- Jul 14, 2018
- 982
- 93
The National Athletic Trainers Association released a statement with a set of guidelines for youth sports this week. The main focus is about sports specialization, which gets discussed here often. Their recommendations:
I found #4 to be the most interesting, as a handy way of measuring what might be considered "too much." DD has a tournament this weekend. At 12 years old, her week looks like this:
- 4 Hours of practice (2 days @ 2 hours each)
- 2 Hours of lessons (1 pitching, 1 hitting, same day)
- 6 Hours of game time (4 game guarantee, 90-minute games)
- 3 Hours of warmup (1 to start Saturday & Sunday, 1 before the last pool game)
So, she's three hours over the guideline, but that's because it's a tournament week. She's good about getting the two days off that they recommend per week. Anyone else want to share how their schedule stacks up?
1. Delay specializing in a single sport for as long as possible: Sport specialization is often described as participating and/or training for a single sport year-round. Adolescent and young athletes should strive to participate, or sample, a variety of sports. This recommendation supports general physical fitness, athleticism and reduces injury risk in athletes.
2. One team at a time: Adolescent and young athletes should participate in one organized sport per season. Many adolescent and young athletes participate or train year-round in a single sport, while simultaneously competing in other organized sports. Total volume of organized sport participation per season is an important risk factor for injury.
3. Less than eight months per year: Adolescent and young athletes should not play a single sport more than eight months per year.
4. No more hours/week than age in years: Adolescent and young athletes should not participate in organized sport and/or activity more hours per week than their age (i.e., a 12-year-old athlete should not participate in more than 12 hours per week of organized sport).
5. Two days of rest per week: Adolescent and young athletes should have a minimum of two days off per week from organized training and competition. Athletes should not participate in other organized team sports, competitions and/or training on rest and recovery days.
6. Rest and recovery time from organized sport participation: Adolescent and young athletes should spend time away from organized sport and/or activity at the end of each competitive season. This allows for both physical and mental recovery, promotes health and well-being and minimizes injury risk and burnout/dropout.
I found #4 to be the most interesting, as a handy way of measuring what might be considered "too much." DD has a tournament this weekend. At 12 years old, her week looks like this:
- 4 Hours of practice (2 days @ 2 hours each)
- 2 Hours of lessons (1 pitching, 1 hitting, same day)
- 6 Hours of game time (4 game guarantee, 90-minute games)
- 3 Hours of warmup (1 to start Saturday & Sunday, 1 before the last pool game)
So, she's three hours over the guideline, but that's because it's a tournament week. She's good about getting the two days off that they recommend per week. Anyone else want to share how their schedule stacks up?