westufit.com Blog

All these exercises are simple and can be done at home in the back yard.   This stuff is so simple yet most kids are missing these activities in everyday life.  Kids now have technology at their fingertips, where did all the back yard games such as Freeze Tag, Soccer, Football, Wall Ball, or Leap Frog go?  Let’s get these kids back outside so that they can become stronger, faster, more agile, and injury free athletes!

1. Hip Bridge:

This exercise is great for young athletes.  The main area of focus is the glutes and hamstrings which are two of the main muscles activated when accelerating and sprinting.

Kids need to have these muscles performing optimally so that they can have maximum force transferred into the ground.  The more force being put into the ground, the more ground the athlete will cover with each stride.

Hip Bridge

2. Forward Planks:

This is a great exercise for all ages not just for the kids.  Forward planks target the core which is the powerhouse of the body.  If the core is weak, then the athlete will not be able to perform even the everyday human movements well.  The stronger the core, the more body control an athlete will have, which leads to better agility on the pitch and more strength on the ball.

All young athletes need to learn how to turn-on the core. The plank is a great way to teach activation of the powerhouse.

Planking

3. Leap Frog:

Believe it or not this game is beneficial for young adolescents and fun!  The average person sees this just as a game, but what they fail to realize is the hip power and the leg drive necessary in order to propel them from the ground into the air.

Also, another great benefit to this game is the landing from the jump.  It needs to be a soft and quiet landing; almost like catching an egg with your hands but instead the athlete is catching their own body weight with the legs.  All kids need to learn how to jump and land properly to prevent common sports injuries.

Leap Frog

Blake Judice, CSCS, is the Director of Athletics at West U Fitness.  A graduate of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Blake was a 4 year starter for the soccer team.  Through his passion and enthusiasm for sports performance, Blake motivates the youth in Houston and surrounding area to become their personal best.