Can specializing at a young age have disadvantages?
By Dr. Bob Weil
What do I mean by the prodigy sports? Specifically, I’m talking about sports that involve adolescents and younger who are specializing in only one sport. Tennis, figure skating, gymnastics, swimming, soccer, ballet, and volleyball are all examples of these prodigy sports. It’s not uncommon for me to see young figure skaters under the age of 10 already skating every day. They simply are not interested in other sports. But specializing at such a young age can have disadvantages, namely overuse and repetitive motion injuries.
So often, young athletes and their parents are faced with the question regarding concentrating on their main sport versus playing multiple sports. In today’s world, it’s not unusual to see kids younger than 12, some as young as 6, already putting all their efforts (and parent’s money) into one sport. The multiple-sport athlete is far less common today than years ago. Remember those letter sweaters with letters for each sport?
Some parents, and even some coaches, think that the young athlete will fall behind if they play different sports, instead of just focusing on one sport year-round. This may seem a logical scenario, but there is no exact answer as to whether it is the right scenario.
Today’s epidemic of overuse injuries due to specialization affects both lower and upper extremities, across the board, in all sports at all ages. As the world of youth sports has grown dramatically, so have these injury problems. Overuse injuries cause a significant loss of time off the field, but more importantly, they threaten future sport participation which could inadvertently lead to increased obesity. These young athletes are at increased risk because growing bones are less resilient to stress and children’s awareness of symptoms as signs of injury are limited.
ALL experts agree that specialization is risky both physically and mentally. My bottom line has always focused on the young athlete’s passion and insistence on specializing. Hearing that youngster say,
“I’m not interested in other sports, period!”
Yes, parents should listen, but they also need to advise.
Here are some facts to help with that:
- Physically, with young growing bodies, playing the same sport with the same movements, same muscles being used, same stresses to tissues, is very challenging. Recovery and rest of the used muscles and tissues are critically important—and they take time of their own. Overuse and repetitive motion injuries to the upper and lower extremities are a real problem. Many feel that specializing just multiplies these problems.
- If specialization is the decision, then it is important to include off-sport conditioning that helps to develop the overall athlete and strengthen against these repetitive motion injuries. Concentrate on what Bob Gajda, famous sports therapist, called “strengthening the opposites and stabilizers.” In other words, condition the muscles and tendons that help work against those repetitive motions. Athletic trainers, physical therapists, and personal trainers can help devise these programs. This kind of training is also helpful for multiple sport athletes.
- Make sure that strengthening feet and ankles and working balance is included no matter what the sport! So important—for sport…and a long, healthy life!
Love your athlete. Listen to your athlete. Then advise. And if it’s their passion, let them specialize—but only with extra conditioning.
Dr. Bob Weil is a sports podiatrist in private practice in Aurora, Illinois. He hosts “The Sports Doctor,” a live weekly radio show on bbsradio.com. For more information, go to sportsdoctorradio.com.