Motor Skills

Realising the Full Benefits of Youth Sports

Realising the Full Benefits of Youth Sports

A notable casualty amid the ongoing uncertainty of the pandemic has been organised sport below the elite and professional level. In recent weeks kids have cautiously returned to school, but youth sports and school sport in particular remain off limits for many. Competition schedules for the coming year are still in limbo. There is a question mark over whether there will even be a competitive season for some sports and this uncertainty extends to college sports, which is the end-goal that many high school aspire to. Against this backdrop, the numbers of kids who have returned to participating in training and practices are way down since the lockdown and returning to school. There is an understandable reluctance among parents and the kids themselves to reengage in sport, given the perceived risks. Some authors are already sounding the alarm that the present generation of high school kids may be lost from participating in organised sport.

The Glaring Gap in Skill Development for Youth Sports

The Glaring Gap in Skill Development for Youth Sports

Traditionally, practices and skill development in general within youth sports has focussed on technical and tactical aspects. Dedicated development of athletic skills have been largely overlooked, which was previously not a major issue as sports coaches were able to rely on the natural athleticism that young performers brought to the party. Consequently, whilst youth sports coaches with a physical education teaching background might bring expertise in these areas, for the most part athletic skills have not typically been part of the coach education process, particularly in ‘skill sports’ (i.e. team sports, racquet sports, etc.). However, we are now having to reckon with these omissions, as is becoming increasingly evident at all levels of junior competition in many sports.

Weekly Reflections: Managing Injury and Return to Performance

Weekly Reflections: Managing Injury and Return to Performance

After a week’s hiatus for some rest and recuperation, coinciding with a trip to Europe, we return with our regular update from the Prepared Athlete Training and Health project. Following recent events, a post on the theme of injury management and return to performance seemed apt. It is also always helpful to articulate what role and functions I fulfill in this space. As a sports medicine physician I met up with this week remarked, ‘it must be a confusing for some people, as you are not a (medical) doctor or a physio’. Indeed my wife also asked this week what I call what I do in this space, as she was having a hard time explaining it to a friend of hers. So in this week’s offering I will attempt to clarify those questions as we outline the process and rationale for working with injured athletes and preparing them to return to performing.

Weekly Reflections: Endurance Runners and Multisports Athletes

Weekly Reflections: Endurance Runners and Multisports Athletes

Regular readers will be familiar with my comments about Vancouver drivers and the perils of cycling amongst them. This week events progressed to the logical conclusion, as I was taken out by a car on my ride to a coaching session on monday. To be fair it was the middle of the day. In the sunshine. On a straight road designated as a greenway for cyclists. And I was wearing a high visibility fluorescent yellow top. With my lights on and flashing. So I guess I was asking for it. In tribute to the triathlete I was due to be coaching on the day who was very understanding, and also a triathlon coach I connected with this week, the theme of this week’s post is the value of the Prepared ATH service offering for multi-sports, such as triathlon, and endurance runners.

Weekly Reflections: The Necessities of Preparation for Young Female Athletes

Weekly Reflections: The Necessities of Preparation for Young Female Athletes

Since the world athletics championships came to a close last weekend I found myself with some attention capacity to spare over the past week. This led me to realise it had turned distinctly chilly outside. Despite the chill in the air, it has been a productive week. Sophie, the poster girl for the Develop stream who regular readers have met previously, had the dubious pleasure of seeing me more than usual this week, as we hit the gym to revise her strength training plan, in addition to her regular movement session at the track. I also met Sophie’s grandfather, who came along to the track and after the session asked me the question ‘do girls run differently than boys?’. My answer was, ‘yes - if we are not careful’. Which leads me to the theme of this week’s post: the unique requirements and necessity of preparation for young female athletes.

Weekly Reflections: Engaging with Coaches

Weekly Reflections: Engaging with Coaches

Welcome back to the regular reader, and greetings to anybody finding the Prepared Blog for the first time. Highlights from this past week included a visit to the Tennis Canada regional training centre for the province of British Columbia on Vancouver’s North Shore. On that note, the theme I chose to focus on this week is engaging with coaches, albeit I was also tempted to go down either the talent identification or talent development rabbit hole… I will save that for a future post!