to ensure their decisions are based on science and truly athlete-led. If a coach is doing that, then it doesn’t matter male or female, athlete or coach, they are working in the best possible way for the athlete, and that is actually the critical part of this discussion.
Triathlon Coaching started for Diogo in 2010 when he was invited by Sporting Lisbon to start coaching the Triathlon School. Realising that coaching with only the level 2 wasn’t enough, Diogo decided complete his degree in Physical Education and Sports. While at University, Diogo started to coach at some training camps in the South of Portugal and was soon an integrated part of the coaching team for the Junior Portuguese National Team at both events and camps.
After completing his degree, Diogo was invited to join the Portuguese Triathlon Federation as the Coaching Development Director, organising several Coaching Courses and CPD’s.
At the same time, Diogo has been joined several High Performance athletes through World and European Triathlon Cups and Championships. In 2017 he did his Level 3 coaching qualification in Madrid, Spain giving him an impressive insight to the world of high performance sport and how to find the extra edge.
The experience gained at many levels of triathlon gave him a very understanding on how the triathlon world works as well as how to get the very best out of all athletes, from beginner to the very top level elite athletes.
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Tri Training Harder are one of the leading Triathlon coaching providers in the UK, using our wealth of experience to unite scientific and technological research with already well-established and successful best practices, to create a formula for triathlon and endurance coaching that works.
The result is an honest, dynamic, yet simple new way of constructing an athlete’s training to allow them to reach their potential.
If you’re planning your next season, just starting out in the sport or are looking for extra guidance at the very top end of the field, we are here to help, and our coaches would be delighted to hear from you. You can contact us via the website, and one of the team will be in touch.