Global “shelter in place” orders have been issued in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. Both parents and children have had difficulty adapting to the confinement and disruption of the “new normal” as a consequence of these decrees. Young athletes who were used to routinely attending practices, sports, and other outlets for physical activity have been encouraged to accept responsibility for their own training despite the lack of aiding resources.
Due to this unexpected break in competition, coaches, parents, and young athletes are concerned that youngsters may forget the skills they have acquired and must regress significantly when competition resumes. This vacation was devoid of rivalry. Although there is no substitute for true competition within a sport, it is feasible to gain long-term advantages by improving coordination, strength, agility, and other qualities of athleticism during time away from competition.
Before parents and coaches start scouring the Internet for “professional athlete training techniques,” it is essential to bear in mind that children have certain physical development needs, especially in the years leading up to puberty. As their brains and bodies are still developing, children are only starting to learn how to utilize both their internal and external feelings to coordinate movements. This must be taken into account by training programs, which should focus on teaching movements by allowing youngsters to “play” with them. It is crucial for youngsters to discover enjoyable hobbies. Young athletes will only get more upset if their obstacles are too severe, and this may also increase their risk of injury.
This article describes three workouts ideal for young athletes aged 5 to 12 that may be performed at home. These may be performed inside or outdoors, and the equipment required is, at best, minimal. Although the participant learns a variety of physical talents throughout each training session, each session focuses primarily on building either coordination, strength, or agility—all of which are vital components of sports. Given that each workout can be done in around 25 minutes, young athletes will keep their interest. In addition, there exist film portrayals of the events that transpired.
Warm-ups, workouts, and games all use entertaining and creative activities. These unusual activities are meant to challenge children’s neuromuscular systems in novel ways, hence accelerating the rate at which they learn new information.
Young athletes may get a considerable advantage when they return to their respective sports if they engage in each of these activities once per week.
Exercise 1: Enhancing Coordination
Coordination is the ability of the brain and body to collaborate in order to perform a task as effectively and efficiently as feasible. This is essential for the development of the abilities and confidence required to perform at a high level in any sport or physical activity.
Participation in a variety of physical activities, beginning at a young age and continuing throughout one’s life, is essential for the development of coordination. First, children must acquire the capacity to use and rely on their sensory system in order to swiftly absorb information; only then can they continue to execute the right movement plan. Children learn these movement techniques via practice and refining as they age, allowing them to become faster and more fluid as they move.
A quick warm-up (5 minutes)
Verbs of Motion
Effectively transitioning from one movement to another requires a considerable level of coordination. Match the words for three separate exercises as part of this warm-up. Instruct the athletes to transition smoothly from one exercise to the next while they cycle for 10 seconds.
You are free to apply more “abstract” movement concepts, such as the ones listed below. This helps to build the flexibility required for agility and provides youngsters with “movement difficulties” to solve.
- To leap, skip, and roll: (repeat for 10 seconds)
The push-up, the lateral shuffle, and the cut are three effective exercises (repeat for 10 seconds)
Gallop, Squat, Spin (repeat for 10 seconds)
Run, Stop, Accelerate (repeat for 10 seconds)
Aspects of Motion
Begin by requiring the students to show a movement skill for five seconds. After that, a new “movement variable” will be added to this movement.
Provide the children with the bare minimum of instruction required for them to grasp how to do the action and what the new variable will look like.
- Five seconds of skipping, followed by five seconds of loud feet, followed by five seconds of silent feet, followed by five seconds of large arm swings, followed by five seconds of little arm swings (5 seconds), (5 second skip) (5 seconds)
- Jump for five seconds (5 seconds), The sequence of the exercises is: Legs wide (5 seconds), Legs narrow (5 seconds), Side to side (5 seconds), and Forward and backward (5 seconds each) (5 seconds), Jump for five seconds (5 seconds)
- Push-up for five seconds (5 seconds), Hips elevated for five seconds, hips lowered for five seconds, followed by movement (5 seconds), Push-up for five seconds (5 seconds)
- Five seconds of lateral shuffle, five seconds of hips high, and five seconds of hips low (5 seconds), Five seconds with the feet touching in the center, then five seconds with the feet apart in the center (5 seconds), Displacement to the side (5 seconds)
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Prepare Your Senses
When working with younger athletes who are only starting to comprehend their core bodily parts and what these parts do, it is crucial to include the vocabulary that will be used to teach specific talents as soon as feasible. When this is performed often during warm-ups, children will recognise the coaching cues associated with these skills when it is time to learn and practise them.
As they are now acquiring the precise synchronisation necessary to do a high-level skip, it is imperative that they recognise the following coaching signs when marching or skipping.
- Be careful to be vigilant.
- Keep your weight on your heels.
Roll the inside of your foot around. - The action of skipping should be performed with the thigh parallel to the ground.
When you skate, your thighs should be above parallel to the ground.
You should do a skip with your thighs parallel to the ground.
The arms should be extended at a 90-degree angle.
The elbow angle of the arms should be less than ninety degrees.
Extend your arms beyond an elbow arc of 90 degrees.
Bring your hands from your back pocket to your nose by bringing them upwards.
From behind your torso, move your hands up and over your head.
The Benefits of Skipping for Improving Coordination
Skipping is an excellent technique to prepare for running, particularly for beginners. Skipping is an excellent sport for developing children’s coordination since it demands them to focus on both their rhythm and body posture.
The following are essential elements of expert-level skipping:
- Arms bent to 90 degrees
Use the ball of your foot to make contact with the ground.
Place the thigh on a parallel plane with the ground.
Try one of the following exercises to develop your coordination and establish the muscle memory necessary for advanced skipping:
- Armed robots (4 sets of 10 seconds)
Popcorn springs (4 sets of 10 seconds)
Moon meter (4 sets of 15-20 yards)
Skip (4 sets of 15-20 yards) (4 sets of 15-20 yards) (4 sets of 15 to 20 meters)
To strike, punch, and catch
Equipment: Ball or balloon
To be successful in this game, children must react quickly and coordinate their motions.
Quick Response of the Feet
To do this job properly, children must respond rapidly when directed by an adult.
Contraries with a Rapid Foot Reaction
Introduce the “opposites” coordination challenge after the athlete has completed four sets of the previous exercise lasting between 15 and 20 seconds. In this specific instance, the athlete is instructed to go in the opposite direction of what the coach has marked.
Mechanical Logic of Motion
The purpose of these circuits is to develop the strength and coordination required to transition from one exercise to the next without difficulty. The circuit that follows should be performed three times.
- To accomplish a pushup, roll (30 seconds)
Changing Cone Reaching Directions (30 seconds)
Split Squat (30 seconds each leg)
Utilizing the Crab Hip (30 seconds)
Exercise 2: Resistance
The development of a young athlete’s strength establishes the foundation for his or her ability to perform at the greatest level while reducing the danger of injury. Strong legs, core, and upper-body muscles assist athletes of any age to run faster, jump higher, and have more body control.
Certain exercises involving both sensory and basic movement abilities may emphasize the safe and successful development of the strength required for the most crucial sporting moves. Almost all forms of physical exercise may help children develop “stronger,” but some activities that include both sensory and basic movement abilities can emphasize this.
A quick warm-up (5 minutes)
Verbs of Motion
Effectively transitioning from one movement to another requires a considerable level of coordination. Match the words for three separate exercises as part of this warm-up. Instruct the athletes to fluidly transition from one task to the next while cycling for 10 seconds.
Please feel free to use more “abstract” movement concepts, such as those shown in the examples supplied below. This presents the youngsters with “movement problems” that they must address. This aids in the development of adaptation, which is essential for agility.
- The leap, the roll, and the jumping jack (repeat for 10 seconds)
Perform Squats, the Running Man, and the Shuffles (repeat for 10 seconds)
Back pedal, Cut, Spin (repeat for 10 seconds)
It comes down to Jump, Duck, and Crawl (repeat for 10 seconds)
Aspects of Motion
Instruct parents to have their children do a fundamental movement skill for five seconds to begin. The next stage is to add an extra “movement variable” to the movement.
Give the children the bare minimum of direction required for them to comprehend how to do the action and what the new variable will look like.
- March for five seconds, then quickly for five seconds, and then march for five seconds again (5 seconds), Five seconds with knees raised, then knees lowered. Repeat (5 seconds) (5 seconds), March (five ticks) (5 seconds)
Hop (on each foot for five seconds) (on each foot for five seconds), Five seconds of pounding feet, followed by five seconds of soft feet (5 seconds), Over something (5 seconds), Reverse for five seconds, then leap forward (5 seconds)
Squat (5 seconds) (5 seconds), Please use the entrance and exit only (5 seconds), Body wide (5 seconds), Squat for 5 seconds, then contract your body for 5 seconds, before moving for 5 seconds (5 seconds)
Crawl for five seconds (5 seconds), Hips should be raised for five seconds, then lowered. Repeat (5 seconds) (5 seconds), Body brief (1 second), Body lengthy (5 seconds) (5 seconds).
Say What You Hear Simon Do (Body Awareness)
The game Simon Says is used to familiarize toddlers with their body’ many components and functions. In addition, it may be used to familiarize youngsters with the specialized movements and body positions necessary for the development of certain motor skills. Include a range of techniques that Simon does not discuss. The following are some suggestions:
Simon Says:
- Feet with the same breadth as the hips
More expansive feet than hips
The feet are narrower than the hips.
Weight on your heels
Put some pressure on your toes.
Bend your knees to 90 degrees
Reduce the angle between your knees to below ninety degrees.
You should bend your knees farther than ninety degrees.
Bring your feet down to earth.
Extend your arms over your head and press your elbows on your thighs.
Squats are excellent for building strength and mobility
Squatting is a natural movement that is essential for sports and other activities that individuals engage in everyday. Moreover, it contributes to the development of lower-body strength. Children older than seven years old should be taught the more technical aspects of this dance in a safe and effective manner. After they have attained a level of proficiency in the activity, it is necessary to find ways to make it more challenging for them.
As the athletes attempt these exercises, ensure they are doing the following:
- Keep your heels firmly planted on the ground.
Shift your hips backward so that your knees are behind or in line with your toes.
Ensure that their chest is lifted and extended.
Step-up Squat three times, each for 30 seconds.
Elbow/knee Squats performed three times for 30 seconds each.
Squats against an immobile wall 3 rounds of 30 second duration
The Tree-Roots Game
The mechanics of the squat, namely lowering the hips and keeping the heels on the ground, may be improved by playing this game, which is suitable for individuals of all ages.
Cone Race with a Companion
This sport offers the opportunity to combine strength-training exercises into a competitive game. If this sequence doesn’t work for you, feel free to create your own:
- Squat \push-up
To the shoulders with one’s hands
Jump \sconce
Jumping jacks
Push-up Spinning Cone
Squat
Jump
Hands up, feet down
Jumping jacks
CONE
Mechanical Logic of Motion
The purpose of these circuits is to develop the strength and coordination required to transition from one exercise to the next without difficulty. The circuit that follows should be performed three times.
- Surfer (30 second duration) (30 seconds)
Wall Squat (30 seconds)
Alternating Superman (30 seconds)
Three animals named Bear, Crab, and Butterfly (30 seconds)
Exercise 3: Agility
A young athlete with “agility” can move quickly and efficiently while adjusting to numerous components of a physical activity, including space constraints, time constraints, and other issues. It is vital to master fundamental movement skills such as sprinting, jumping, and shuffling in order to acquire agility. In addition, the development of sensory abilities like vision, balance, spatial ability, bodily awareness, and rhythm is necessary.
A quick warm-up (5 minutes)
Verbs of Motion
Effectively transitioning from one movement to another requires a considerable level of coordination. Match the words for three separate exercises as part of this warm-up. Instruct the athletes to fluidly transition from one task to the next while cycling for 10 seconds.
Feel free to apply more “abstract” movement concepts, such as those depicted in the examples below. This helps to build the flexibility required for agility and provides youngsters with “movement difficulties” to solve.
- To leap, roll, and sprint (repeat for 10 seconds)
Carry out a shuffle, a switch, and push-ups (repeat for 10 seconds)
Squat, extend, and rotate (repeat for 10 seconds)
To rotate, hop, and duck (repeat for 10 seconds)
Aspects of Motion
Instruct parents to have their children do a fundamental movement skill for five seconds to begin. After that, a new “movement variable” will be added to this movement.
Give the children the bare minimum of direction required for them to comprehend how to do the action and what the new variable will look like.
- Five seconds of marching, five seconds of open legs and arms, five seconds of closed legs and arms, five seconds of hard feet, and five seconds of soft feet (5 seconds), March (five ticks) (5 seconds)
Five seconds of jumping, followed by five seconds of running, followed by five seconds of walking (5 seconds), Five seconds in a zigzag, then five seconds in reverse, followed by one leap (5 seconds)
Squat (5 seconds) (5 seconds), Five seconds of hands over the head, then hands down by the waist (5 seconds), While you were moving (5 seconds), please breathe in and out (5 seconds), Squat (5 seconds) (5 seconds)
5 seconds of gallop (5 seconds), In a square (10 seconds) In a circle for five seconds (5 seconds), Body wide for five seconds followed by body narrow for the same duration.
Say What You Hear Simon Do (Body Awareness)
The game Simon Says is used to familiarise toddlers with their body’ many components and functions. In addition, it may be used to familiarise youngsters with the specialised movements and body positions necessary for the development of certain motor skills. Include a range of techniques that Simon does not discuss. The following are some suggestions:
Simon Says:
- Feet with the same breadth as the hips
More expansive feet than hips
The feet are narrower than the hips.
Weight on your heels
Put some pressure on your toes.
Bend your knees to 90 degrees
Reduce the angle between your knees to below ninety degrees.
You should bend your knees farther than ninety degrees.
Bring your feet down to earth.
Extend your arms over your head and press your elbows on your thighs.
Exercises designed to enhance your agility, including “Elastic” Foot Contact with Popcorn Jumps
Maintaining elastic foot contact with the terrain you’re going over is essential for agility. Additionally, it is a need for acquiring speed. Seven-year-olds and older must be taught the technical components of how to effectively and efficiently bounce off the ground. This instruction must start as soon as feasible.
Perform a total of four 10-second intervals.