Sport recovery: when to rest & when to work? By Adrian Elmes Acting Director of Sport
At FCAC, many students take part in our extra curricula sports. But, their training and competition are a hobby that ends when the season does. Of course, others know they will be back the following year. But, for the select few who see their future as professional athletes with aspirations of elite-level competition, managing their sporting performance is a delicate balancing act of training, recovery, and fatigue management. When students are in Primary School, sports injuries are often scrapes, bruises or a minor fracture, usually from an impact. As they get older and the body grows faster, growing related injuries can occur, leaving young players unable to participate for a prolonged period. However, this doesn’t mean that students should try and avoid sports at this time. On the contrary, sports during this time will help them develop in a variety of ways. When managing performance, we must also be mindful of development. For example, girls often have a growth spurt between ages 10 and 11 and reach about 95% of their adult height between ages 15 and 16. Boys experience a similar growth spurt, but it lasts until 17 or 18. During the growth spurt, the best practice is to monitor an individuals height. During the peak height velocity phase, options to manage this situation include reducing the intensity or the duration of the training or replacing standard training with core strength exercises with light stretching. In warmer months, replacing sessions with swimming is also a good idea due to the reduced impact. We need to educate young people to listen to their bodies. For example, rest and recovery are required when they suffer an injury like a muscle tear or ligament strain. We need to help students during this time, and this can be done by making sure that the intensity and duration of training don’t have a sudden increase. Instead, periods of injury can be refocused towards the correct technique as well as mental resilience. In essence, we want our junior athletes to return with a greater sense of mental preparation, a good balance between strength and mobility and, most notably, a readiness to step back into competition. At FCAC, we have elite athletes in a variety of sports. These students are highly dedicated and focused individuals who manage their training and competition. It is not uncommon for these students to have completed their training before they arrive at school in the morning. Therefore, it is worth taking a moment to marvel at their commitment to their sport as well as their productive use of time toward their studies.
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