Graves Athletics

Part 6: Preventing Youth Athlete Injury → Fatigue Resistance

To be a successful athlete, especially in team or racket sports, you must be able to perform repeated high-intensity efforts without fatiguing.

Think about it:

- Basketball players sprint up and down the court
- Tennis players repeatedly move side to side during long rallies
- Soccer and hockey require constant high-intensity runs mixed with lower intensity movement

Sport is not one sprint, it’s repeated explosive efforts over time.

And when athletes fatigue, injury risk rises

Research consistently shows that neuromuscular fatigue is one of the largest contributors to injury risk in sport because fatigue reduces:

- coordination
- joint stability
- force production
- bio-mechanic control

One of the best ways to build fatigue resistance in youth athletes is through High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), and no, not the influencer-style workouts you see online.

HIIT involves repeated bouts of high intensity work combined with recovery periods.

Examples include:

**Classic HIIT**

15 seconds high intensity (sprint, bike, row, jump rope)

30 seconds active recovery

**Repeated Sprint Training**

Example: 10 × 30 second sprints with 30 seconds rest

**Small-Sided Games (SSG)**

Example: 3v3 basketball for 3 minutes × 4 sets

The more sport specific, the better

However, young athletes should often begin with classic HIIT or repeated sprint training before progressing to small-sided games due to the higher physical demands and injury risk.

Fatigue resistance training should always be progressive and age appropriate.

Early on, the focus should be:

- fun
- skill development
- movement quality

As athletes mature, higher intensity small-sided games can be emphasized.

Once athletes show competency, a combination of all three methods can be used to develop complete fatigue resistance.

Fatigue resistance isn’t just conditioning.

It’s injury prevention and performance combined.

If you are interested in Sport Performance Training for your youth athlete, either visit gravesathletics.com or DM “ATHLETE” to learn more!

Part 5 of 6: Speed & Agility

These two components are vital for neuromuscular training in youth athletes. Speed is the rate of how quickly one can move and typically is a result of stride length and frequency. Agility is linked to speed, but more closely relates to sport as it is the capacity for the whole body to rapidly change direction.

Deceleration is also a SUPER important component within this section because for an athlete to change direction rapidly, they first need to be able to slow movement in the first direction.

There cognitive and visual components of agility that are important to train as it is the most common in sport.

When we look at change of direction, special emphasis needs to be placed on lower limb mechanics and positioning. This is why it is important for a trained professional to be running speed and agility sessions.

Cutting motions that occur within the frontal plane is a major risk for ACL tears/ruptures, especially for females. The risk is increased when fatigue and cognitive components are present.

There are two main types of agility training: change of direction and reaction agility training. Both play a factor in developing agility, but knowing which to use varies based on the stage of development the athlete is in and their technical competency.

Agility should start with preplanned, closed drills to develop technical competency before progressing to open drills that require decision making.

Speed training should start with learning & developing running mechanics and working on mobility of the hips and ankles, then progress toward power, strength, and sprinting.

Agility Drills → starting with close, preplanned, then moving to open,unplanned:

- 1,2 Step & Cut
- Shuttle run (focus on cut)
- 5-10-5 Drill
- T-Test
- Forward run to back pedal
- 90 degree cut
- Partner shadow drill
- Cone reaction drill
- Visual lateral cut (Coach)

Speed Drills →starting with running mechanics, then moving to sprint specific drills:

- A-Skips
- B-skips
- High Knees
- Knee Hugs
- Wall Runs
- Sprint Fallout
- Short Sprints (5-15 m focused on acceleration → first step)
- Long Sprints (20-40 m)
- Repeated Sprints

Part 4 Preventing Youth Athlete Injury → Plyometrics

My Favorite part of a training program is plyometrics. These can be so versatile and play a major role is developing athleticism and remaining athletic for years to come.

Plyometric training is based off the stretch shortening cycle (SSC), which is a fast action of muscle stretching (eccentric) to a fast action of muscle shortening (concentric).

There are two variables which dictate the SSC, elastic energy & reflexive muscle activity. These two factors are shown to be trainable in youth athletes.

- elastic energy is the potential energy stored in the muscles and tendons when stretched that provide rapid contraction when released (thing of a spring)
- Reflexive muscle action is the protective, involuntary contraction of a muscle that is responding rapidly to a stretch or stimulus (think about the knee-jerk reflex they perform at the doctors office or even when you touch something hot and automatically pull your hand away)

A big consideration to make during plyometrics training is low intensity versus high intensity plyometrics training.

- high intensity = high impact loads & fast SSC
- Low intensity = lower impact & slower SSC

Start low impact & slow → low impact & fast → high impact & fast

6 principles to consider:

1. intensity → move from low to high
2. Volume → dependent on age, 1-4 sets of 6-12 reps
3. Frequency → 2 nonconsecutive training days per week
4. Velocity → how fast a movement is (less than 0.25s is a fast ploy, anything above that is considered a “slow” plyo)
5. Recovery → 60-180 seconds between sets
6. Exercise selection → start with the fundamental and after athlete can demonstrate proper technique continuously progress the movement (ex.: soft landings → in place pogos → continuous forward broad jumps → box jumps)

The best practice for youth athletes in plyometrics training is to make sur a professional is designing and supervising the program. This is the best way to see desired results fast and keep the athlete safe.

Follow along for part 5: speed and agility training!

Preventing Injury in Youth Athletes Pt. 2:
Coordination is the ability to perform and control complex motors skills and be able to adjust the body and limb movements to outside/environmental forces or objects.

Fort and collegues reviewed many different studies that all came to a similar conclusion: Athletes NEED to develop optimal coordination to perform actions and perform at a competitive level.

As a child is in prepubescence, there is greater neural plasticity (creating new neural pathways and strengthening established ones), which means that the earlier Coordination training is implemented, the better.

We can establish strong (and correct) movement patterns and coordination at a young age and continue to more complex movement patterns, aiding in advanced sports performance.

Whereas, we trying to teach coordination later in life (past puberty and on into adulthood), those neural pathways have already been established, which could mean faulty coordination has been established causing a higher risk of injury.

It is also recommended that children do not specialize in sports too early because with a mulisport athlete, they maximize neural adaptations to many different sports which all require different skills. This variety in motor patterns will provide the athlete the skills and coordination they need to play different sports effectively and safely.

The best time for us to implement coordination work into a youth athletes training session is during the warm up, while the nervous system is not fatigued and its primed to create or refine motor patterns.

Remember that it should be fun!

There are variety of ways to train coordination - in my video I provide a very limited view of the many exercises you can select to improve coordination.

Continuation of Part 1 -> Prevention of Injury in youth athletes: Dynamic Stability

Core stability is not about abs.

It’s about controlling motion under speed and load.

Youth athletes experience rapid growth, changing limb lengths, and developing neuromuscular systems. Without structured stabilization training, athletes often rely on compensation movement patterns that increase stress on joints and cause injury.

Research consistently shows neuromuscular training programs can significantly reduce injury risk when introduced early.

✅ Improve motor control
✅ Enhance joint stability
✅ Increase movement efficiency
✅ Reduce non-contact injury risk

Build control first.
Then stability.
Then power.

That’s how we develop resilient athletes.

Follow along for part 2 of 6

Comment “ATHLETE” if you want structured training for your athlete.

It is VITAL for youth athletes to be able to stabilize their body’s center of mass and the joint within the body.

Although there are two specific stabilizers emphasized in a study done by Fort and colleagues (2016), we will be looking at lower limb stability in this video and the following video will be about core stability.

3 Types of Stability Exercises should be implemented from easy to hard: static balance -> dynamic balance -> dynamic stability.

Static balance = maintain center of mass in fixed position
Dynamic balance = maintain center of mass in a fixed position with a challenge (typically through limb movement)
Dynamic stability = maintain balance during sport specific or dynamic movements

Many sport related injuries occur from loss of balance during sport actions such as landing, jumping, or cutting.

This is why early implementation of proprioceptive exercises is crucial during early development.

Use the examples in the video to train yourself or your athletes to see better dynamic stability during sport and reduce the risk of injury.

Core stability video coming up next (technically still apart of part 1!)

Follow along for part two: coordination!

Interested in one on one training for your athlete, DM “ATHLETE” or visit gravesathletics.com to learn more

High Participation in youth sports causes an inherent risk of injury… but don’t let that scare you. There is a solution.

About 30-50% of injuries occur from overuse during sport participation. Because of this, it is VITAL for youth athletes to develop correct motor patterns to avoid faulty movements that increase injury risk.

A study performed by Fort el at. demonstrates that this risk can be reduced through integrative neuromuscular training (2016). The evidence shows that the earlier INT is introduced to an athlete, the better.

Early intervention prevents the establishment of faulty motor patterns and reenforces proper movement before puberty (when most motor deficits occur).

As we go through this mini series, I will break down the 6 component of neuromuscular training and produce example exercises for each component.

The 6 components are:

- dynamic stability (broken into two parts: core & lower limb)
- coordination
- strength
- plyometrics
- speed & agility
- fatigue resistance

Follow along to learn how to keep your athlete safe and performing well above their competitors.

To learn more about youth training through Graves Athletics go to gravesathletics.com

Want to read the study for yourself? message me and I will send you the two peer reviewed articles concerning INT

Part 4 of 4

How Mobility Improves Movement Quality

1. Joint Mechanics and Load Sharing

Restricted mobility alters standard joint mechanics, forcing compensations elsewhere in the body. For example, limited ankle dorsiflexion has been linked to altered squatting and landing mechanics that increase stress at the knee and lower back (Dill et al., 2014).

Improving mobility allows joints to move as intended and distribute forces more evenly throughout the kinetic chain.

2. Force Production and Absorption

Efficient movement depends on the body’s ability to generate and absorb force. Adequate mobility allows muscles to operate at optimal lengths, improving force production and reducing stress during deceleration and landing (McGill, 2010).

3. Strength Expression

Strength is position-specific. If an athlete cannot access key positions, such as deep hip flexion or stable overhead shoulder positions, strength gains are limited regardless of training intensity.

Research on resistance training adaptations highlights the importance of moving through sufficient ranges of motion to maximize strength and performance outcomes (Schoenfeld, 2010).

Shoulder Specific:

Healthy shoulder movement depends on coordinated scapular and thoracic motion. Mobility limitations increase the risk of injury, particularly during overhead activities.

1. Scapular CARs

Elevate, protract, depress, and retract under control

Improves shoulder blade awareness and control

2. Shoulder Flexion with Core Engagement

Maintain neutral ribs and pelvis

Increases overhead range

3. Bottoms-Up Kettlebell Carry

Encourages shoulder stability and active mobility

4. Prone Y-T-W Raises

Strengthens key stabilizers through controlled ranges

There are many other mobility exercises and options. These are just a few I decided to highlight.

Movement Quality through Mobility Part 3: Thoracic Spine

Integrating Mobility Into Training:
Research supports the use of dynamic, movement-based mobility rather than excessive static stretching before training (Behm & Chaouachi, 2011).

Practical mobility work should:

⭕️Be specific to the movements being trained

⭕️Emphasize control at the end ranges

⭕️Blend seamlessly into strength and skill work

Mobility is most effective when trained through movement rather than in isolation.

Thoracic spine mobility supports proper posture, rotation, and overhead movement. Restrictions here commonly lead to shoulder and neck issues.

1. Quadruped T-Spine Rotations

Hand behind head, rotate through upper back

Keep hips and low back stable

2. Foam Roller Thoracic Extensions

Controlled extension over the roller

Avoid flaring ribs or overextending the lumbar spine

3. Seated Thoracic Rotation with Reach

Tall posture, rotate and reach through the upper back

Reinforces active rotation

4. Wall Angels (Controlled)

Focus on rib position and scapular movement

Excellent integration of thoracic and shoulder mobility

Behm, D. G., & Chaouachi, A. (2011). A review of the acute effects of static and dynamic stretching on performance. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 111(11), 2633–2651.

Check out more information The Athlete Vault @ gravesathletics.com

Movement Quality through Mobility Part 2: Hips

Movement quality refers to how effectively the body coordinates joint motion, muscular control, and stability to perform a task. High-quality movement allows individuals to:

➡️Maintain proper joint alignment

➡️Control motion under load

➡️Produce and absorb force efficiently

➡️Reduce unnecessary stress on tissues

Poor movement quality is often associated with compensations that increase the risk of injury and limit performance (Cook et al., 2006).

The hips play a central role in force transfer and stability. Poor hip mobility often results in compensatory lumbar motion and reduced movement efficiency.

1. 90/90 Hip Rotations

Focus on tall posture and controlled transitions

Excellent for internal and external rotation

2. Hip CARs (Controlled Articular Rotations)

Slow, intentional circles

Builds control through full hip range

3. Half-Kneeling Hip Flexor Mobilization with Glute Engagement

Posterior pelvic tilt to avoid lumbar compensation

Improves hip extension for running and lifting

4. Lateral Squat (Cossack Squat)

Actively loads the hip at end ranges

Improves frontal plane mobility and strength

Movement quality matters beyond sport. Poor mobility and movement control are associated with pain, decreased physical activity, and reduced long-term function.

Training mobility supports consistency, confidence, and the ability to remain physically active throughout life.

Check out The Athlete Vault on my website to get insider information about how to improve performance and become an athlete in every season of life.