By Dr. Chad Peters | Precision Performance Concepts
One of the hardest things for parents and coaches to just become AWARE OF, is that,
Sports Development does not happen on a set schedule.
No matter how unfair it seems, or how bad you or your all-star WANTS it. it’s just the truth of the matter and poor expectations are a real part of the understanding.
Some athletes pull ahead while others, at the same age, take longer to catch up. It is frustrating, it is confusing, and often leads to second guessing.
I’m a parent of 4 teenagers and run a career focused on sports performance and injury protocols.
If I’m over-thinking this, so are most!
The reality is that development is not linear.
Kids grow, learn, show interest and mature at different speeds.
Understanding this truth can relieve a lot of stress and help us make better decisions.
At Precision Performance Concepts, we look at development not only from a performance side but also from the sports injury side. The real key is how those two areas overlap. That is where true development happens.
Here are just a few examples that should help make this point, stick!
Physical Development and Puberty
The most obvious factor, and the one parents usually think about first, is puberty.
A twelve year old who starts developing early is suddenly faster, stronger, and more coordinated than a peer the exact same age.
That athlete is going to have a natural advantage in sports for a while.
Meanwhile the late bloomer may look behind, but very often catches up. In many cases they surpass the early developer once growth and coordination line up.
This is the easiest piece of development to see with your own eyes. But it is tough when it’s your kid. I hear parents say all the time, “My kid just needs to gain 15 pounds and get his squat to 200.” I think, “This kid couldn’t gain 15 pounds if he wore a parka and jumped in a lake!” He’s simply not at that level of physical maturity for this to even be a concern.
Yes, physical development is easy to see, it’s a very real stressor for coaches and for the kids going through this but it is far from the only factor.
Skill Development and Training Volume
Skills develop at different rates too. Practice time makes a huge difference.
If your child is on a select or club team that practices three times a week for two and a half hours, they are going to get more skill reps than a multi-sport athlete that can make one practice a week. It is simple math. More hours at practice equal faster skill acquisition. This shows up clearly in sports like soccer, volleyball, baseball, and softball. It’s also THE WHY we see so much burnout an injury potential.
As parents, we want to give our kids the best chance for success. It’s how we’re wired. But the body seriously cant handle 3 hour practices, for two sports – 7 days a week.
The human machine simple needs downtime. It will find a way to get this one way or another so be warned!
My own daughters are a good example. They are freshmen in high school and they love volleyball, beach volleyball, basketball, soccer, and track. Because they cannot physically play five year round select sports, some of their advanced skills naturally develop a little slower. This year a coach said to one of them, “I don’t like your footwork, we need to change that.” She was upset, but the reality is, she never got to the point of developing those steps because she’s in EVERYTHING! She’s an amazing athlete but hasn’t had the time to dive deep into the specific game skills that make a difference and has had tremendous success simply from being amazingly athletic!
But here is the message I give to my own soccer kids. Yes, the select athletes have a head start in skill. They have simply done it more times.
But athleticism built through multiple sports almost always catches up. Often surpassing early skill athletes.
Once kids narrow their focus in high school, their skill curve often upticks dramatically!
And here is something important to remember. You cannot control when your child hits puberty. That one is out of your hands, and in a way it is easier to accept. What is harder for most parents is understanding the role of practice.
If your child plays multiple sports, it is physically impossible to get the same practice volume as a one sport athlete. If you try to force it, there is a point of diminishing returns. More is not always better.
The best path is to let development happen in the right way for your child. If your athlete loves the sport, if they do not dread practice, if they still enjoy showing up, you are on the right track.
Development will come.
And no matter what you do, you cannot force it to happen faster than it should. OK, you can but typically with disastrous consequences.
Finding the Right Level of Play
Another major question for parents is what level should my child play at.
There is always a higher level available. An age-up option. A skill up team. A development up team. And yes, there are advantages to that path. Competing with stronger athletes shows your child what is out there and raises the bar.
But there are also risks. If your child makes a super select travel team but never gets on the court, development slows down.
In volleyball for example, practice is valuable, but game time experience is what really accelerates growth. Worse yet, sitting the bench for years can burn kids out and make them walk away from a sport they once loved.
The keyword here is appropriate. You want the level where your child wins some, loses some, learns a lot, and gets enough playing time to stay excited. That is what creates long term development.
The Averaging Out Effect
There is something I talk about in my book Unlocking Athletic Potential called the averaging out effect. It usually happens around ages 14-17; right between that JV and varsity level.
The kids who were superstars at ten or twelve often plateau. Meanwhile, the kids who looked average or behind suddenly surge forward.
Sometimes it is a late growth spurt. Sometimes it is their nervous system finally connecting and coordinating movements. Sometimes it is confidence finally clicking in. There are a hundred reasons why. But the effect is real and I see it every single year.
This is why patience matters. A middle of the pack seventh grader can become a varsity standout by her junior year.
The Overlap That Matters Most: Performance and Injury
This is where Precision Performance Concepts offers something different. I have spent over twenty years in the world of sports injury care. What I know for sure is this: the fastest way to reset an athlete back to zero is injury.
No matter how skilled or athletic a kid is, if they are overworked or physically broken down, development halts.
That is why the most important question is not how much more can we add. The real question is what is the right dosage for my child.
A Parent’s Perspective
As a parent living through this myself, I will tell you it is not easy. I can explain it in writing, I can lecture on it, I can present to a booster club. But when you see another athlete the same age as your child pulling ahead, it is human nature to compare.
The mantra I repeat to myself constantly is this.
Development happens at different stages.
More of anything: Training, Running, Practices, Lectures, Video review, Lifting, Weight gain… is almost never better.
If you can hold on to that perspective, you will give your child the best chance to thrive. Not just in sports, but in confidence, resilience, and health.
Here’s my advice:
- Chill out, I promise you that if you simply KEEP THEM IN THE SPORT, they will develop.
- Be careful not to just push unrelenting. The FUN factor has to be there. So build that.
- Let a kid try and handle it themselves. I find myself trying to over-fix and discuss stuff when often, my kids just want to vent their frustrations and get it out – they’ll come back to reality soon enough.
- Ask a parent – find one that has 4 kids and ask them what they do differently with #4 than #1 – (this one is so fun because it is so OBVIOUS. I can walk into any sport and within 26 seconds tell you what parents are watching their first or only vs. which have multiple and are watching the younger ones.)
- Find appropriate. We all want the wins. Parents and coaches probably much more than the kids. Find the level that allows true development, because that word is so much more than winning.
Love you guys – to my parents and coaches, keep up the hard work – we’re developing every bit as much as these guys are!
