As a former football player and current youth football coach/player skill development coach, over the years I have come to realize how important it is for youth athletes to concentrate on football year round. Football is not a seasonal activity, but it is in fact a demanding sport that requires year round training.
Give your child an upper hand.
It is best that youth football players start preparing early on with their football mechanics, knowledge, and conditioning. It sometimes can be a very overwhelming task for football players to go into a season and have success when they have not prepared prior to the season. There are many different factors facing football players, especially the beginner or youth player.
#1 - Players need to work on the fundamental/advanced skills and mechanics needed to improve overall as well as in their specific positions. A child will not play well if they do not play the game fast mentally, and they cannot play the game mentally fast if they are unsure or lack the confidence that they know what they are doing in each situation. The season is started and the focus becomes for the coach the task of preparing the team as a whole to play their first game and to play as a unit. The individual skills and mechanics needed to play, particularly at the youth level, are not worked on during the season due to a lack of in-season practice time for individual players at individual positions.
#2 - It should be understood by players and parents that for a player to get better at any sport, particularly football, then that player must become a better athlete. Becoming a better athlete focuses on speed, strength, quickness, and agility. A football player should make sure his off-season training program focuses on spending time on improving in these areas, if they expect to become a better football player.
#3 - Doing the above two mentioned steps will lead a youth football player to develop confidence in his own skills and game, as well as in his understanding of knowledge and strategy, which in turn will breed success. This confidence cannot be understated because it is the confident player that will have success on the field as they believe in themselves, their teammates and their ability as an individual to perform and carry out the assignments a coach asks of them. This will lead to a stronger work ethic in and out of season.
How to Solve this Problem
There are several different options that are popular:
1. One day camps. These camps are becoming increasingly popular because of two factors: efficiency and cost. In just hours, your athlete will be trained in proper football form. I tend to discourage this training for younger players though, because often the kids don't remember or know how nor will they effectively prepare themselves through training on their own after the one day camp is over. They often will forget techniques taught in such a short amount of time.
2. Multi-session academies. Multi-session academies that last for several training sessions, 1 or 2 times a week are very effective because it not only trains the child in the proper fundamentals and mechanics but also the foundation can be set and built upon through repetition. Use Google to look for local spring and summer camps coached by established coaching names. GRID IRON Youth Sports Training offers several camps and academies for those players in the Montgomery County, Texas area, click here for more information and to register.
3. Individual Training Sessions. A final option is an individual training session with a skill position specific expert. Find a local coach that trains and inquire. If you are a parent of a child that is looking for camp instruction or individual training, visit GRID IRON Youth Sports Training at www.gridironyouthsportstraining.net.
Finally, football requires an all out dedication year round, so get active early.
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