Baseball/softball/t-ball season is upon us! As we take to the fields to get ready to pitch, hit, and run, we are faced with challenges posed by Mother Nature and her proclivity for wet spring weather. But perhaps we can say, "enough already," as we head into the first week of June!

Another challenge associated with weather and field and space restrictions, is the task we have as coaches to keep kids active, playing, and having fun during the on again - off again access to the proper playing and game fields. As coaches, it becomes essential to have as part of our coaching package, innovative and creative ways to keep kids working on the fundamentals of both the game and as importantly, the movement, motor, and physical fitness components of team sport development .

When you don't have an "official" field to play on, or the water keeps you off of the infield, there are many modified games and activities that will help children develop the gross motor and fundamental movement motor skills that provide the foundation for sport specific skills. Below you will find a couple of websites dedicated to these kind of games and drills that coaches can use for a rainy day or, what we call on our team, a "FUNdamental field day" practice.

These drills and modified games are also great for keeping kids active and achieving the age appropriate intensity and frequency of 60 minutes of physical exercise recommended by the CDC. As coaches of any sport, we need to provide kids with a chance to move in a way that helps kids to obtain and maintain the benefits of physical activity.

As well as the baseball websites, I have also included an excerpt from the journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, which speaks to the importance of providing kids not only with a team sport opportunity, but a movement and exercise opportunity within the context of team sport practices.

So as the rain comes and goes, and the sun begins to shine, remember that any day, rain or shine, play or practice, win or lose, is a day that with innovation and creativity, we can help kids improve their fitness, fundamentals, and still have fun!

March 15, 2011

Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine: Team Sports Providing Insufficient Amount Of Exercise

A new study, released in the journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, finds that children and teens who play sports might not get enough daily exercise.

The study looked at how much exercise 200 kids age 7 to 14 in San Diego got while playing team soccer, baseball or softball. The children wore accelerometers that tracked movement and intensity during team practice time, which ranged from 40 to 130 minutes for soccer and 35 to 217 minutes for baseball and softball.

Among all participants, only 24% received the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity during practices. Among teens, only 10% of those between the ages of 11 to 14 reached the guideline. Two percent of girl softball players met the guideline. All participants averaged about 45 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity.

Soccer players were active for an average of 13.7 minutes more than those who played baseball or softball. Boys outdid girls during practice, spending on average 10.7 more minutes being active. And both boys and girls were inactive for an average of 30 minutes per practice.

In the study, the authors wrote, "The health effects of youth sports could be improved by adopting policies and practices that ensure youth obtain sufficient physical activity during practices: emphasizing participation over competition, sponsoring teams for all skill levels across all ages, ensuring access by lower-income youth with sliding scales for fees, increasing practice frequency, extending short seasons, using pedometers or accelerometers to monitor physical activity periodically during practices, providing coaches strategies to increase physical activity, and supporting youth and parents in obtaining adequate physical activity on nonpractice days." (Exercise, Fitness, Research, Trends)

Baseball Websites for Youth:

• www.y-coach.com
• www.baseball-practice-plans.com
• www.youthbaseballbasics.com
• www.ltad.ca (click on athletes and coaches link; then click on related LTAD stages to locate movement, motor, and physical fitness capabilities for the age group you are coaching)


GO KIDS!