If you live in C-bus (Columbus for those of you not from here) and receive our local paper, they have been running a series all week about youth sports. Since I deal with a lot of student athletes, I have found this series to be really intriguing. The piece has talked about the popularity of youth sports, what a big business it is, injuries, parents out of control, and keeping up with the joneses. Having read each series so far, I thought I would add my two cents to what I have seen thus far.
I tell the parents of my clients that I'm in a catch twenty-two. I don't necessarily agree completely with the way that youth sports have gone, but it has provided me with a source of income. Whether parents are striving for their kids to get that scholarship or they just want them to be able to do the best to their ability, people come to me in hopes of making their kid a better athlete. Parents entrust me with their kids and I can definitively say this: There are a lot of phoney-baloneys out there who might not have the skills to put your athlete through a safe, carefully constructed program. I will try everything in my power to get your athletes to the best of their ability with a method that will not increase the risk of injury. There are different training methods for different age groups, but I feel regardless of age, our program emphasizes safe training methods that will enhance their physical skills.
A lot that has been said in these articles, I have witnessed. Here are some quick comments on some of the items:
• Now that I am no longer an athlete, but a fan in the stands, sometimes I am appalled by the behavior of the parents. You don't truly realize it when you are playing, but it smacks you right in the face when you are sitting next to some nut who is constantly yelling at the opposing team's players in a negative manner.
• A lot of my competition from a business standpoint isn't necessarily other speed programs, but the sports themselves. Even if a kid is playing one sport, there seems to be a year round commitment to that sport or you are doing yourself or worse yet, the team, a disservice. Year round commitment huh? Who is paying who for that year round commitment?
• When I was growing up, it was encouraged to play different sports and not until you hit high school did some decisions have to be made about giving up a particular sport. Nowadays, I have middle schoolers that are playing four or five sports a year. How the heck is that possible? Well, in the winter they play basketball and then participate in hitting leagues. In the spring, they play baseball, spring soccer, then travel basketball. An athlete's only downtime is a weekend or two.
• Injuries are popping up all over the place. Muscles aren't firing properly or overuse injuries are prevalent. I have had a few 12-13 year olds, who develop elbow and shoulder issues because of their pitching. I don't know if it is mechanical or not, but when you play 80 to 100 games over a summer, you have to wonder if that is good for a growing boy.
• I hear the common reason from a parent being, "he/she wants to do this so I let them play all these sports, games, whatever." At a certain point, parents being the adults have to identify what is too much. My kid likes ice cream doesn't mean I get it for her everytime she asks. At a certain point a parent has to say, no we're shutting it down for now. Rest, unwind, and then we'll pick it up later.
• Are the demands for one sport too much? I'm going to use tennis as an example and I'm not picking on tennis players, but it could be any sport here. I have tennis players who play tennis 5-6 days a week. Some private, some group. The coach knowingly or unknowingly suggests the athlete needs to do this often or they will get left behind. Then they come to me because they're "not as athletic" as some of the others. My training requires a commitment of 2-3 times a week, but where are they going to fit that in? Should they give up a few tennis lessons a week, to develop their athleticism or speed or ignore it and keep working on their skill?
• What about homework in all this?
I thought this would be good food for fodder and if you want to comment on this with your own experiences, please do so.
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