Young athletes can not be treated as little adults.

Youth athletes’ bodies are significantly different than that of a mature adult. Not only in size and strength, but also in that neural, hormonal, and cardiovascular systems develop with advances in biological age; leading to corresponding changes in neuromuscular performance.  What constitutes appropriate strength training and metabolic conditioning for a young athlete is determined and specific to the individual’s stage of physical development.

The athletes’ bodies will respond in several facets. They will either, gain better neuromuscular control and therefore seem to have improved strength, when actually they have just become more efficient at using what they already had. Or, if the athlete’s body has matured enough to already have gained this control, they will actually improve tensile strength (the amount of force the muscle tissue can withstand being pulled) in musculature and improve cardiovascular response.

The emotional and psychological maturity of the individual is another important factor to consider when designing and implementing strength training for a young athlete.

Obviously, the athlete’s attention span will become a factor. In addition, the mental stress that a strength program can put on a young person has to be considered. Challenging a young athlete to meet performance goals needs to be put aside and replaced with having them reach for small “achievements” instead. This can be as simple as improving their balance, or helping them to complete a footwork sequence without stumbling. Set the athlete up to succeed, instead of challenging them not to fail. Their enjoyment of the process will be a huge factor in how successful the program is, and how much they improve.

Finding time for fitness

We are all busier than ever. More and more families have 2 working parents, kids are often just as busy outside of school as they are in school. Weekends are packed with all the errands from the week, house projects, and oh yeah - soccer games, lacrosse games or swim meets. When is there time to work out? We need to get creative here and figure out a way to make exercise just another normal part of the day. What works for you?