Fall Sports Conditioning Safety
Fall sports conditioning serves as a foundation upon which the sports season’s success is built and can help reduce the number of in-season injuries. Fall sports conditioning involves a program of weight training and aerobic sport-specific conditioning that allows the athlete to slowly acclimate to the demands of the sport by gradually increasing the intensity and volume of their training over time. Check out our 8 tips for safe fall sports conditioning!
What does Fall Sports Conditioning involve?
Fall sports conditioning involves a program of weight training and aerobic sport-specific conditioning to prepare for the intensity of the fall sports season. Sports conditioning allows the athlete to slowly acclimate to the demands of the sport by gradually increasing the intensity and volume of their training over time.
Sports conditioning can vary between football, soccer, volleyball, basketball, and cross-country athletes as each sport requires specific skills, strength, and aerobic capacity. For football players, coaches may prioritize mobility and strength drills to ensure players can run and cut effectively to reduce the risk of concussions and knee injuries. Coaches may also focus on enhancing lateral movement for endurance and agility moving side-to-side on the field and work to integrate upper and lower body strengthening, using drills that require hip, leg, shoulder, and chest muscle coordination and power.
A cross country coach, on the other hand, works to build a strong base of endurance by encouraging running frequency while increasing the length of each run over time and over different terrains. Soccer coaches often prioritize strengthening exercises of the lower extremities to combat ankle sprains, hamstring strains, and ACL tears. Because soccer requires bouts of short sprints followed by jogging, coaches implement interval cardio drills to mimic this dynamic and build the necessary aerobic capacity and endurance.
Basketball coaches may focus on sprinting and agility drills, working on quick pivots and changes of direction. They may also do targeted strengthening of the gluteal muscles for jumping and running and address any muscular imbalances in the lower extremities that could predispose players to injury. Volleyball coaches, on the other hand, may focus on targeted strengthening of specific muscle groups in the low back, arms, shoulders, and legs and implement progressive jump training on harder surfaces to prepare for competition.
Coach-led fall sports conditioning should begin at least six to eight weeks before competition and at a minimum two weeks before the sports season. However, it is recommended that athletes maintain a sports conditioning program throughout the off-season and summer, working with a physical therapist for a customized sport-specific training program.
Safety Tips for Fall Sports Conditioning
Fall sports conditioning serves as a foundation upon which the sport season’s success is built and can help reduce the number of in-season injuries. However, it is essential to take certain precautions to ensure athletes are safe and healthy during fall sports conditioning.
Here are 8 safety tips for fall sports conditioning:
Increase training gradually. Do not rush into intense or long training sessions. Instead, gradually and incrementally increase your exercise routine. Experts recommend that athletes only increase weights, mileage, pace, or intensity by 10% each week to avoid overtraining and allow the athlete’s muscles, joints, and bones to adjust to the stresses and demands of the sport over time.
Fuel your body with proper nutrition. Proper nutrition affects an athlete’s quality of athletic performance, strength, training, and energy level. Most experts recommend athletes prioritize whole foods, balancing their plates with high-quality protein, complex carbs, vegetables and fruits, and healthy fats. Certain sports may require more protein or carbs. For example, cross country runners may need more carbs to support endurance running, whereas a football player may need more protein for strength building.
Stay well-hydrated. Your hydration level affects your training, competition, and recovery. When training or competing, athletes can lose a lot of fluids due to sweat, intense activity, hot temperatures outdoors, and working out at a higher altitude. It’s essential to hydrate with water and electrolyte-rich drinks before, during, and after training. Experts recommend that athletes divide their body weight in half and drink at least an ounce per pound of their body weight throughout the day. Hydration also decreases the risk of exertional heat stroke and other heat-related illnesses.
Acclimatize to exercising in the heat safely. It can take up to two weeks exercising in the heat for your body to acclimatize to the heat. Start with running shorter distances at lower intensities or doing shorter training sessions at a lower intensity and gradually increase the distance, duration, and intensity of your workout as your body can tolerate it. Be smart about your workout times. Avoid training during the hottest part of the day, usually between 11 AM and 2 PM. Instead, train during the cooler morning hours or early evening hours.
Always engage in a dynamic warm up. A dynamic warm up is the best way to prepare for a training session. Dynamic warmups can include movements like a light jog, leg swings, or side lunging. A dynamic warm up involves moving and stretching through a joint’s full range of motion, promoting blood flow and preparing your muscles for more intensive activity. Dynamically warmed-up muscles are less prone to injury.
Use proper sport-specific footwear. Wearing the correct footwear for your sport is essential to minimize the risk of injury. Supportive running shoes decrease stress on a runner’s legs, hips, and pelvis. Turf shoes work well on dry, hard fields as the soft midsole of these shoes absorbs impact forces when the foot hits the ground when running. Cleats are useful on soft, wet fields, providing needed traction to prevent falls.
Rest for optimal performance. Rest is a critical component of any training program. When training, muscles lose glycogen, which are the muscles’ stores of energy that allow muscles to contract and move. Recovery time post-training allows the body to replenish the muscle glycogen and repair tiny tears in the muscles caused by muscle movement, which ultimately makes muscles stronger than before. Take one to two days off per week for recovery when training.
Complete a pre-season physical exam with a qualified doctor. Prior to fall sports conditioning and the fall sports season, all athletes should complete a preseason physical exam that reviews the athlete’s comprehensive family medical history and any previous history of injury or illness. The screening should also include a cardiovascular exam, a neurological exam, and orthopedic exam. Athletes should be given education on how to recognize heat-related illnesses and ideally, for high-contact sports, a baseline concussion test should be done to measure verbal and visual memory, processing speed, and reaction time.
Fall sports conditioning is an important period of training before fall sports season competition. Work with a physical therapist for a customized strength and conditioning program prior to team sports conditioning and follow our 8 tips for safe conditioning!
