How Strength Coaches Could Impact High School Programs: Part 1

Over the past 30 years there has been a dramatic increase in acquiring strength and conditioning professionals for professional and collegiate settings, as well as private sectors. Many believe that the strength and conditioning professional has one of the most vital positions within an athletic department. The amount of time a strength and conditioning coach spends with an athlete on a daily basis greatly outweighs the amount of time the athlete would spend with his/her sport coach. With the number of certified strength and conditioning professionals increasing every year and only a select few professional jobs, a handful of collegiate jobs, the profession needs to expand. In order for this expansion to occur, the obvious solution is to start implementing strength and conditions professionals into areas where they are needed the most, in high schools. Here are two impacts that strength coaches could have on a high school athletic program:

Injury Reduction

Athletes would be taught what exercises require a spotter, which exercises that should never have a spotter due to the increased risk of injuring both athletes, and how to properly “fail” or drop weights. These may all seem common knowledge for some whose training status exceeds intermediate. Most high school athletes have never step foot into a weight room before entering high school. Failure to properly implement these concepts to athletes can lead to weight room injuries and dangerous situations.1

Performance Enhancement

Providing proper training is a crucial piece of the success at any high school. Having a certified strength and conditioning professional who understands the principles behind enhancing athletic performance in a safe and effective manner is what separates championship programs apart from others. This individual has put in hours at coaches’ clinics, strength conventions, and has spent many hours interning with universities and professional teams gaining knowledge on how to properly improve athletic performance.2

Decreasing the risk of injury and enhancing athletic performance are important aspects to the success of an athletic program. These are only a couple of reasons why high school athletic directors should really consider bringing on a certified strength and conditioning professional to enhance the athletic program. Stay tuned for part 2 of how strength coaches can impact high school programs.

References:

1Ryan_Faer. (2015, November 19). Why high schools need strength & conditioning professionals — part I. Retrieved May 18, 2016, https://medium.com/@Ryan_Faer/why-high-schools-need-strength-conditioning-coaches-part-i-4c2bf654d013#.s9a7ka2rd

2Loadman, K. (2014, August 27). How to improve strength training at the high school level. Retrieved May 18, 2016, from http://www.elitefts.com/education/training/sports-performance/how-to-improve-strength-training-at-the-high-school-level/