Building self-confidence and desire to achieve: A New Milford gymnastics coach’s perspective
NEW MILFORD, Conn. — Over the past 35 years, I have had the pleasure of watching young people that I coached grow and change. Hopefully I have helped them as much as they have helped shape me. Joining a high school gymnastics team isn’t for the faint of heart. Gymnastics can be scary, dangerous and frightening. It can also be the absolute best experience a young person can have. In the time that I have been at New Milford High School, I hope that my gymnasts have experienced more of the good and fun parts, but the scary and frightening parts are what help them grow and learn great coping skills that they can call on for their whole lives. Some of the long-term life skills learned in gymnastics are working as a team, overcoming fear and learning trust, learning to balance, gaining self-confidence, a stronger work ethic and the ability to find joy.
Gymnastics is usually an individual sport, but for high school and college, TEAM is the most important. No school can win with just one really great athlete, you need a group that works with and for each other. Learning how to give up part of your own desire so that the team can succeed is what will be remembered. Cheering on the team-mate that took your place on an event is part of being a true team member. Learning to work together and help each other is a skill that serves them well in the long run, in business and in family and relationships. Realizing life isn’t just about themselves is an enormous step.
If I can teach an athlete to overcome her fear of a move or event, she will have the ability to deal with other fears in a positive way. Teaching them that they can trust me and that I always have their safety and well-being at the forefront is one of the most important lessons I try to impart. They begin to know that I would never ask them to do anything that I didn’t truly think that they could succeed at. I think it also helps them recognize who can be trusted and who might not be worthy of that trust.
One important part of being part of a high school or college athletic team is learning to balance their life and priorities. They are, after all, student athletes. They must learn to organize and prioritize so that nothing falls through the cracks. Their schoolwork, their social time, their sport, their job, their family; all need to be tended to.
Being a part of a successful program can help build self-confidence and the desire to achieve more. Athletes are by nature competitive. Joining a team and gaining success feeds the desire to be even better. Every time one of my gymnasts realizes a triumph over a skill or an event, you can just see her grow as a person. Her head is held a little higher and she wants to reach for more. Every time a gymnast reaches for more, she learns to trust the process of learning. No one is perfect right away. Perfection takes work, practice and consistency.
For me, the main reason I coach high school gymnastics is to help gymnasts remember why they started gymnastics in the first place – because it’s fun! The first time you see it on TV or watch the “big girls” at a practice, the jumping, the flying and flipping, what could be more fun? But many times, the stress of trying to be perfect wears them down. High school gymnastics, for me, takes gymnastics back to fun. The athletes get to be with teammates and friends, enjoying the flipping and flying, without most of the pressure and stress of some other programs. Even if the gymnast is still competing for a full-time program, high school gymnastics lets her do gymnastics for the simple joy of perfection in movement.
These lessons learned in the gym can be translated into skills that will help the athlete long after graduation. I have truly enjoyed being able to be a part of so many young athletes lives and hope that I imparted these lessons to them so that they can look back on their time in New Milford athletics and know that it was worth it.
Bethany Mihaly is in her 35th season as Gymnastics Coach at NMHS.
She has had 17 Conference Champions and 7 State Champions. She has won 2 State Championships, and a State Open Championship. Runner up several times. She has had 3 State Open Champions, 4 New England Champions, and has won a New England Team Championship.
She has coached 33 All State athletes, 25 All-Americans, and 5 Elite All-Americans. 5-time CHSCA Coach of the Year, and a finalist for National Coach of the Year. Her overall record is 680-290-2.
She is VP for the National High School Gymnastics Association
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