Fit 2 Finish - Keeping Your Soccer Players in the Game

The number of kids who love to play soccer has exploded in the last decade. Unfortunately, so has the number of sports injuries. Why? More games, more
competitions, and early specialization have all contributed, but so have our methods of training them. High pressure to perform along with an increased
volume and intensity of training has combined to hamper young soccer athletes. They favor one side, overuse one muscle group, and do it over and over
again. This is a recipe for injury.

In Fit 2 Finish, Dr. LeBolt takes a sport scientist's eye to the training of our soccer-loving kids. She distills the gems of two decades of coaching and
injury prevention training to display the methods that have worked to make her athletes safer, healthier and more effective, all while never losing the
fun. Coaches at all levels can apply the Fit2Finish principles to every facet of their coaching: warm up, skills and drills, game play, post game routines,
recovery, rest and preparing for the next game. Fit 2 Finish is the training manual and the game plan for the coach who's first objective is to keep kids
healthy and in the game.

Yes, we must address the 'too much, too early' in today's youth sports, but while we go about changing the culture, the kids who are currently in it need
saving. Today's coaches can start now by taking the Fit2Finish method straight to their practice field. If strong, balanced, healthy, high-performing
athletes are what we're after, then Fit 2 Finish will get us there.

List of contents

Introduction: Fit for the Game

Do today's kids need more than just play to be fit for the game?

1. Kids and Fitness: How we can prepare them

Soccer's physical demands: the fitness kids need for healthy sport performance

2. Sports Anatomy and Physiology: what makes the body work

Movement starts with the basics: structure and function in the young growing body

3. Fitness Prescription for Sports: meeting the demands

How to structure a fitness plan with proper progression for your athletes

4. Fitting in Fitness: without sacrificing the practice plan

How to build fitness training into sport-specific drills, skills and games

5. Flexibility, Stretching and Recovery

Proper techniques and sound principles for flexibility training and maximizing recovery

6. Fueling the Athlete for Performance

Healthy nutrition for athletes' demanding schedules, plus special dietary considerations

7. Benched: Keeping your athletes in the game

Recognition and prevention of common injuries and managing healthy return to play

Conclusion: Fit for the final whistle

About the author

Wendy Lebolt coached rec and travel soccer for the Chantilly Youth Association and Chantilly Soccer Club. (1999-2010 head coaching and all star coaching, After 2010, she focused on expanding Fit2Finish, During the time she was coaching she consulted and worked with outstanding coaches including Braddock Road Youth Club, VISTA, Reston Football Club, McClean Youth Soccer, and Olympic Youth Development. None of these as coach but working with outstanding coaches.
Dr. LeBolt founded Fit2finish, LLC in 2001 to address the crisis of injuries in youth sports, particularly to female soccer players. To her work she brings advanced degrees in exercise physiology, a decade of college teaching in the sport sciences, fifteen years of soccer coaching, two decades of sports parenting and a lifetime love of athletics. She has trained thousands of young athletes and teams in the Washington, DC area and mid-Atlantic region and speaks regularly to groups of coaches, parents and athletes about healthy sports and injury prevention. Wendy has published hundreds of articles and columns on topics related to health, wellness, fitness and sports performance. She writes weekly for Soccerwire.com, blogs at Fit2Finish.com and posts regularly to her inspirational blog, The Kinesthetic Christian. She lives in Herndon, Virginia with her husband and their three almost grown daughters.

Summary

The number of kids who love to play soccer has exploded in the last decade. Unfortunately, so has the number of sports injuries. Why? More games, more
competitions, and early specialization have all contributed, but so have our methods of training them. High pressure to perform along with an increased
volume and intensity of training has combined to hamper young soccer athletes. They favor one side, overuse one muscle group, and do it over and over
again. This is a recipe for injury.

In Fit 2 Finish, Dr. LeBolt takes a sport scientist's eye to the training of our soccer-loving kids. She distills the gems of two decades of coaching and
injury prevention training to display the methods that have worked to make her athletes safer, healthier and more effective, all while never losing the
fun. Coaches at all levels can apply the Fit2Finish principles to every facet of their coaching: warm up, skills and drills, game play, post game routines,
recovery, rest and preparing for the next game. Fit 2 Finish is the training manual and the game plan for the coach who's first objective is to keep kids
healthy and in the game.

Yes, we must address the 'too much, too early' in today's youth sports, but while we go about changing the culture, the kids who are currently in it need
saving. Today's coaches can start now by taking the Fit2Finish method straight to their practice field. If strong, balanced, healthy, high-performing
athletes are what we're after, then Fit 2 Finish will get us there.

Foreword

Fit 2 Finish gives you the method and the tools to prepare your soccer players to play and stay injury free.

Additional text

"Wendy's tremendous understanding of the human body and compassion for young athletes makes this a must have practical guide for youth coaches." --- Lisa
Bishop, coach

"I believe that most elite-level coaches over-train their athletes and that, in the end, their training programs do as much harm as good. Elite-level
coaches and athletes alike would do well to read this book and to implement this realistic and effective approach." ---Tom Larrick, Youth Soccer Coach and
Parent of a Division 1 Collegiate Athlete.

"I would encourage coaches of all ages to read this book. Wendy Lebolt is a pioneer in the game of soccer and this books brings out the best of her
teaching and development methodology. As the landscape of soccer and all youth sports continues to change and evolve, you will find "Fit 2 Finish" full of
practical information that creates energy while you read it. Wendy's passion, expertise, and real life lessons in the field of player and team development
will keep you intrigued from start to finish. Do yourself, your players and your team a favor and follow her advice, you will be glad you did!" --- Larry
R. Best, BRYC 95 ELITE. BRYC ELITE Director of Coaching - Girl's

"My daughter's travel soccer team has worked with Dr LeBolt over the course of several years. They practiced soccer intensively and rose to the top
division of their league at a time their bodies were changing a lot. They, however, remained remarkably injury free in large part thanks to Dr LeBolt's
holistic training approach. Through fun activities, she taught our athletes to be in the right mind frame to understand, fuel, and respect their bodies to
achieve an optimal performance." --- Virginie Carey, Parent and Team Manger, VYS Strikers U17 Girls

"This book F2F is comprehensive with a wealth of information combing the various aspects of coaching, age and gender related activities on and off the
field, injury awareness, foods for parents/coaches to consider and keeping a happy athlete in the game. It will help the coach diversify the practice from
the basic drills and better prepare the team to hopefully reduce injuries.

There are injuries in this sport, with the younger groups, the usual bumps and burses but as the age and skill increased so did the seriousness of the
injuries such as torn meniscus. Your book F2F covers specific game related injuries and shows a better way to strengthen specific muscles and gender
related. . .this is very important for coaches to understand." ---Coach Svain Ulvedal

Product details

• Authors: Wendy LeBolt
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 13.01.2015
• EAN: 9781630472160
• ISBN: 978-1-63047-216-0
• Subjects: Guides > Sport > General, dictionaries, handbooks, yearbooks, history; SPORTS & RECREATION / Coaching / Soccer