Youth and high school athletics are becoming more and more competitive. With more kids getting involved every year and with the possibility of college scholarships, the race to be the best is often grueling for the young athlete.
Parents are often very motivated to get as much help as possible to help their young athlete-superstars. Personal tennis coaches, pitching coaches, personal trainers are all working with younger and younger clients. What are the benefits to the extra help? Are you missing the boat if you don’t get the extra help? And most importantly, is it necessary?
The sports performance industry is a six-billion-dollar-a-year business. Nowadays it seems like everyone is doing it. The scope of a sports performance facility can go from a gigantic warehouse to a small studio in a strip mall. Size is not so important. The key components are the training and evaluation your child will get while training there. Not all “sports specific trainers” are created equal. There are trainers out there that claim to be “experts,” yet, do not regularly train athletes. Going in and talking with the trainer before you sign up for sessions is a must. Ask questions. Here are a few things to consider: Is the training age appropriate? Are my child’s weaknesses assessed and does the program actually address these weaknesses? Are overuse injuries from the sport addressed and is there a plan to prevent them? Are the imbalances created by the sport addressed?
The benefits:
Sports performance training has a long list of benefits. First, and most important, is injury prevention. This should always be the goal of a performance program. Developing speed and power comes in second to building a strong, stable base to work from. Longevity is also a benefit of a good program. If the extra work isn’t going to make the athlete last longer, then it is not warranted. Lastly, good fundamental training techniques are necessary to create better performance in the future. Knowing how to lift, sprint, and change direction properly before the season begins could prevent a knee injury down the road.
Is it necessary?
With the demanding schedules some kids have, it is easy to see how injuries are so prominent in youth sports. Consider the list of benefits above. When an athlete is properly evaluated and imbalances are identified, an appropriate program can be developed to correct imbalances and strengthen areas of weakness specific to the individual. In addition, the training program will address specific areas of need based on the sport or sports that the athlete participates in. Performance training helps to limit the number of injuries through preventative training while also increasing strength and power output for better athletic performance. The base developed from strength and conditioning supplies the athlete with a good foundation in power training, speed training, agility, and flexibility. In addition, the added technique work, stretching, and strengthening will make the athlete less prone to overuse and traumatic injures to the knees and/or shoulders.
“But…we already have a gym membership.”
I get this reasoning more than any other from parents. “Johny goes to the gym already and works out. He doesn’t need a personal trainer.” My answer is usually something like, “…and curls and bench press done randomly are going to make your football son a better player?” Has anyone else watched high school kids lift on their own? It is chaotic at best. Almost none of them do lower body properly (or at all) and the girls only do crunches. Ugh!
Price is often another concern. Sports performance training is not your big commercial gym set-up. That is why it does not cost the same. The biggest excuse from parents is that their child has a [insert big gym name here] membership already and they can just go and workout there. Performance training is very directed and focused on your child’s individual needs and goals. Commercial gyms essentially are a room of equipment- not a training plan. There is a lot more thought and effort that goes into training athletes.
To recap, the amount of physical stress put on young athletes today is high. Sports performance training can help to prevent injuries while also improving athletic performance. There are a lot of people who claim to be sports performance experts. Be sure to ask questions and find out if it is a “canned” program that is not at all specific to your child, or if it is actually designed to test and develop your child based on his/her individual needs and goals. Lastly, commitment to the program is key to success. There are no magic pills and no overnight fixes. Keep that in mind as you consider the cost and time commitment of the program.
