When To Find A Sprint Coach For Your Child

Speed is an important physical attribute to have. And not just to enhance your abilities in the sporting arena. How fast a person can run has the potential to influence many aspects of a child’s life.

Everyone can get faster. However, not all of us will get Usain Bolt fast. Genetics do play a big role in determining our maximum potential, but it should not stop us from trying to get faster. Since we don’t know how fast a child will be as an adult (or even after a growth spurt), doing some form of sprint training is a definite investment in their future.

So… when is the right time to find a coach?

My answer… NOW!

However the person helping the child get faster might not always be a qualified sprint coach.

As children grow through their early years (to about age 7), there is a massive opportunity to improve their lifelong understanding and skills in physical movement. We call this physical literacy.

Physical literacy is a term used to describe learning and building confidence in doing the ABC’S of moving your body. The ABC’S stand for Agility, Balance, Coordination and Speed. Every type of movement (e.g. run, jump, throw) falls into at least one of these categories.

And the best part about introducing physical literacy to this age group is that you can be the coach!

It’s the perfect opportunity to bond with your child and educate them on the healthy benefits of play and exercise. In addition, you can rest assured knowing you’re developing their physical literacy ABC’S. This will help them become healthier, faster and have increased confidence when playing structured sport in the future.

These physical literacy ABC’S you get to teach them are called FUNdamental Movement Skills.

With an emphasis on FUN!

A few examples: sprint, jump, throw, roll, hit, swim, kick, skip, crawl, hop, catch.

What may appear as simple movements from an adult perspective, are actually vital for future sporting success. Keep playing new games and trying different movements. There are no limits to what you can come up with or mix together using fundamental movement skills. And I’m sure you’ll find some of these you haven’t tried for years that you can improve on too!

In addition to this parental-based coaching focused on play and games, there are specific coaching businesses that can help with teaching fundamental movement skills. These include swim schools (always a must), little athletics, kids gymnastics and a range of other kinder-gym style programs.

Now where does a qualified sprint coach come in?

My initial response is to ask why someone wants a sprint coach for their child. This provides me with some insight into their motives for seeking out professional assistance. If they explain they have the child’s best interests at heart and aren’t trying to re-live their childhood dreams, we can proceed without further investigation.

I will also ask how much physical activity the child is doing currently each week. If they are active every day and trying to squeeze sprint training on top, I may advise we wait until there is more time available. Young growing bodies need rest too.

At NBPC, we suggest 9 years old as an appropriate time to trial more structured and specific sprint training. There are three main reasons why: i) cognitive ability; ii) skill development phase; and iii) lifelong health.

Cognitive ability: By age 9, most children will have developed sufficient brain power to focus, listen and interpret simple feedback on their running technique for short periods of time. We can place some specific sprint training between other movement skills and games that keep them engaged whilst learning to run faster.

Skill development phase: Children at this age enter a motor-learning phase where they can rapidly advance and apply their fundamental movement skills in a sport-specific environment. We call these Fundamental Sports Skills. Think advancing from kicking a ball with friend into taking a soccer penalty shot. This is why learning fundamental movement skills in the early years is so important.

Lifelong health: Beginning in this age group, children often begin going to state and national competitions for different sports. We need to educate children (and some coaches/parents) on the benefits of playing for fun and that sport doesn’t define who you are. Kids grow at different rates (physically and emotionally) and need our support along their journey to help with the bumps and to encourage them to be active for life.

Once you have found a sprint coach you need to understand we aren’t magician’s. We can help someone get faster in one session, but the results won’t stick unless reinforced regularly.

Sprinting is a skill and speed will diminish if not used. Just like with fitness and strength training, if you don’t use it you lose it. This means kids should be sprinting fast at least once per week. Remember, this doesn’t always have to be with their sprint coach. But don’t forget to use the tips their sprint coach is giving them.

As you can see, there is a lot more to answering this question than just age or ability.

For further information on how to help your child get faster today please contact us.

Nick Bennett

Packages	Sport Speed A	Sport Speed B
Session	up to 8 sessions	up to 4 sessions
Inlusion	personal programs, online portal, track-side therapy, priority competition coaching	squad programs, online portal, competition coaching
Discount	20% discount for 1-2-1, 10% sibling discount	0% discount for 1-2-1, 10% sibling discount
Price	$107/mth	$77/mth

PACKAGES	ATHLETICS GOLD	ATHLETICS SILVER	ATHLETICS BRONZE
Session	up to 12 sessions	up to 12 sessions	up to 4 sessions
Inclusion	personal programs, online portal, priority track-side therapy, priority competition coaching, 2x 45min massages	personal programs, online portal, track-side therapy, priority competition coaching	squad programs, online portal, competition coaching
Discount	30% discount for 1-2-1, 10% sibling discount	20% discount for 1-2-1, 10% sibling discount	10% discount for 1-2-1, 10% sibling discount
Price	$197/mth	$137/mth	$77/mth

When To Find A Sprint Coach For Your Child

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