As a parent or coach, one of your top priorities is helping young athletes perform at their best while staying healthy and injury-free. Strength training plays a major role in achieving both goals. It’s not just about building muscle - it’s about developing a more resilient, explosive, and durable athlete who can handle the physical demands of their sport all season long.

Pre-Season: The Best Time to Build Strength and Volume

The off-season or pre-season is the perfect window to focus on building a strong foundation. Athletes can safely increase training volume and intensity to promote muscle growth and overall strength. A little muscle soreness during this phase is expected and can actually support the development of stronger muscle tissue.

But once the season begins, the training strategy should shift.

In-Season Training: Strength Without Sacrificing Performance

During the competitive season, it’s important to limit muscle soreness and fatigue from training. Why? Because soreness and heavy fatigue can negatively affect practice and game-day performance -and even raise the risk of injury.

One way to manage this is by adjusting the type of strength work being done. Emphasizing the concentric (lifting) phase of exercises, and reducing the eccentric (lowering) phase, causes less muscle damage. For example, exercises like box squats with controlled range of motion or safely dropping the weight can be helpful. You can also maintain intensity while keeping overall volume low - for example, 3 sets of 3 reps at about 85% of their max effort. This keeps strength levels high without overwhelming the body.

Why Strength Maintenance Is Non-Negotiable

Even in-season, athletes need to maintain high levels of strength. Strength is the foundation for power and speed - two qualities that are critical for almost every sport. If strength training is ignored during the season, athletes often lose explosiveness, which can affect their overall performance as the season progresses.

Durability and Availability: The Two Key Traits for Any Athlete

When it comes down to it, two qualities matter most:

• Availability – Are they healthy and able to play?
  

• Durability – Can their body handle the demands of the sport week after week?
  
  

A stronger athlete is usually a more durable athlete. But it’s not just about the big muscle groups. Strengthening smaller, supportive muscles is just as important—especially the ones that are often neglected or prone to overuse injuries.

Common injury areas in young athletes include the shoulders, back, hips, knees, and ankles. These joints are highly mobile, which also means they lack stability. Targeted strength work helps reinforce these joints and protect them from injury during fast, high-impact movements.

Don't Let Speed and Explosiveness Slip

Just like strength, speed and explosiveness can decline without regular training. And here’s something most parents and coaches don’t realize: most sports don’t give athletes the chance to reach their true top speed. The constant stop-start nature of games and practices doesn’t provide enough exposure to max effort sprinting.

That’s why it’s crucial to intentionally include short, high-speed sprint work during the week. A simple method is “micro-dosing” - just 4–5 short sprints (10–30 meters) after a warm-up every 2–3 days. It’s a low-fatigue way to keep the lower body strong, fast, and resilient throughout the season.

Final Thoughts for Parents and Coaches

Supporting your young athlete goes beyond showing up on game day. By encouraging smart, consistent strength and speed training throughout the year, you’re helping them:

• Stay healthy and injury-free
  

• Maintain peak performance during the season
  

• Build physical qualities that support long-term success in their sport
  
  

The goal isn’t to overwork them - it’s to work smarter, so they can enjoy the game, compete with confidence, and keep improving year after year.

Need Support with Your Young Athlete’s Training?

We know it can be tough to balance skill development, game schedules, and safe strength training. That’s why we offer expert-led youth performance programs designed to build strength, speed, and resilience - without overloading or risking burnout.

Whether your young athlete is in-season or off-season, our programs both online and in-person are tailored to their sport, age, and training experience.  

✅ Injury prevention
✅ Strength and speed development
✅ Age-appropriate programming
✅ Supportive coaching environment

📩 Contact us today to learn how we can help your young athlete stay strong, healthy, and performing at their best - all year round.