Have you ever thought of ways that you can help your athlete improve their game? In this blog post I will share 2 Ways to Help Your Athlete Improve Their Game.  My boys have been playing soccer and basketball for more than 6 years.  Over the past couple of years they have expressed the desire to become more serious athletes, so we have set out to help them reach their goals.  Here are ways you can help.

Run With Your Athlete

Did you know that most athletes run more than 2 miles in one game?  Yes!  According to Runners World, Soccer players can run up to 7 miles per game, Football players 1.25 miles and Basketball players 2.55 miles.  And just because I used to play Field Hockey, I have to mention that they can run up to 5.6 miles a game.

As a Division II Field Hockey player, the majority of our training was running, running and more running.  I knew that in order for my boys to get better on the field/court they would have to do the same.

In the Spring, I started having my boys run with me at least 2 times a week, while the other was at practice.  We started out simple because although we take this stuff seriously, I am not trying to over do it.  To help us get started an ease into our distance and time, we used the C210K app. The app is great for beginners or experienced runners.  I like to use this app myself, to build my distance back up after a long break. Each week you run a little bit longer and walk a lot less. It starts off with Day 1 Week 1 (5 min. warm up, alternating 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 min., 5 minute cool down).  A simple running program like this was perfect for me and my boys.

I definitely saw an improvement each week on the field. They were less winded, showing less signs of fatigue and they had better ball control throughout the game because they were not as tired.

Passing, Shooting and Hitting

Get out there on a nice off day and play with your athlete.  Pass the football, shoot some hoops and pitch so your baseball player can get some practice hits.

This has been a great way for my active family to spend time together.  It is fun and also helps improve those basic techniques that are so important to the game.

Now, if you and your athletes are really competitive you can set up drills or play a game of 21.  I have to warn you though…it can be dangerous…LOL!  I am not the young athlete I once was.  I have accidentally of course, been hit in the face with a soccer ball and fell backwards while playing a very competitive game of basketball with my husband and kids.  So, be careful out there!

Now, everyone is not going to want to get out there and run or risk getting injured and that is totally cool.  There are ways that you can help even if you don't join them physically:

• encourage them to do some activities on their own
• have them play with teammates or other kids in the neighborhood
• find an older athlete who wants to shoot or hit around
• drop them off at a field while your read a book close by
• play with their sibling

Whether you literally hit the field or court with your athlete or not, you can help them improve their game.  I have seen the improvements it has had for my athletes and know it can help yours too.  And let's not forget that all these activities are fun ways to keep you healthy and fit!

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