Why having a system for Youth Athletic Development is impoortant. Below is an article I wrote this past month.

Shedding some light on LTAD

Why the Long Term Athletic Development model (LTAD)?

Most people in our country do not know about this system and fewer coaches and parents understand it.

In my last article I touched upon the hazards of trying to specialize kids at an early age. It is our job as leaders in youth athletic development to keep chipping away at parents, coaches and the community at large about the best ways to develop our young.

This will not happen overnight, and will take patience, just like in developing our youth. I have my Gmail account alert set for LTAD, so when anyone writes something on it, I will be notified of the article. I came across a short interesting article titled, "The Long Term Effects of Higher Level Thinking." The author made an interesting point on students learning and correlating it to athletics:

"Developmental learning is a marathon; not a sprint. The fact that it does not happen overnight is NOT a rationale for why we should stop caring about the level of rigor that students experience in our classrooms. It simply means we must be cognizant of the fact that a lack of rapid development might not impede future development and simply emphasizes a need for more support."

How true! Just because a child may not display athletic skills early on doesn't mean he or she cannot develop if given the right kind of support. How many of our young kids slip through the cracks because they were not labeled great athletes or did not exhibit superior athletic skills at an early age? Could some of the many "average kids" have gone on to become elite athletes if given more attention and support or to have a system that allows for their development?

It basically focuses and recognizes the different growth and maturation stages of development for athletic development for all stages of life.

If I were to draw a LTAD pyramid of performance, it would have at the base or foundation, Fundamental Movement Patterns, such as running, skipping, sliding (lateral shuffle), hopping, throwing, catching, kicking, striking, etc... The second tier would be Functional Movement, which is our power base of movement; how far can someone jump, throw, or how fast they can move and the third tier at the top (the small part) of the pyramid would be Skills, which are sport-specific skills.

The challenge in our country is that we have that pyramid turned upside down, where we focus on mostly sport-specific skills with our kids at the foundation and the fundamental skills are not being developed as much. Why is this important?

It's due to muscle plasticity. Muscles are adaptable and pliable throughout life, more so in children. When kids are young, their central nervous system is like "Silly Putty." Children's muscles respond to all different types of stimulus and their bodies are sensitive to most stresses placed upon it. That's why it is so important that kids, especially pre-teens, are exposed to as much global athletic stimulus as possible. As a person ages, the muscle fibers and other factors begin to lose it plasticity. When he or she reaches full maturity, muscle fiber types are not as easily manipulated and our movement patterns become set, so to speak, or ingrained.

We live in a results-based society; we want results now! Athletic development, like our health, is much like farming. You will not see results immediately, but if you plant the seeds, cultivate and nurture them over time, it will reap benefits.

Give the kids the support they need, have them play more, involve them in as many activities or sports they want to participate in. Eventually they will naturally gravitate towards the sport(s) as they enter their teens. Just try not to rush the process, and enjoy the ride!


Contact Anthony Scire, Athlete's Performance Zone, at 88 Sugar Hollow Road (Rte 7) Ridgefield, Ct., 06877. 203-790-4653.