Gregory HerefordStrength Training in the Off Season for Young Athletes
Whether your student athlete trains and plays on a court, field, pool or track, strength training this summer could be critical to their success and safety in their sport.
First off, strength training significantly reduces the likelihood of injury. Many injuries that occur to student athletes are due to overuse. Most sports are very repetitive; therefore, kids’ muscles get trained to work in a very specific way making certain muscles much stronger and other muscle much weaker. In the same way, those strong muscles are often much tighter and the weaker muscles allow, at times, too much mobility at a joint. Strength training allows those muscles to be challenged in different ways and be better balanced. A strength program will identify which areas of the body need to be stronger to support the sport being played and which muscles are inflexible to the point that a potential injury may occur. Targeted strength work and stretching will greatly reduce the risk of overuse injuries or injuries that occur due to a muscular imbalance.
Secondly, strength training will improve your athlete’s performance in their sport. A sport specific analysis of position played, movement patterns required, speed and agility testing and other sport specific performance measures will identify areas that can be improved. This will allow your student athlete to have lasting endurance, run faster, jump higher, improve hand eye coordination and footwork in their sport and give them an advantage over their competition. If your student athlete is looking to make improvements in the off season to get more playing time next year, they need to focus on strength training this summer when they have more time available to them!
Lastly, strength training allows athletes to have an “active break” from their sport. This allows for recovery both physically and mentally. Burn out is very prominent in young athletes due to the lengthy, intense nature of the sport’s seasons. This can cause an athlete to lose their passion for their once “favorite thing in the world”. Both the mind and body need a recovery period and strength training allows them to actively rest so they do not lose ground between seasons. Most sport’s seasons are quick and intense with athletes returning to long practices daily or twice a day and having games and competitions very quickly upon the season starting. This is very physically demanding and can lead to possible injury if your athlete has not been staying active during the off season. Having your student athlete continue to work out and make gains, while still having a break, will help them be best prepared to jump right back into their next sport’s season.
If you have any questions about strength training or are looking for a fun, safe place for your athlete to train during, prior or after to you or your student athletes active season shoot me and email or call the contact information ⬇️
Coach Greg
781-502-1963