At what age can girls start wrestling?

Many youth clubs allow children to begin wrestling as early as five or six. Early exposure to stance, balance, and movement builds a foundation for long-term success, and sessions at this age emphasize fun and safe skill-building.

Do girls wrestle against boys?

At the youth and early middle school levels, girls often compete against boys where numbers are limited. As participation grows, more states now offer all-girls divisions and sanctioned state championships.

Is wrestling safe for girls?

Yes—when proper guidelines are followed. With protective gear, clean mats, and trained coaches, wrestling has comparatively low injury rates. Modern programs emphasize hydration, nutrition, and avoiding dangerous weight-cutting.

What gear do female wrestlers need?

Core items include wrestling shoes, headgear (optional internationally but recommended in U.S. youth programs), a fitted singlet or compression set, and knee pads. Hygiene gear such as personal water bottles and antibacterial wipes is also encouraged.

Are there college opportunities for women wrestlers?

Yes. Women’s wrestling is an NCAA Emerging Sport and is fully sanctioned in the NAIA. Hundreds of programs now exist, with scholarship pathways for qualified athletes.

Essential Wrestling Drills Every Wrestler Should Practice

When it comes to wrestling, there’s no shortcut to mastery. Champions are built on the mat, rep after rep, drilling the fundamentals until they become second nature. Whether your child is just starting youth wrestling or chasing titles in high school and college, repetition and drilling are the foundation of wrestling development.

This guide breaks down the most essential drills every wrestler should practice, explains how they grow with athletes over time, and gives parents and coaches the tools to recognize and encourage good drilling habits.

Why Drilling Matters

A wrestler in their Wrestling Stance looking ready for practice

In wrestling, technique must be automatic. Matches move too fast for athletes to stop and

think. As The Wrestling Drill Book notes, repeated, diversified, and part-drilling build muscle memory, sharpen reactions, and prepare wrestlers for real match situations (Johnson, 1991).

The U.S. Wrestling Syllabus adds that mastering drills isn’t just about mechanics, it’s about rhythm, timing, and adapting to an opponent’s defense.

Put simply: drilling is where wrestlers learn to “own” their moves.

Core Categories of Wrestling Drills

1. Stance & Motion

The foundation of everything. Wrestlers must learn to hold stance, move in all directions, and stay balanced under pressure.

Youth wrestlers: Practice shadow motion and simple circling.
High school: Add level changes and fakes.
College: Blend motion with set-ups for attacks.

2. Leg Attacks

The bread and butter of folkstyle wrestling. Single- and double-leg takedowns score more points than any other moves (Douglas, 1972).

The progression of how to do a single leg take down in the sport of wrestling

Youth: Penetration steps, knee taps, and basic finishes.
High school: Chain attacks (single to double, high crotch to finish).
College: Multiple setups and second moves, finishing against elite defense.

3. Escapes

Half of every match begins from the bottom. Wrestlers need reliable escapes to score and build momentum.

Youth: Stand-ups and knee slides.
High school: Hand control, quick hip heists, and granby rolls.
College: Explosive stand-ups against tough top pressure.

4. Reversals

Turning defense into offense teaches grit and creativity.

Youth: Switch drills.
High school: Sit-outs with change-overs.
College: Advanced switches flowing into near-fall attacks.

5. Pinning Combinations

In folkstyle, the ultimate goal is control, holding an opponent to the mat.

Youth: Half nelson, cradle basics.
High school: Bar arm series, cross-face cradles.
College: Chain turns, leg rides, and tilts.

6. Conditioning Drills

Two people in athletic gear run up sunlit concrete stairs outdoors, casting shadows. Urban background with greenery on the side.

Drilling isn’t only about technique, it builds the grit to wrestle hard for six minutes. Sports psychology research calls this “grit”, perseverance and passion through challenge (Duckworth et al., 2007).

Youth: Relay races, stance motion games, “shark bait” drills.
High school: High-rep sprawls, sprints, and rope climbs.
College: Live go’s, grind matches, and circuit training.

Insights for Parents & Coaches

Good Drilling Habits Look Like: Repetition with focus, correct technique under fatigue, and wrestlers staying disciplined even when tired.
Encourage Consistency: Praise effort in drilling, not just success in live wrestling. Celebrate the “boring” reps, it’s where champions are made (USA Wrestling, 2023).
Balance Drills & Live Wrestling: Folkstyle requires both. Too much drilling without resistance leads to weak execution; too much live wrestling without drilling leads to sloppy technique. Coaches should structure practices with a blend of both.

Hand holds a white chess king knocking over a black king on a checkered board. Dramatic lighting, dark background. Moods of victory.

Folkstyle Emphasis: Control Over Risk

Unlike freestyle wrestling’s risk-reward scoring, folkstyle drills are built on control, which is emphasized throughout NFHS folkstyle rulebooks (NFHS, 2023). That means drills should focus on holding positions, riding time, and mat returns, not just big throws. Teaching kids the folkstyle mindset early sets them up for success in middle school, high school, and beyond.

Safe Practice Environments

Repetition only works if athletes are healthy and safe. Coaches and parents should look for:

Clean mats prevent skin infections, studies show skin-related issues account for up to 10% of time lost in wrestling seasons (Andersen et al., 2003). (NCAA studies show these are the #1 time-loss issue in wrestling).
Partner matching: Pairing by size and skill level avoids injuries.
Preventing overtraining: Watch for fatigue, mood changes, or nagging injuries, signs a wrestler may need rest.
Coach supervision: Every drill should be taught, corrected, and monitored.

A safe room is a room where kids can train hard, improve daily, and love the sport.

Practice Makes Perfect

From the youth mat to the college stage, wrestlers develop through repetition. Drilling stance, attacks, escapes, reversals, and pins over and over again is what turns beginners into champions.

As a parent or coach, you play a huge role in shaping that process, by valuing consistency, recognizing safe environments, and celebrating the effort behind every rep.

Join Keep Kids Wrestling (KKW) for free resources, printable drill sheets, and parent guides that make wrestling easier to follow and more rewarding for the whole family.

Would you like me to also create a printable “15 Essential Drills” PDF (with youth/high school/college progressions side by side)? That could be a perfect lead magnet to go with this blog.

Wrestling Drills Q&A for Parents and Coaches

Q: How many times should a wrestler repeat each drill?

A: For beginners, 10–15 clean reps per drill is enough. As athletes grow, coaches often push 25–50 reps to build muscle memory and endurance. The key is quality over quantity, bad reps just reinforce bad habits.

Q: Should kids drill every practice, or focus more on live wrestling?

A: Drilling should be part of every practice. A balanced session usually includes 50–60% drilling, 20–30% live wrestling, and the rest for warm-ups, conditioning, and cool-down. Drills build foundation; live wrestling tests it.

Q: What’s the difference between youth, high school, and college drilling?

A: The fundamentals are the same, stance, motion, takedowns, escapes, but the complexity increases. Youth wrestlers drill basics slowly. High schoolers add chains and counters. College wrestlers drill sequences at full speed with resistance.

Q: How can parents tell if their child is drilling well?

A: Look for focus and consistency. A wrestler in good stance, repeating moves with intent, and listening to corrections is drilling well. Sloppy reps, wandering eyes, or joking too much usually mean the drill isn’t sinking in.

Q: What’s the role of conditioning drills; are they separate from technique?

A: In wrestling, conditioning is built through technique. Sprawls, penetration steps, and push-pull drills all develop stamina. Coaches also add sprints, ropes, or circuits, but the best conditioning comes from high-paced drilling.

Q: How do coaches keep drilling safe?

A: By matching partners by size and skill, keeping mats disinfected, and watching for fatigue. Overtraining can cause injuries or burnout, so smart coaches rotate intensity and remind wrestlers to rest when needed.

References & Further Reading

Dziedzic, S. (1983). The U.S. Wrestling Syllabus. Leisure Press.
Johnson, D. (1991). The Wrestling Drill Book. Human Kinetics.
Douglas, B. (1972). The Making of a Champion: The Takedown. Cornell University Press.
USA Wrestling. (2023). Athlete Safety & Development Resources. Retrieved from https://www.teamusa.org/usa-wrestling
NFHS. (2023). NFHS Wrestling Rules Book. National Federation of State High School Associations.
Andersen, J. R., et al. (2003). A prospective study of wrestling injuries. American Journal of Sports Medicine, 31(6), 979–984.
Yard, E. E., Collins, C. L., & Comstock, R. D. (2008). A comparison of high school sports injury surveillance data reporting by certified athletic trainers and coaches. Journal of Athletic Training, 43(2), 197–204.
Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R. (2007). Grit: Perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(6), 1087–1101.