How Young Is Too Young For Soccer Drills and Resistance Training
A question for most parents is, at what age do you start doing resistance training? This is a very important question when it comes to parenting. You never want your kids to get hurt, or not have fun playing sports. Resistance training is a very effective tool to help optimize the abilities of athletes. When athletes are younger, resistance training can be an amazing way to optimize a youngster’s results. Soccer is one of the biggest sports in the United States for young children. We have ask questions on when to start completing soccer drills here at Kbands Training weekly. Let's take a look at the video below as we discuss this question and then dig a little deeper.
Soccer Drills For Kids
Most parents will see that young Soccer players struggle to dribble or move quickly from side to side. When you evaluate your young athlete you want to recognize what abilities they are lacking. We suggest that the first move you make is start completing speed and agility drills with no resistance. If you find that your young soccer player moves efficiently and understands how to complete reps and sets, then they are ready to begin with resistance training. There are different levels of resistance training. We do not recommend that you start weight training with young soccer players. We suggest that you start with resistance bands training. Resistance bands are an effective way to recruit more muscles and develop speed while completing sport specific movements.
Kbands are an efficient way to activate the glutes and hips that are required to move quickly from side to side and sprint linearly. Notice the athlete in the video drives his knees on top of the ball to activate his hip flexors. This is different from leg exercises with weights. A traditional leg exercise with weights is the back squat. During the back squat, Young soccer players, will have their entire body under a load. This can compress their joints and is unnecessary to achieve the results that we are looking for. Young athletes are not going to put on muscle mass the same way that a developed older athlete will. Children genetically are not ready for muscle mass. In turn, we need to help with the mind-body connection and help achieve strength and coordination.
What Is A Good Soccer Drill For Kids
This soccer drill is definitely considered a beginner level drill. There are two sequences that you'll complete. The first is driving your knees up on top of the soccer ball and back to the ground. This drill is great to build hip flexor strength with Kbands. Complete this portion of the drill for 12 to 15 seconds before moving on to the second exercise. During the second exercise the young athlete will spread their legs and kick the ball back-and-forth between their feet. This may look simple, but with the resistance, the young soccer player will challenge their legs. Not only do they have to focus on the soccer ball, but they must kick the ball back-and-forth quickly. When the young athletes legs are spread their glutes will be activated from the resistance bands. Developing a young athletes glutes will help with change of direction and acceleration. This muscle group is one of the last to develop when maturing into a teenager. We recommend completing glute training 2 to 3 times a week as soon as the young athlete understands the concept of training.
What Questions Should You Ask As Apparent To Know If Your Child Is Ready For Resistance Training
Can my child complete cone drills? The reason for this question is to understand whether or not this is the first stage in training your child, or have they done exercises before. If you're young soccer player has done cone drills before and done a good job, then they will be ready for drills like this one.
Has your child ever worked out before? A simple workout evaluation is another question you should ask yourself. If your child has worked out before and you have seen them enjoy it, then they already for this specific drill. If they get lost or sidetracked very easily, then you may want to start completing drills without resistance.
Does your child understand the concept of the reps and sets? The reps and sets question is very important. Does your child understand how to work at max effort, and then take a break? Do they have the ability to complete multiple sets in a row of the same exercise without being distracted? If they get the idea of reps and sets, then they are definitely ready for resistance training.
<5>Don't Overdo It
The best advice we give to parents is don't over do it. Start small when you're working with young athletes. A lot of young children enjoy the game of soccer so don't ruin it for them. Playing games five nights a week turns into a job. Think about your employment. As soon as you have to work five days a week every week the game no longer is very fun. Get out play with your kids and don't always make it about training. One or two times a week is an adequate amount of training at this age. Complete exercises for 15 to 20 minutes and then get back to having more fun. Learning how to balance fun and effective training can really help them perform better. Do your best to balance these two things and you will have a happy young athlete.