Conditioning Young Athletes Tudor O. Bompa, PhD Michael Carrera HUMAN KINETICS Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bompa, Tudor, 1932- Conditioning young athletes / Tudor Bompa, Michael Carrera. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Physical fitness for children. I. Carrera, Michael, 1975- II. Title. GV443.B619 2015 613.7’042--dc23 2014045516 ISBN: 978-1-4925-0309-5 (print) Copyright © 2015 by Tudor Bompa and Michael Carrera All rights reserved. Except for use in a review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in any form or by any elec- tronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying, and record- ing, and in any information storage and retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher. This publication is written and published to provide accurate and authoritative information relevant to the subject matter presented. It is published and sold with the understanding that the author and publisher are not engaged in rendering legal, medical, or other professional services by reason of their authorship or publication of this work. If medical or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Notice: Permission to reproduce the following material is granted to instructors and agencies who have purchased Conditioning Young Athletes: pp. 51, 52, 53, 54, and 150. The reproduction of other parts of this book is expressly forbidden by the above copyright notice. Persons or agencies who have not purchased Conditioning Young Athletes may not reproduce any material. This book is a revised edition of Total Training for Young Champions, published in 2000 by Tudor O. Bompa. The web addresses cited in this text were current as of February 2015, unless otherwise noted. 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Human Kinetics Website: www.HumanKinetics.com United States: Human Kinetics Australia: Human Kinetics P.O. Box 5076 57A Price Avenue Champaign, IL 61825-5076 Lower Mitcham, South Australia 5062 800-747-4457 08 8372 0999 e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] Canada: Human Kinetics New Zealand: Human Kinetics 475 Devonshire Road Unit 100 P.O. Box 80 Windsor, ON N8Y 2L5 Mitcham Shopping Centre, South Australia 5062 800-465-7301 (in Canada only) 0800 222 062 e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] Europe: Human Kinetics 107 Bradford Road Stanningley Leeds LS28 6AT, United Kingdom +44 (0) 113 255 5665 e-mail: [email protected] E6398 This book is dedicated to all the hard-working coaches, athletes, and parents who strive to achieve excellence in sport performance. May you also form lasting relationships and positive experiences in pursuit of your goals. Dr. Tudor O. Bompa and Michael Carrera To my wife, thank you for your love, guidance, and sacrifice throughout the completion of this project. You are always there to support me, and this book was no different. To my four children, thank you for the gift of fatherhood. What an amazing journey. To Dr. Tudor Bompa, thank you for your friendship and unbridled support over the many years. Michael Carrera Contents Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .vi Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .viii Chapter 1 Training Guidelines for Young Athletes. . . 1 Chapter 2 Stages of Athletic Development . . . . . . . 21 Chapter 3 Assessing the Young Athlete. . . . . . . . . . 49 Chapter 4 Flexibility Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Chapter 5 Speed Training. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Chapter 6 Agility and Quickness Training . . . . . . . 111 iv Chapter 7 Strength and Power Training . . . . . . . . 129 Chapter 8 Endurance Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 Chapter 9 Excelling in Competition . . . . . . . . . . . 213 Chapter 10 Fueling the Young Athlete . . . . . . . . . . 223 Chapter 11 Long-Term Training Plans. . . . . . . . . . . 243 Chapter 12 Training Myths and Kids. . . . . . . . . . . . 261 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .283 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .289 About the Authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .295 v Preface Childhood is the most physically active stage of human development. Children like to play games and participate in physical activity and sports, and they certainly love to compete. In today’s society, sport has become a way of life. Parents plan their vacations and days off work around hockey and soccer tournaments, and children dream about developing into professional athletes, buying jerseys, hats, stickers, and even video games that promote their favorite players. Coaches are bombarded with various training philosophies, equipment, and scrutiny from parents, administrators, other coaches, and athletes! Rarely is an off-season or transition period used to reset the athlete physically, mentally, and emotionally from a tough season. Today athletes transition from play to training and back to play. It is no surprise that burnout is rampant in many sports. To- day’s sporting environment is highly competitive and time consuming. Competition is important, but so is proper training and time devoted to rest, play, and other nonsporting activities. Conditioning Young Athletes is not about building the best athlete; rather, it’s about designing the best program so that your athletes can grow, prosper, and reach their personal best in all aspects of sport, competition, and health. Parents, coaches, and administrators search for the best training programs to increase children’s athletic potential. Coaches often become role models, and children dream of surpassing the achievements of Peyton Manning, Gracie Gold, Usain Bolt, Sidney Grosby, or Serena Williams. It is, however, a grave mistake to submit children to the training programs of adults. After all, children are not simply little adults. Each child is unique at each stage of development. The physical and psychological changes (at times abrupt) that occur at each stage are accompanied by critical behavioral transformations. It is important for anyone working with children to be well informed regarding all the physical, emotional, and cognitive changes occurring during the development stages and to structure training that is best suited for each stage. As coaches and parents we need to keep in mind that informal training and prepara- tion for sport begin in early childhood, when kids should be encouraged to run, jump, play with balls, and enjoy all the activities on the playground and in the backyard. Many years are available for focusing on a particular sport or physical activity. Of the great number of books devoted to training, the majority refer to elite athletes, and few discuss training programs specifically for children. Along with many specialists and researchers on the specifics of training for young athletes, through both experience and in-depth study, we have gathered information and experience regarding the best possible approach to training children. The intent of Conditioning Young Athletes is to bridge the gap between research and application and between a hit-and-miss and a long-term approach to children’s training. For each developmental stage there is a corresponding phase of athletic training: Initiation takes place in prepuberty, athletic formation occurs in puberty, specialization happens in postpuberty, and high performance occurs in maturation. While each devel- opmental stage roughly corresponds to a typical age range, it’s important to understand that training programs must be designed according to an athlete’s stage of maturation rather than chronological age because individual needs and demands vary among vi Preface athletes. Children of the same chronological age may differ by several years in their level of biological maturation. Moreover, while an early-maturing child may show dramatic improvements initially, often a late maturer will be the better athlete in the long run. Current research in athletic training substantiates such a claim; thus, it’s important to look beyond the short-term achievements and let children develop at their own pace. The training models in Conditioning Young Athletes focus solely on the three major stages of development: prepuberty, puberty, and postpuberty. The first two chapters provide information about the anatomical, physiological, and psychological aspects children experience at each stage. In chapter 3, we discuss the importance of assessment—not so much to compare the athlete to others but rather to set points of improvement and fitness goals. We chose assessment techniques that are easy to apply to many team and individual sports. Chapters 4 through 8 discuss training for flexibility, speed, agility and quickness, strength and power, and endurance, respectively. Each of the training chap- ters includes suggestions for structuring workouts, periodization models for each stage of development, and illustrated or photographed exercises and activities. Of the vast number of exercises for developing coordination, flexibility, speed, agility, endurance, strength, and power, we have selected those that are most accessible and that anyone can perform without sophisticated machines. Our model is very simple: You don’t have to do what is new, just what is necessary for success in sport. Fancy and expensive equipment is not the key to successful athletic development. Rather, the key is to de- sign and implement a plan that focuses on the proper stage of athletic development and provides an opportunity for the athletes to mature in all areas of fitness, including strength, speed, flexibility, and endurance. Specialization should occur in the later years of athletic development, so coaches and parents should be patient and take the time to properly assess and slowly progress young athletes in all training goals. We also urge you to consider the exercises and programs only as a guideline. As you become more familiar with the training stages, you can add to or change any exercise or program to accommodate individual needs, specific training conditions, and environment. Chapter 9 discusses appropriate timing for participating in organized competition and ways in which parents and coaches can guide competition and training to ensure athletes have a positive experience. In chapter 10 we discuss proper nutrition for young athletes, in particular the five fueling habits. We also discuss the importance of a bal- anced diet that consists of primarily whole foods and what to eat before, during, and after a competition or training session. Chapter 11 puts all of the information from the previous chapters together in specific, long-term training plans for various team and individual sports. The final chapter discusses training myths that are often propagated and marketed to parents, coaches, and trainers. While many forms of equipment and gadgets can be useful in conditioning young athletes, there are also pieces of equipment that not only fail to improve strength, speed, or power, but can actually decondition the exact variable of fitness the equipment claims to improve. A positive experience in sports and competition is key to ensuring children will enjoy an active lifestyle for years to come. Doing too much too soon, however, can result in overtraining or injury, and it might also lead children to lose interest and drop out of sports before ever fully developing their talents. An organized long-term training pro- gram such as presented here greatly increases the chance that athletes will stay with their sports and enjoy long-term excellence rather than short-term burnout. And that’s what makes a well-conditioned athlete. vii Acknowledgments It is a great pleasure to once again work with Michael Carrera as coauthor of this book. Mike is an exceptional specialist with a prosperous future in sport training and, in par- ticular, with junior athletes. His knowledge base is exemplary, and he has contributed greatly in writing this book. My sincerest thanks. Dr. Tudor O. Bompa Together we would like to thank Justin Klug, Amy Stahl, and the entire Human Kinetics staff for all their hard work, patience, and dedication in publishing this book. The editing process was seamless, guided by a professional group of people who came together to produce a thoughtful and focused book. Thank you all for sharing your experience and talents. Dr. Tudor O. Bompa and Michael Carrera viii