Today, the world of youth sports is a world filled with tough competition and what feels like more rigorous demands on athletes from a very young age than ever. For a child who loves their sport, staying competitive as well as injury-free is paramount.
How does a young athlete improve their performance and stay safe? Enter Sports Performance Training. In this post, we’ll discuss what Sports Performance Training means, why it’s important to dedicated young athletes, and how you can get your young athlete ready for their next season and beyond.
What is Sports Performance Training?
Sports Performance Training refers to the conditioning of both the mind and body in preparation for the demands of your sport. Sports Performance Training is different from traditional “personal training;” it truly prepares the athlete for their specific sport. Instead of generalized fitness. Custom, sport-specific training plans are created based on the individuals age, current fitness level, and sports goals. The movements used in their sports performance training will mimic those they will use in sport.
A few examples; Natalie, age 13, plays volleyball. With her training, she will focus on reaction time, agility, and balance, as well as high intensity, short interval cardio training. Katelyn, age 12, is a soccer goalkeeper. She may spend her training time working on lower body explosiveness, reaction time, core strength, and flexibility. Sam is 10 and plays baseball. He will most likely work on upper body and core strength, agility, quickness, and short interval cardio training. Their training programs may be vastly different, however they will all become stronger, more confident, and less injury prone through this personalized sports performance training.
What Makes Sports Performance Training for Young Athletes So Important?
The ages of 9 to 12 are a critical span of time for motor skills development. This is the age group in which a young athlete can develop strong motor skills and proper movement patterns that are so important for their athletic potential.
This age group, along with ages 12-15 are also one of the most prone to injury in sport, thanks in large part to their rapid growth spurts in this age range (muscles and ligaments fighting to adapt as the body lengthens can result in weaknesses in places like ankles and shoulders that have been injury-free previously) and ever increasing competitiveness at younger ages.
Building strong foundations in their abilities to jump, sprint, change directions; kick, catch, and throw accurately; move efficiently, explosively, and with confidence; and, of course, reducing injury risk is of utmost importance. All of these goals can be met and exceeded with proper sports performance training.
How Can I Get My Child Involved In Sports Performance Training?
Help your child gain a competitive edge, become more resilient and less injury prone, and improve their chances of mastery of the skills they need to be the best at their sport by getting them set with Elite Training Tulsa. Connect with us at Elite Training Tulsa, receive a free workout, and experience first hand what sports performance training can do for your athlete.