Being a strength coach/program director/gym owner, my kids have always been around the gym from a young age. Between the ages of 2 and 6, they generally just made up their own stuff, which consisted of jumping from plyo box to plyo box, balancing on things and creating obstacle courses.
I would gently guide them with ideas to ensure they were doing things I felt appropriate for their age and would benefit them down the road. Throwing med balls, pushups and pullups were almost always on *my* list of things to include.
Around the ages of 5 and 7, I created a workout - on paper - for them to complete when they would come to the gym. It gave them a sense of accomplishment to check things off, and I was being the awesome parent by starting them at a young age (ahem). It even led to Hannah doing a deadlift competition at the Relentless charity even in Minnesota.
Like most things kids get involved in, their enthusiasm for working out ebbed and flowed. And since they were under the age of 10, I never made them work out because I didn't want them to hate it or resent it growing up.
Fast forward to this year.... my daughter was doing gymnastics during the winter months. She loves it but struggled with a few things... namely her spins on the bar and her back handsprings. (She completed her back handsprings but was inconsistent with them due to her lack of upper body strength, ie, falling on her head.)
*doh*
I told her if she wanted to get better at gymnastics, she would need to do strength training. She agreed, but as softball season started, things got busy.
Fast forward again to All-Star tryouts. I'll preface this by saying two things:
1. I know my kids aren't the best on the team, nor do I pretend that they are. They are both good athletes, but I don't pretend they will play in the major leagues. It's the coach's decision to play them where they see fit and I won't argue with those decisions.
2. Our 12U town team had less players playing this year than in years past. We are at the age where girls are deciding to play travel ball or leagues that are more competitive. So with only 3 teams of about 11 girls, there aren't a ton to choose from.
Having played All-Stars last year, she knew was she was getting into. She tried out and approached it like she always has... hard work and hustle. We didn't assume she was a shoe-in, but we knew there weren't many players to choose from. When we got the email saying she didn't make it, we were both a little taken back.
She was bummed and asked me to ask the coach why she didn't make it and what she can improve on for the future. His exact words were, "She plays with heart and hustle, but she needs to be stronger to improve her fundamentals."
Well... there ya go. As the rest of the season came to a close, we decided she would begin working out 3 days a week.
Now, as a strength coach, why have I not been more diligent about my kids training? As I mentioned before, when they were young, I didn't want to force it on them. But here's the kicker.
HERE'S THE REAL KICKER FOLKS...
I was having trouble seeing my 12 year old daughter as a 12 year old athlete.
When I look at her, I don't see a 12 year old young lady that walked through my doors at the sports performance place looking for training. When that 12 year old girl walked in, that's when I would tell the parents, "This is the perfect age for your daughter to start training! Injury prevention, strength, speed... Get them started now with basic strength moves so we can progress them over the years!"
And it wasn't a spiel... it's truth. I truly believe that around the age of 12 kids should start strength training - some older, some younger, but generally speaking it's a good rule of thumb.
And yet here I am, the mom of a 12 year old young lady and not getting her involved in strength training. I still see her as a spunky 8 year old, running around barefoot chasing butterflies. (Ok, so she's still barefoot.) My brain is having a hard time putting her in the same shoes as the young girls I trained in the past.
So as I recounted the countless 12 year old girls I've trained over the years, I had to put my daughter in their shoes. How would I approach them? How would I train them? How would I get them started?
Cool thing is she is excited to start and get stronger for her future sports, so much so that after she completed the training given to her, she grabbed a light barbell to do a set of squats. She completed an "intro" week to get her muscles used to it and next week we will start an actual program, one that she will take ownership of writing down her weights.
Because I will help my kids succeed as best I can in the things that interest them, I will continue to help her, and yes, even "make them" train regularly now. Not only do I KNOW they need it for their sports, but I am someone who believes in this for general health reasons too. While my kids aren't overweight or in any at-risk category, we know strength training and cardiovascular exercises are good for health benefits of all ages.
So here I am... stepping out of the mom role for an hour a day to make sure my kid is coached just like any other kid I've trained.
Stay tuned for her progress and progression as the training will be available right here on my coaching blog.
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