For young athletes training in a group or team setting is very important. Competition with peers for bigger lifts, faster times, or more attention from coaches can foster a compromising of technique and hamper progress. This is a tough trap not to fall into. Coaches want results and athletes want big number gains on their one rep max. Keep in mind that this doesn’t necessarily relate to better performance. Keeping focus is a constant challenge for students, athletes, business people, and learning that skill is yet another advantage to strength and conditioning training. Additionally, I would encourage parents to seek out a knowledgeable experienced personal trainer or coach to help you focus and reach you goals not get pulled away from them. I am based out of San Antonio but am an email away to discuss your particular situation.
We could be talking about any sport, age, or gender. On any team there are varying degrees of skill and ability, and a coaching staff will be focused on getting the entire team in a position to be successful. Individual attention from an outside source may be helpful.
Another thing to keep in mind for parents and coaches is that it is these competitors with less athletic ability that may offer the biggest upside. To bring the level of performance up in these individuals can bring the biggest benefit to the group as a whole. In my individual situation I was driven to get that positive feedback from my coaches and my competitive side took over in the weight room and on the 40 track. I lost focus on my bigger goal and missed out on the opportunity as a young athlete to better my athletic performance. Therefore, throughout my coaching career, improved athleticism has been my goal for my athletes, not big numbers on the board in the weight room. Athletic performance includes but is not limited to body control, balance, agility, endurance, explosive strength, and confidence. In my experience most people and most head football coaches have the same goals in mind for their strength training programs. With the constraints of time and staff and handling large numbers of athletes to evaluate, their goals have to be measurable ones. They want to see their athletes improve their one rep max on bench press, squat, and a faster 40 time. While these are great goals to have and offer athletes competitive opportunities away from their main arena. I want focus to remain on improving athletic performance. I am in full agreement to offer challenges and encouragement whenever possible, but I want my athletes to not get discouraged if they are not making the huge gains that others might make in the same time period. This is another opportunity and reason that personal coaching or personal athletic training be considered.
The young athlete that may be a little behind his peers in maturation or skill level, is the most vulnerable to get discouraged. This is a killer in young athletes. And with the growing numbers of athletes competing in San Antonio and around the state, early recognition and the addressing of these areas that need improvement is critical. Many dreams are killed sometimes way too early in the process, and many of those young people’s lives could be forever changed with just a little encouragement, a little patience, and a lot of work. I know every young person isn’t going to be playing professional, college, and may not even earn a Varsity letter, but athletics provides a lot more than that. It is a place to learn how to work, how to put others above yourself, how to commit to something. In a world gone soft with everything at our fingertips surrounded by luxury and instant gratification, there are fewer and fewer opportunities to learn the value of hard work, mental toughness, and delayed gratification. Physically training your body for the rigors of sport, and competing in athletics for some may be the only place left to instill these values.