Ages and Phases of Growth, does it make a difference on training?

Ages and Phases of Growth, does it make a difference on training?

Here are couple facts for all you coaches to take into consideration, when training your young athletes of all shapes and sizes.

Age definitely has an effect on the form of training performed. Each individual will progress through the different phases of growth at different periods throughout adolescence.

In order for a coach to design an effective program for young athletes, it is essential for the coach to understand their athletes’ individual strengths and limitations. This is due to the fact that the working capacity of athletes differs significantly. The coach needs to consider individual differences such as stage of development, training background and experience, health status, recovery rate between sessions & competitions and gender differences. It is vitally important for coaches to cater for the individual needs of each athlete. It is recommended that coaches pay more attention to anatomical age, biological age and athletic age as children of the same chronological age can differ by several years in their anatomical maturation.

So what’s the difference between all these different forms of ages?

• Anatomical age: this refers to anatomical growth of an individual such as infancy, crawling, walking, prepuberty, puberty, adolescence and maturity, thus explaining why some kids develop faster than others and may therefore pick up skills faster.
• Biological age: is the physiological development of organs and systems that determine physiological potential. This type of development is invisible to a coach and could lead to misjudgement of potential.
• Athletic age: is drawn up by national and international federations, and classifies the eligibility at which an athlete can compete.

It has been shown that physiological characteristics and trainability of prepubertal adolescents is different to that of adults, particularly the anaerobic processes which are still poorly developed and the trainability to change this status is limited. In most young athletes, aerobic pathways are genetically determined, not significantly influenced by training programs prior to the athlete’s peak growth phase.
One of the greatest potentials for improvement exists, however, in the area of coordination. Focusing on teaching skills and neuromuscular coordination has the capacity to improve the young athlete's efficiency and therefore improve performance.

It is good to practice for training programs to be structured in an attempt to reflect these considerations and focus on the attainment of the skill and not totally highlight attempting to change physiological status.

Puberty is characterised by the increase in bone growth:

Gender

Average age

Range

Females	9 years	7.5 – 13 years
Males	11.5 years	10.5 – 15 years

More than 50% of children fall outside of the accepted norms.

Height development precedes the development of muscle mass by about one year. During this phase, muscle strength can be improved slightly. No heavy weights or major repetitions should be included in the training program until full bone maturation has occurred.

Young athletes who are “tall for their age” often lack the muscular development to match their skeletal development and are often relatively weak, prone to imbalances and developmental injuries. Great attention should be paid to such athletes when considering them for selection in senior teams. Although they may be the same size or bigger, perhaps even stronger than some of the older athletes, they still may not be able to handle the heavier training load of the senior teams.

As has already been mentioned, children develop at different rates. The growth rates of bones, muscles, organs and nervous systems are different and these developments largely dictate their physiological and performance capabilities. This is why a training program should consider individual training potential. Therefore, a progressive program with no abrupt increases in intensity and a large amount of variety, greatly increases training efficiency thus reducing the chance of injury.

Development of the young athlete is divided into 4 stages:

1. Initiation: 6 – 10 years; Athletes are gradually introduced into sport training
2. Athletic Formation: 11 – 14 years; Athletes develop their talents
3. Specialisation: 15 – 18 years; Athletes choose their sport and the position they would like to play
4. High performance: 19+ years 

Coaches often try applying stages 3 and 4 too early in an athlete’s life, taking the principle of specificity and applying it with no regard to the athlete’s background or level of development. Examples of this are quite commonly noted in athletes that have recently matriculated and perhaps competed on a junior national or provincial team, who have been invited back to coach u14’s at their school.

Such individuals are no doubt phenomenal athletes and potentially great coaches but by trying to enforce “results-based” training on youngsters spells potential disaster.

In an attempt to produce competitive, highly specific performance routines in young athletes, the coach often exposes the child to training that is too specific for their developmental level. This results in drop out because there is no solid performance base that the athlete can work from.This approach to training can lead to unilateral, narrow development of muscles and organs

• It has the potential of disturbing the natural physical development and biological harmony in the young athlete’s bodies, which are essential for physical efficiency, athletic performance and development of a healthy individual.
• Injury, overuse and over training can result in the long term.
• It can interfere with the child’s ability to develop social relationships due to the many hours of intensive training.

   

    The 4 stages of athletic development

    a. Initiation Stage: 6 - 10 Years Olds

Children in the initiation stage should participate in low-intensity training programs, in which the emphasis is placed on having fun. Most young children are not capable of coping with the physical and psychological demands of high intensity training or organised competitions. Training programs for these young athletes should focus on overall athletic development and not sport specific development.

The body is growing at a rapid rate and larger muscle groups are more developed than smaller ones. The cardio respitory system is developing, and aerobic capacity is adequate for most activities. 

Anaerobic capacities are limited at this stage as children have low tolerance to lactic acid accumulation. Body tissues are still cartilaginous and bones are still calcifying.

Attention span is short at this age, and children are action oriented, thus they cannot sit and listen for long periods of time. It is especially important for training at this stage to be varied and creative. Participation and fun should be emphasised over winning.

The following guildelines will help in developing training programs that are suitable for athletes at this stage:

• Emphasise multilateral development by introducing a wide variety of skills and exercises including running, jumping, catching, throwing, batting, balancing and rolling.
• Provide each child with enough time to adequately develop skills and equal playing time in games and activities.
• Positively reinforce children who are committed and self-disciplined. Reinforce improvements in skill development.
• Encourage children to develop flexibility, co-ordination and balance.
• Encourage children to develop various motor abilities in low-intensity environments.
• Select a suitable number of repetitions for each skill, and encourage children to perform technique correctly.
• Modify the equipment and playing environment to a suitable level.
• Design drills, games and activities so children have opportunities for maximum active participation.
• Simplify or modify rules so children understand games.
• Encourage children to participate in drills that develop attention control to prepare them for the greater demands of training and competition that occur in the athletic formation stage of development.
• Emphasise the importance of ethics and fair play.
• Make sure sports are fun.
• Encourage participation in as many sports as possible.

b. Athletic Formation: 11 - 14 Years Old

It is appropriate to moderatley increase the intensity of training during the athletic formation stage of development. Although most athletes are still vulnerable to injuries, their bodies and capacities are rapidly developing. Their cardio respiratory system continues to develop, and tolerance of lactic acid accumulation is gradually improving. 

It is important to understand that variances in performances may be the result of differences in growth. Some athletes may be experiencing a rapid growth spurt, which can explain why they lack co-ordination during particular drills. As a result emphasise developing skills and motor abilites, and not performance and winning.

The following guidelines will help the coach develop training programs that are appropriate for the athletic formation stage:

• Encourage participation in a variety of exercises from the specific sport and from other sports, which will help them to improve their multilateral base and prepare them for competition in their selected sport. Progressively increase the volume and intensity of training.
• Design drills that introduce athletes to fundamental tactics and strategies, and reinforce skill development.
• Help athletes refine and automate the basic skills they learned during the initiation stage and learn skills that are a little more complex.
• Emphasise improving flexibility, co-ordination and balance.
• Emphasise ethics and fair play during training sessions and competitions.
• Provide all children with opportunities to participate at a challenging level.
• Introduce the athletes to exercises that develop general strength. The foundation for future strength and power gains should begin at this stage. Emphasise developing the core sections of the body, in particular the hips, lower back and abdomen, as well as muscles at the extremities, i.e. shoulder joints, arms and legs. Most exercise should involve bodyweight and light equipment, such as medicine balls, gym balls and light dumbbells and barbells.
• Continue developing aerobic capacity. A solid endurance base will enable athletes to cope more effectively with the demands of training and competition during the specialisation stage.
• Introduce athletes to moderate anaerobic training. This will help them adapt to high intensity aerobic training, which takes on greater importance in most sports during the specialisation stage. Athletes should not compete in events that place excessive stress on the anaerobic lactic acid energy system.
• Avoid regular competitions that place too much stress on the body anatomically.This includes events with high risk shock impacts such as triple jump.
• To improve concentration, introduce athletes to more complex drills. Encourage them to develop strategies for self-regulation and visualisation. Introduce formalised mental training.
• Introduce athletes to a variety of competitive situations that allow them to apply various techniques and tactics. Young athletes like to compete; however it is important to de-emphasise winning. Structure competitions to reinforce skill development.
• Provide time for play and socialising with peers.

c. Specialisation: 15 - 18 Years Old

Athletes in the specialisation stage are capable of tolerating greater training and competition demands than in earlier stages. The most significant changes in training take place during this stage. Athletes who have been participating more exercises aimed specifically at high-performance development in one sport.

Closely monitor the volume and intensity of training to ensure that athletes improve dramatically with little risk of injury. Thus the coach can move from a teaching to a coaching (training) role. 

The following guidelines will help in developing programs for athletes in the specialisation stage:

• Closely monitor the development of athletes during this stage. They will develop strategies for coping with the increases in physiological and psychological demands of training and competition. They are also vulnerable to experiencing physical and psychological difficulties from over training. It is VERY important that the coach keeps a look out for this: it usually tends to manifest itself in moodiness, frustration and crying (even in 17 year old boys!)
• Check for progressive improvements in the dominant motor abilities for the sport such as power, anaerobic capacity, specific coordination and dynamic flexibility.
• Increase the training volume for specific exercises and drills to facilitate a performance improvement.
• Increase training intensity more rapidly than the volume, although still increase volume progressively. Prepare athletes to perform a particular skill, exercise, or drill with the appropriate rhythm and speed. Training should closely simulate the actions that take place during competitions.
• Involve athletes in the decision-making process whenever possible.
• Continue to emphasise multilateral training, particularly during the preseason. However, it is more important to emphasise specificity and to use training methods and techniques that will develop sport specific efficiency, particularly during the competitive season.
• Encourage athletes to become familiar with the theoretical aspects of training.
• Emphasise using the muscles that athletes primarily use when performing technical skills. Strength development should start to reflect the specific needs of the sport. Athletes who are weight training can start performing exercises that require fewer repetitions and a heavier weight. Avoid maximum strength training, in which athletes perform fewer than four repetitions of an exercise.
• Make developing the aerobic capacity a high priority for all athletes.
• Progressively increase the volume and intensity of anaerobic training. Athletes are now capable of coping with lactic acid accumulation.
• Perfect the technique of the sport. Select specific exercises that will ensure the athletes are performing the skills in a manner that is biomechanically correct and physiologically efficient. 
• Improve individual and team tactics. Select drills that are interesting, challenging and stimulating and that require quick decisions, fast actions, prolonged concentration and high levels of motivation from athletes.
• Increase the number of competitions progressively, so by the end of the stage athletes are competing as frequently as senior level competitors.
• Athletes should practice mental training. Structure drills and exercises that develop concentration, attentional control, positive thinking, self-regulation, visualisation, and motivation to enhance sport specific performance.

d. High Performance: 19 Years and Older

A well-designed training plan based on sound principle of long-term development will lead to high performance. Exceptional performance results that athletes achieved during the initiation, athletic formation or specialisation stages do not correlate with high performance results as a senior competitor. There are many books written about the preparation of elite athletes ad so this will not be discussed here.

Tony’s Primary areas of focus include: Orthopaedic rehabilitation (mainly backs and knees). He works with regaining function in ACL reconstructions and total knee replacement patients.

Tony also has an interest in sport specific testing and training (primarily rowing, cycling, running and triathlon).

Tony is the Chairman of the Biokinetics Association of Southern Africa (Gauteng division).

Tony can be contacted on 011 028 1128 or tonypaladin@kinetics.co.za. 

In case of an emergency, he can be contacted on 082 921 6776.