Modern adolescents involved in Western society schooling and team sports suffer a plight, that is tremendously difficult to navigate out of. The tribulations of sport, sport, and more sport. School sport (pre-school and post school hours), external team sports (possibly several), matches, inadvertent games, and the will to get better at something, one’s own training. As parents we think we are doing the right thing, for health and physical activity levels, thrusting out kids into various team sports. But are we?
Working with children, in academies, schools, clinics and in sports, chronic overuse injuries or bordering on, are all too common. Sever’s disease, Shin Splints (Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome), Osgood Schlatter’s, groin pain, low back pain, stress fractures etc. It is all the same, chronic overuse injuries arising from too much loading, too quick and training/sport performed on an underdeveloped musculoskeletal system, arising in biomechanically vulnerable areas. Combined with inadequate rest, recoveries, deload periods and poor nutrition, kids can be a physical mess by their teens.
Girls that participate in dance and gymnastics, I would expect receive more physical development than boys who do not participate in such activities. Sure, team sports have conditioning or fitness components, but usually on a poor movement foundation. This just adds fuel to the fire or add fitness on top of dysfunction, as they say. Then, where is the physical development, mobility, movement, motor control and strength development? Usually, outsourced, too infrequently, too late, and unable to undo a lot of damage.
We are born with perfect mobility, but only loose it as we get older. Adolescents, who are sport dominant, combined growth spurts and lack of physical development training, loose it quick, affecting movement, coordination, and strength. IT MUST BE REMEDIED! To avoid chronic and catastrophic injures and ultimately allow one’s potential to be reached, we must intervene and act early. Join me in the quest to build in, and create frequent discrete physical development opportunities for families, early, before it is too late!
Challenge your children to become CREATURES. Nature knows best!