Physical Differences

As wrestlers reach puberty, physical differences become more evident between males and females.
- Hips, strength, center of gravity, and flexibility differ.

Injury

Common injuries include ACL, elbow, and shoulder injuries.
- Coach Jacque Davis explains:
  - Coach Jacque on Joint Laxity: Video 1
  - Shoulder injury: Video 2, Video 3, Video 4
  - Elbow Injury: Video 4, Video 5
  - Knee Injury: Video 6,
  - Meet our Helpers: Video 7
Neck strengthening can minimize the risk of concussions.
- Neck strength is typically less in females; incorporating neck strengthening exercises in daily practices and strength training programs may mitigate this risk.

Neck and shoulder strength is different from males. In the top position, use techniques that keep the down position opponent’s head and shoulders on the mat and teach turns that benefit from those strategies.
Whizzer defense (and the subsequent offense) is an excellent skill set that utilizes a female’s lower center of gravity and hip strength. Whether you’re teaching the standard hip whizzer or a closed/ankle whizzer, a girl can use her hip strength to counter and score from this position. Add counter-offense such as a whizzer step-over, an arm-bundle, or an advanced defense like a whizzer and opposite-leg split.
Talk about, demonstrate, and practice how takedowns can transition to leg laces & guts in addition to Folkstyle breakdowns. (i.e., sweep single to a lace or snap-down spin-behind to a tilt)
New to the sport = very hard to recover from bad shots. Possibly start with technique to stuff the head and work front headlock, spin behinds.
New to the sport = very hard to do stand-ups with the same technique as males. Not the same shoulder strength. Finding ways to get hips out from under the top wrestler (scoot sit, 4 point spin), get hand control, work to the escape.

Start with the basics - Many female wrestlers will step onto the mat for the first time in middle school or high school. Give them a strong technical foundation that they can build on.
- Note: Make certain your advanced female wrestlers are being challenged rather than getting paired only with beginner female wrestlers. Find the balance.
Freestyle - Teach folkstyle while keeping in mind that freestyle is the future for college-bound female wrestlers.
- Teaching tight-waist tilt on top will make it easier to learn gut wrench later.
- Spend plenty of time on backside finishes for single legs so that the transition to lace is easier
Communication on the Mat
- Expect to explain “why” when teaching technique. The female brain tends to process information in a more ‘whole-brained’ or ‘bigger-picture’ way.
- Coaches’ critique is often taken more to heart by female wrestlers than by male wrestlers.
- Tone Matters - What you say vs. what they hear can sometimes differ.
- Learn to Listen - Be prepared to talk and listen more when trying to understand your female athletes.
Process-Based Mindset - Female wrestlers can be very hard on themselves for mistakes or failure or can have perfectionist tendencies. Reinforce that the learning process requires falling short, help them see what they did right, and make sure they know you are working with them to create a plan to improve.