An article for our older players at SkillZone..
Strength and conditioning (S&C) can play an important role in the long-term development of junior athletes. Childhood and adolescence provide an opportunity to develop fundamental physical qualities such as strength, coordination, movement competency and the ability to tolerate the demands of training and competition.
A well-designed S&C programme is not simply about improving sporting performance. Appropriate resistance training and neuromuscular training can also help reduce the risk of sports-related injuries, particularly injuries affecting the lower extremities. Rather than claiming that training can “prevent” injury altogether, the objective should be to improve an athlete’s physical capacity and preparedness so that they are better equipped to tolerate the forces and demands associated with their sport.
Despite the potential benefits, structured injury-risk-reduction programmes are not always routinely implemented within youth sport. Research examining high-school coaches reported that only 21% of 66 head coaches surveyed were using some form of injury “prevention” programme. Furthermore, simply having a programme in place does not guarantee its effectiveness. Programme design, exercise selection, progression, coaching quality, athlete adherence and the specific demands of the sport all influence the training response.
The scale of the issue becomes clearer when participation and injury data are considered. During the 2013–2014 period, more than 1.7 million students participated in high-school soccer and basketball in the United States, with approximately 335,000 lower-extremity injuries requiring medical attention and resulting in at least one day of lost participation.
This does not mean that every injury could have been avoided through S&C. Sport inherently involves injury risk, and injuries are multifactorial. However, the frequency of injury reinforces the importance of appropriately preparing young athletes for the physical demands they will encounter.
Effective youth S&C should therefore focus on developing physical qualities rather than simply reacting once an injury has occurred. Depending on the athlete, their stage of development and the demands of their sport, this may include:
- Developing muscular strength and physical capacity.
- Improving fundamental movement and sport-relevant movement skills.
- Developing appropriate jumping, landing, acceleration, deceleration and change-of-direction capabilities.
- Progressively exposing athletes to the forces and workloads encountered in training and competition.
- Developing mobility where a genuine restriction affects movement or performance.
- Ensuring training is progressive, age-appropriate and delivered with appropriate coaching and supervision.
The objective is not to make young athletes “injury-proof” — that is neither realistic nor scientifically defensible. Instead, good S&C aims to develop more physically capable and resilient athletes who are better prepared for both the performance demands and inherent risks of their sport.
The principle is simple: prepare athletes for the demands of sport before those demands become a problem.
References
Marc F. Norcross, Samuel T. Johnson, Viktor E. Bovbjerg, Michael C. Koester, Mark A. Hoffman. Factors influencing high school coaches’ adoption of injury prevention programs. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, (2015).
