Sports are great for kids, right? It promotes exercise, team work, discipline, and self confidence. Children are specializing in their sport at much younger ages than in years past for many reasons - the child gravitates to a certain sport, the parent is a fan of or participated in that sport when they were young, associated costs, and/or potential scholarship money in the future. But can this early specialization actually be hurting our kids?
According to Greg Schaible in "Early Sport Specialization Is Killing The Health of Our Kids" (find article here: https://drjohnrusin.com/early-sport-specialization-is-killing-the-health-of-our-kids/), the answer is yes. Kids who specialize in a sport experience more injuries which can possibly hinder their overall athletic development. They may develop a nagging injury that keeps them from achieving their maximum potential, or they may be injured during a moment of great potential growth and skill acquisition.
Playing multiple sports has many benefits, one of which is allowing that child's body to move, strengthen, and absorb stresses in different ways. What if, for whatever reason, you or your child don't want to get involved with other sports? It's important to be sure that their body doesn't overdevelop certain muscles, motions, and/or movement patterns while lagging behind in others.
At Integrate 360, assessing and treating movement and strength deficits is our speciality. Even if you aren't experiencing pain (yet), let us show you some activities to keep your body moving correctly in all planes and ranges of motions. This will help to prevent injury and help you or your child to become the finest athlete they can be! Call us at 314-733-5000.