The Pre-Puberty Program
Strength and conditioning for kids younger than the threshold of puberty is a great idea. When done sensibly, an S&C program will allow a young athlete to utilize their body in a way that is not typically expressed during the other sports they’re playing throughout the year. Additionally, they train the ability to control their body in a specific, intentional way. If you’ve ever used the term “giraffe on ice skates” to describe a young athlete, you know why this is important. Lastly, the type of program we do for pre-puberty athletes focuses on moving in generally athletic ways that do not involve lots of weight. Here are some favorite movements we like to use with kids of this age group:
-Jumping Rope or Speed Ladder
-All different types of jumping
-Animal walks (frog hops, spiderman walks, bear crawls, partner, wheelbarrow carries, crab walks, inchworms)
-Basic Running Drills (high knees, skipping, butt kickers, side shuffle, karaoka, back peddling, multi-directional cutting, sideways running)
-Basic Tumbling (getting on and off the ground smoothly is important)
-Bodyweight Exercises/Basic Gymnastics (air squats, lunges, push ups, pull ups, hanging, handstand holds on a wall, planks, hollow body holds)
-Loaded carries (Moms and Dads, think less trips to carry groceries or bags of mulch)
-Barbell PRACTICE. This means we use an empty or technique barbell to simply practice how to perform the basics like deadlifts, power cleans, squats, presses, etc…).
This type of program is not focused on building muscle or true strength. The idea is to develop a sort of movement literacy so that when the athlete’s body is ready to build muscle/power/strength from a hormonal and physiological perspective, they have great body control and ability to get themselves to produce a desired movement pattern on command. This gives them a leg up on their competition who needs to get stronger during puberty but hasn’t figured out how to move their body yet.
By the way, kids who engage in this type of program will see a difference in their ability to be powerful on the field in the short term too. For neurological reasons, practicing these types of movements consistently will allow the athlete to recruit muscles more efficiently in their sport which will lead to them being more athletic on the field. This is true even if there’s no noticeable change in muscle mass or physique.
Separately, I appreciate you guys very much. To all the folks that have been coming to the gym, you rock. To those that are thinking about it, please come. I’d love to work with you. To those that are irritated that they are receiving this newsletter and never want to come to STS, I hope you at least learned something that can help your athletic aspirations.
With Thanks,