Sport-specific training is not what you think

Don’t fall for the online fitness gurus who post about flashy “sport-specific” workouts,

The truth is,

Many of their workouts aren’t designed to create real results for young athletes…

They are designed to generate views and engagement.

Real sport-specific training is NOT about mimicking all the things an athlete does in sports with added weight or resistance in the weight room,

It’s about focusing on the foundations of physical development like strength, speed, and power development. 

Our job in the weight room is to help the athletes develop physical qualities that can help them in their sport and reduce the risk of injury while playing.

Young athletes should stick to general training at first, and focus on building a strong foundation, so they can…

Jump higher

Sprint faster,

And become stronger.

Which are physical abilities that can be transferred to any sport and allow youth athletes to develop appropriately while reducing their risk of injury.

And yes, some nuances in training apply to different sports…

But much less than you think.

These nuances are important but are NOT the focus of youth athletes’ general training, especially early on.

Good foundational training isn’t just about performance, but also about protecting young athletes from overuse injuries…

Foundational strength training develops tissue capacity and strength,

Which is essentially how well your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones tolerate stress and load during physical activity.

When youth athletes get stronger, their muscles become more robust and resilient.

This reduces the risk of injuries that often occur to athletes when their tissues are not strong enough for the constant stresses of their sport.

More often than not, we want to tick the boxes in the weight room that they don’t tick while actually playing their sport. 

For example... 

It’s hard for a young footballer to get stronger legs while just playing football,

But if we can strengthen them in the weight room,

It will only help them on the pitch.

That’s what “sport-specific” training actually looks like for a brand new young athlete.

Have a great day,

Liam.

If you’re interested in learning more about youth athletic developement you can check out my podcast below!