Harder to coach Boys or Girls?

As a coach you will have to deal with the emotional instability of those girls. Good luck.

I find that most girls simply don't like to run as much as boys do. There are a few exceptions, but you'll find a lot more boys buying into a program and sticking with it than you will girls.

If you're a good coach, you can handle either gender. If you want me to make a generalization, girls are motivated intrinsically while boys are motivated extrinsically.

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

If you're a good coach, you can handle either gender. If you want me to make a generalization, girls are motivated intrinsically while boys are motivated extrinsically.

I think you have it entirely wrong there. In my experience boys are much more motivated intrinsically on the whole. Boys are running to improve, to get a better time, to be faster, often for themselves. Girls I have coached tend to be much less concerned with the running and the training that the whole team aspect and the bonding and friendship. The running is an entirely secondary thing for them.

M.C. Confusing wrote:

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

If you're a good coach, you can handle either gender. If you want me to make a generalization, girls are motivated intrinsically while boys are motivated extrinsically.

I think you have it entirely wrong there. In my experience boys are much more motivated intrinsically on the whole. Boys are running to improve, to get a better time, to be faster, often for themselves. Girls I have coached tend to be much less concerned with the running and the training that the whole team aspect and the bonding and friendship. The running is an entirely secondary thing for them.

On my team, I would say that it is probably 50/50. Just as many of the girls run to get better as there are boys that just enjoy the whole team aspect.

I meant the coach-athlete relationship. Girls want you to believe in them, boost their self-esteem, etc. first, then they'll run fast (inside-out). Boys want to run fast/compete (told to/how to run fast), then that boosts their self-esteem (outside-in). Again this is a generalization.

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

I meant the coach-athlete relationship. Girls want you to believe in them,

I heard a coach say that if you can get girls to buy into your program, they will be much more dedicated than boys.

Boys don't get pregnant.

I meant the coach-athlete relationship. Girls want you to believe in them, boost their self-esteem, etc. first, then they'll run fast (inside-out). Boys want to run fast/compete (told to/how to run fast), then that boosts their self-esteem (outside-in). Again this is a generalization.

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Girls are tough to coach and what most on here have said is 100% true. If you try to be tough on a girls team they think you dont like them, they have to think you care before they'll do the work.

H.S. Coach wrote:

I meant the coach-athlete relationship. Girls want you to believe in them, boost their self-esteem, etc. first, then they'll run fast (inside-out). Boys want to run fast/compete (told to/how to run fast), then that boosts their self-esteem (outside-in). Again this is a generalization.

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+2

Coach the boys, they will run faster.

txRUNNNERgirl has it about right. I coached both the boys and girls cross and track teams at the same time. About 35-40 kids total, so not a huge team. They trained and worked out together. I was the only coach, except for an administrative assistant who did equipment, money and paperwork. I basically wrote one workout plan for sprinters and jumpers, one for distance, one for throwers, and just modified everything for gender and ability. The toughest part is understanding the difference in how MOST boys and girls are motivated. My first year I was a hardass. I treated them all the same... I was extremely demanding and didn't put up with any excuses or whining. I yelled and questioned their toughness. I talked about running fast times, jumping higher, throwing farther, what marks it took to qualify for state. They all thought I was ex-military. The previous teams were not good and I wanted to instill a culture of hard work and an expectation of winning meets, qualifying for state, kids getting college scholarship offers, etc.Nothing wrong with expecting them to work hard. What I began to understand is that girls want to be good and improve, just as much as boys, but emotionally they need a gentler approach and to know you believe in them. Also, many girls are there for friendship, something to do and for a place to belong, not to be the baddest-ass girl runner in school history.As txRUNNERgirl said, it's all about the coach-athlete relationship. Some of the girls were sure enough head cases. But honestly I had just as many boys who were difficult to deal with. Girls have no monopoly on laziness, phantom injuries and missing practice.I found that once girls know you care about them as people and you will express that care for them and your belief in them, they will run through the proverbial brick wall for you. My girls were 6th at state my last year, 2010, and we had a 4x800 relay team, a distance girl and a high jumper make All-State.

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

I meant the coach-athlete relationship. Girls want you to believe in them, boost their self-esteem, etc. first, then they'll run fast (inside-out). Boys want to run fast/compete (told to/how to run fast), then that boosts their self-esteem (outside-in). Again this is a generalization.

Boys have to win to be happy, girls have to be happy in order to win.

You will be lucky to find more than 2-3 girls on a team that want to do what it takes to be successful while boys are much more likely to do whatever you ask of them.

Keep in mind that these are all very broad generalizations. You will find a lot of variation when you actually coach.

I've found that, by-and-large, girls can be more intellectual about training and racing. You can get them to understand that it is important to not just hammer every interval, and that races involve some degree of strategy. This is opposed to guys who are often in attack mode and just go-go-go.

The flip side is that guys are really easy to motivate. Play to their machismo and they will be rearing to go. Girls tend to need more motivational support in terms of self-esteem.

At the end of the day, it is a little more fun to coach guys, but a little more rewarding to coach girls.

Guys have big egos.

Girls are overly emotional.

Yes. Those are generalizations. But those are the two big problems I see.

I used to like coaching guys better, but now I prefer coaching the girls. It really just depends on the particular group of kids you have.

Coach them both. They are a joy and it keeps you young.

For all you coaches (of both males and females), a few more questions:

Are boys more willing to accept lesser roles on the team, i.e. being satisfied as the #6 runner when other guys are clearly better? I’ve heard that gals often can’t accept not being “top-dog” especially if the top-dog is someone they don’t like.

Are males more willing to work out on their own, esp over the summer? On the other hand, if there is good structure in place are females more dependable in their training?

Are boys more willing to join (and work hard and excel) on a lousy team if they believe that is where their talent lies? On the other hand, are girls (even talented ones) less likely to join a cross country team if it’s not a “cool” team according to their friends and others at school?

Are females (or males) less durable and prone to injury?

Do males (or females) typically come to distance running with a broader/greater athletic background in other sports (e.g. soccer)?

Thanks for your thoughts!

I wouldn't necessarily classify one gender as harder than the other.

With girls, they need to feel connected to you and trust you. Once that happens, you can get them to run through a brick wall. Most of the girls will train without question and will eventually put their entire trust into you and their training. I know a lot of girls that will run themselves into the ground until they are broken. Look at girls and stress fractures. So I would say that you have to be careful once you build that trust how hard you push them. Also, you have to be more careful what you say and how you say it. Body images especially amongst high school is always a hot topic

I think it is slightly harder to build trust on the male's side. It is more based on performance and they will question what you are doing a lot more. It takes a lot longer to get them to buy in. Once you do, it is a lot of fun.

The bottom line is that everyone wants to improve, have some success and stay healthy. If you build good relationships and maintain them, you will be successful with either gender.