Training and Conditioning Articles

Warm-up Design
This may be among the most controversial and misunderstood topics within the entire youth development industry. There is really only one way to safely and effectively warm-up your young athletes...

Plyometrics
Almost without exception, every ‘sport-performance training center’ and youth sporting association in North America both markets and incorporates some degree of plyometric conditioning into the routines of the athletes they manage. The key, however, is to teach proper elements of jumping and landing as skills with the intent of developing lower leg and hip strength/durability.

Endurance Training
Endurance training and young athletes is an often-misunderstood topic. On one hand, there are strength coaches who tend to disregard developmentally sound elements of endurance training in lieu of producing stronger and faster athletes. On the other hand, there are over-zealous coaches and trainers who equate endurance to long distance/duration activities, often with little regard for the athlete’s ability or current level of conditioning.

Overtraining - Part 1
I have long supported the notion that the zeal many trainers and coaches show with respect to conducting high intensity training sessions with young athletes is akin to the unsure actor who feels a need to "over-do" his or her role in a given appearance.

Overtraining - Part 2
General overtraining syndromes impact both the CNS as well as the endocrine system. Given that the regulation of many hormones within the endocrine system serve to oversee and manage our stress levels, it is fair to imply that general overtraining could be considered a stress-related issue.

Prevent Overtraining Syndrome
In far too many situations throughout North America, strength coaches and personal trainers make common errors in their programming for young athletes, many of which can lead to overtraining ... Here is a practical guide to prevent overtraining syndrome in your young athletes.

Training the Junior Golfer
I am a firm believer in participating in multiple sports as a youth. It is not necessary to be a four sport star as a golfer, but playing another sport during the off season is a good idea. Clearly defined breaks between seasons are crucial during the formative years, preventing over-training and maintaining motivation levels.

Training Figure Skaters
Very few athletes ever become great sport technicians without the inclusion of a comprehensive athletic development and conditioning program as part of their training package. Over the past decade, the type of training and conditioning performed by young, developing and elite athletes has gone from basic fitness to more functionally- based and developmental activities.

The Concepts of Multilateral Development
We wouldn't expect our ten year old daughter to find a full time job and we won't be surprised if making the mortgage payment on time isn't the first concern our fifteen year old has when he wakes up in the morning. Why then in the sporting world do we expect young athletes to train, compete, think and react like adults?

Did You Know?
In lieu of an article or interview, I thought that I would hit you guys with some great information and solid insight into the training & development of young athletes...