The most challenging way for me to catch a football has been on the run. Time has been spent over the past few months using the football to improve coordinated movements. It has been a great tool for helping me develop in the gym, because of the added fun of working with the ball. From playing catch with the football in a relatively stationary position, to playing short toss and catch, while moving laterally down the gym floor. The process of working with the football has kept the sessions interesting. We have always worked on catching the football on the run, but my challenges with coordination have halted its success rate. Every now and again, I would get lucky with the perfectly thrown pass. One almost impossible not to catch, because of its ideal placement. But, I have wanted to improve my skills of catching the football on the run, to make myself more consistent, when looking to my side, as the ball is released toward a spot where I will hopefully arrive. There have been many bobbles of catching those kinds of passes, while on the run. Where it appeared as though the pass had been caught. Only to feel it drop through my fingers during my next steps. Catching the football on the run has felt like the peak of the progression, for our work with the football. As a person trying to improve my cerebral palsy, it feels like a good outcome measure, because of the layers of coordination it requires. I finally got some running catches of the football on video. While, reaching the point of feeling like the achievement of catching on the run feels like a goal accomplished. There will always be room to become more consistent with the drill. However, the way I feel about my body control during the drill. Makes it feel like an accomplishment, today.
There have been many steps in the progression of throwing and catching the football. The feeling of making it to the top of the progression has provided an amazing emotion. Being challenged with learning how to catch the football on the run has led to me thinking about my childhood. All of the neighborhood games of football we would play in the backyard or on the neighborhood street. I always wanted to play quarterback during those games, even though I couldn’t throw the ball, very far. Friends would dash down field quickly, while I tried throwing a pass early enough, to hit them during their stride. Hoping to get the football to them before they had gotten too far away, where my throw wouldn’t reach. When I wasn’t playing the quarterback position, I would move a short distance down field, making myself an option if nothing was open further down the field. Looking back on those childhood days, I have found a better understanding around the reasons I didn’t run down field like the other kids. The coordination to catch the football on the run, wasn’t a part of my tools in playing backyard football. The cerebral palsy had taken away that skill, as a child. Thankfully, my friends helped support the things I could do, allowing me to play quarterback, and throw the ball to them, even when that had its challenges. I enjoy looking back now and feeling gratitude for the kids of my childhood, who wanted to include me in playing, even with the challenges of my disability.
A blessing in the present day has been getting to revisit those challenges from my youth. As a trainer has found ways of challenge that ability I struggled with in childhood. The process of learning with the football began with traditionally playing catch. Standing a short distance apart and throwing the football to one another. It took some practice for me to improve my catching skills in those traditional situations. Where I was standing pretty stationary to catch the football, not having to move more than a step in any direction, to retrieve the ball. As my skills of catching improved, the football start traveling in my direction with more speed. The raised velocity on the pass, required my hands to move quicker, getting into position for the reception. The improvement had us attempting a running catch with the football. Like a receiver would run a route. However, my skills didn’t translate from catching the football in a stationary position to catching the ball on the run. There would be a middle step required without knowing if the idea of making a running reception would be realized. The trainer came up with a couple of concepts to help improve my coordination when it comes to catching. Attempting to place me in less complex moving positions and see if I could catch the football. We would try circling back to catching the football on the run.
There were two ideas tried, in an attempt to have me catch the football, while moving. The first was done when walking backwards, pulling a weighted sled, which was attached to the belt around my waist. The second was moving laterally down the turf floor of the workout facility. The first ideas, while pulling the sled was a surprise. All of the sudden, a football was floating in my direction, startling my senses. However, I was able to gather myself, and catch the football. The tosses kept coming from the trainer, as I moved slowly, backwards. The drill aided with my confidence in an ability to catch a football, while moving. The second drill of playing catch during the lateral slide was void of surprise. I understood from the beginning of the movement, our objective. The challenge lied in the sped-up pace of tossing the football back and forth. While, the quickening of my footwork had me thinking about trying to avoid any kind of fall to the turf. With the elevated speed of the drill and introduction of new elements to navigate. Playing catch during the lateral movement only elevated my belief to catch the football during movement. The two drills that introduced me to catching the ball on the move, felt like a success. I had improved my coordination of catching the football from the relatively stationary positions. Overcoming the anxiety of falling when trying to catch the ball and return a toss. It was time for a retry of catching the football, while running a little route.
All of the intermediate work we had done to help catch coordination seemed to work towards improvement. Seemingly from the first directional route I ran, catching the football felt manageable. The throw wasn’t required to be in the perfect spot, for me to secure a reception. Not all the passes coming my way, while I was running across the turf were secured. But, there was no doubt, I felt much more comfortable and coordinated when the football traveled in my direction. My balance felt more secure and my hands stronger, giving my added ability to catch the football. The entire process took a good amount of time to complete. Moving from not having the skill at all to make a running catch, to gaining the confidence enabling me to make a couple of catches, was an exciting improvement. The development took a trainer who understood the steps in between. Moving me from playing catch from a stationary position, to the improvement of receiving the football on the run. For someone having the added challenge of cerebral palsy, seeing myself improve through the progression was exciting. Making me feel like I conquered a challenge that had been there since childhood. I have found the most important thing is to keep trying. Find someone positive, who has the skills to help along the journey. Achieving some pretty cool things is always possible, with some good effort.
A Journey With Cerebral Palsy 