Age Appropriate Conditioning

Age Appropriate Conditioning Techniques for Teenage Athletes

Facts:

Children and teenagers are not miniature adult and therefore should not be conditioned or trained as professional athletes

Athletes who use specialized training at an early age achieve their best performances at a junior age level. These performances are hardly ever duplicated when they become senior athletes (over 18 years)

The vast majority of Eastern Europe and Soviet athletes have had a strong multilateral foundation (conditioning a variety of fundamental skills)

Specialized training should take place after an athlete has developed a solid multilateral foundation and when they have the desire to specialize in a particular sport or position in a team sport

Early specialization can cause inconsistency in competitive performance and increased rate of injury

Short-term or Long-term Success?

Studies have proven that taking a sport-specific training approach with athletes under the age of 14 can, in the short-term, improve sports performance. However, this training is a detriment to long-term performance and overall success (scholarships, international titles, income, etc.) in the sport. The table below shows the outcomes of a 14 year study with 9-12 year olds.

Comparison Between Early Specialization and Multilateral Development
Early Specialization	Multilateral Program
Quick performance improvement Best performance achieved at 15-16 years because of quick adaptation Inconsistency of performance in competitions By age of 18 many athletes were burned out and quit the sport Prone to injury because of forced adaptation	Slower performance improvements Best performance at 18 and older, the age of physiological and psychological maturation Consistency of performance in competitions Longer athletic life Fewer injuries
Source: Bompa, Tudor, Total Training for Young Athletes, Human Kinetics, 2000

Understanding Individual Differences

It is essential for coaches and parents to cater to the individual needs of teenage athletes. One-size-fits-all programs do not work. It is no longer suitable, or acceptable, to categorize youth strictly based on their chronological age since their anatomical maturation (physical characteristics) and biological ages (physiological development of organs and systems) may vary significantly. Two athletic children with the same anatomical age, who look the same anatomically in height, weight and muscular development, could be different biological ages and possess different abilities to perform a training task. This is why a training program must consider individual differences and training potential. To neglect the differences could mean an early developer might be under-trained while the late developer is overstressed.

It is important to provide a systematic approach to conditioning young athletes by following the stages of development. Attempting to develop to quickly or skipping steps can lead to injury and long-term problems. The fundamental principles of conditioning should include:

Train fundamental movement skills before sports-specific skills
Train core strength before extremity strength
Train with body weight before external resistance
Develop tendon strength before muscle strength
Develop strength before strength endurance

Specialized training should increase as the athlete ages. The chart on the back shows the relative percentages of multilateral and specialized training that should take place during certain ages. Training should follow the stages of development and be based on the below guidelines:

Initiation Stage – 6 to 10 years old

Emphasize a variety of skills and exercises including running, jumping, catching, throwing, balancing and rolling
Encourage the development of flexibility, coordination and balance
Encourage the development of various motor activities in low-intensity environments

Athletic Formation – 11 to 14 years old

Introduce exercises that develop general strength. The foundation for future strength and power gains should begin at this stage.
Emphasize developing the core sections of the body as well as muscles at the extremities. Most exercises should involve body weight and light equipment, such as medicine balls or light dumbbells.
Develop a solid endurance base through aerobic training and begin introduction of moderate anaerobic training at latter part of stage.

Specialization – 15 to 18 years old

Increase training intensity and sports specialization. Training should now begin to closely simulate the actions that take place during competition.

Make developing the aerobic capacity a high priority for all athletes, particularly those who participate in endurance and endurance-related sports.

Progressively increase the volume and intensity of anaerobic training.

The Bottom Line

If you push for short-term, early age athletic performance you will pay the price in injury, inconsistent performance as the athlete ages and early burnout

Spend over 60% of all conditioning in children under the age of 12 with multilateral programs (varied and focusing on balance, motor control and coordination)

Understand the differences in biological ages in children that are the same chronological age. Training programs may need to be substantially different based on their biological maturity.

You just can’t fool mother nature no matter how bad you want to win – Using a "do as the pro’s do" strategy for conditioning teenage athletes won’t make them a pro – kids are not miniature adults.