A coach and I had different opinions
I want to share some of the discussion with you
What are your thoughts
We found common ground and similar thoughts
but we also had core differences
It started with a question
Do you think shadow practice develops good movement patterns?
The players in front of us were aged 9-11 years old and had been playing badminton for less than 12 months.
We both had thoughts about the advantages and disadvantages, but had never discussed them with another coach.
The discussion started with some agreement as we both had used show movements with beginners, less so for me.
However, when we spoke about specific things, it soon became clear that we had a different opinion concerning –
… The reasons why we used it
… The amount of time spent doing shadow with beginners
… What constituted a shadow practice (doing what, for how long, etc)
… Did the player need to use a racket when doing the practice
… How much did we (the coach) shout or point during the practice
We seemed to spend a lot of time defining what shadow practice was
There seemed to be lots of variations
The questions in our discussion
- What prior knowledge/experience is required in order to visualise (imagine) the movements?
- What's the best: moving without striking (shadow), striking in isolation, or combining moving and striking?
- Does the practice of doing shadow movements automatically appear in games?
- Should shadow movement practice always require a racket?
- If it's an important practice for later in their development, should players start this when they are a beginner?
Do you have an opinion on these questions?
Hopefully, you do!
Please keep in mind that we discussed shadow practice specifically for beginner players in the first 12 months.
You may feel that some of the questions could be answered differently depending on context.
Please take a moment to read the questions again and then read our thoughts below.
What prior knowledge/experience is required in order to visualise (imagine) the movements?
Probably the most important question.
It was certainly the one that divided our opinions.
I think that beginner players need some knowledge and experience of the game context and also of striking (hitting) before they can use shadow practices effectively.
Certainly, shadow practice cannot replace moving-and-striking practices. Therefore, for me, striking would be in the majority, and I’d use shadow sparingly with this age group and level of experience.
My friend thought that they could develop and experience from a low base of knowledge. They believed that the players could copy the coach and that would be sufficient.
What’s the best: moving without striking, striking in isolation, or combining moving and striking?
I think that players should be striking shuttles! Lots of shuttles.
Coaches should select practices where striking enhances learning in different ways.
Players need to experience how movement differs when combined with striking (hitting). Some of this will be intentional (eg a “if I hit in this way, I may have to fast/straight, wait, turn”, etc)
But also, sometimes the movement needs to change because of what the opponent does.
NB. Movement (and all the different ways) cannot be controlled 100% by the player, as they would in a shadow practice.
If it means that you have to design lots of different practices, then do that 🙂
Should you always shadow with a racket?
I thought this was a must. However, the coach had a different view.
They believed that there was value in a ‘no racket shadow’ practice.
I’ve watched players experience shadow movements both with and without a racket. Often picking shuttles off the court and then moving can create some very strange lunging shapes; it’s clearly not realistic, as when holding a racket
Also, holding a shuttle and then throwing at the end of the practice movement. It did concern me when I watched players trying to replicate a backhand net flick by throwing a shuttle!
It’s an important practice for later in their development, so start it when they are beginners
I can’t disagree with this concept, but there are lots of aspects that could be argued this way and aren’t an efficient use of time with beginners in the first 12 – 14 months. e.g. backhands clears, or cross-court defensove blocks, spin nets, etc
I would rather introduce and develop things in a more selective, progressive way.
If you want to read more about Shadow Practice
these 2 posts are longer, more in-depth and full of aspects for you to cnsider
Do you want a conversation?
I’d like to hear from you if you have a viewpoint on anything that you’ve read
We don’t need to agree, but explore viewpoints.
It would be great to hear from you, send me an email : contact@badmintonandy.com
This is part of a series of conversation starters.
Although not in detail, the posts are written to get you thinking and talking with others.
