Announcement – FREE WEIGHT LIFTING CLINIC at IFAST
Our young athletes need to be prepared for the rigors of their chosen sports.
Proper conditioning to enhance strength, speed, agility, endurance, and prevent fatigue is an essential part of junior high school and high school sports. Not only does this allow our athletes to demonstrate their physical potential, but it’s one of the most important aspects of mitigating injuries.
This is one of the reasons why the IFAST Athletic Development (AD) classes are so important. Many of our young athletes focus early on a single sport. Without the AD classes, single sport athletes are at a disadvantage when compared to multi-sport athletes who naturally develop a broader foundation of movements skills that enhance performance and build a more resilient athlete.
AD is also a key element in returning young athletes to their sport after suffering a sports-related injury. Properly reconditioning and retraining an athlete to peak condition makes reinjury less likely.
As a physical therapist, it breaks my heart to hear of any athlete who suffers any injury on the court or field that results in lost playing time or the end of a season.
This feeling is worsened when I’m told of an injury that occurred not on the field of play or in organized practice, but rather, in the weight room at school.
Accidents happen. Injuries can be the result of such accidents. My training as physical therapist allows me to understand and accept this.
However, the reports of weight room injury are increasing.
Providing adequate skill development and effective coaching in the weight room is one of the most difficult jobs in our industry. It requires a well-informed and highly skilled strength and conditioning coach. It’s also one of the reasons we limit our AD class sizes and keep an optimal coach-to-athlete ratio. How can one coach effectively teach and coach proper weight lifting technique to 60 athletes at once?
The reality is that they can’t.
I know the coaches are doing the best that they can. I’m sure they shake their heads in frustration when a young athlete sustains an injury on their watch.
I know the schools are doing the best that they can to properly prepare their athletes.
But the weight lifting-induced injury reports are increasing.
I share the frustration of the coaches and schools. I don’t want to hear of any more back or shoulder or knee injuries in the school weight room.
So we’re going to help.
The IFAST training staff will be hosting a FREE weight lifting skills clinic starting Saturday February 9th at 2 p.m at IFAST.
Athletes must be at least be in the 7th grade.
Only the first 12 athletes to sign up will be allowed to attend the class. This is to assure effective coaching and the utmost safety.
The emphasis of this clinic is on teaching the proper technique of specific weight lifting exercises commonly implemented in high school strength training programs.
It is NOT a weight lifting session designed to test an athlete’s strength.
This clinic is a “How to” clinic.
High school coaches are welcome to observe.
Participants need not be members of IFAST, and you are under no obligation to become members of IFAST.
If you’re interested in increasing the weight room safety of your young athlete, please call IFAST at 317-578-0998 to reserve your athlete’s spot in the clinic.
Class size is limited to assure effective coaching, learning, and safety.
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