Train with Application (14+)
At this age athletes are able to start to specialize into one or two specific sports. Some may choose to remain in more than two sports and that is perfectly fine but in order to progress to a high performance level athletes will need to spend hours improving at their sport(s). This take up a ton of time if the athlete remains in more than two sports. Athletes that have a good athletic foundation can start to take part in weight training programs and plyometric/power programs that are supervised and prescribed by an athletic professional. These programs will increase the strength, speed, power, and balance of the athlete which in turn will make the athlete an athletic force in their sport. Athletes should remember to never forget about flexibility and mobility while training as these will play an important role in injury prevention in addition to a well balanced, functional strength training program.
Always praise effort rather than talent to increase motivation to continue to try their best and improve at the fastest rate possible. Your child could be the fastest because they have developed early and praising them for their speed (eg. You won the race! Wow you are so fast!) could lead them to not work as hard because they don't value effort. But more importantly when the other kids catch up to them or when they are faced with competition at the next level they will be more likely to select easier competitions because that's when they were praised for being fast. This is the same with playing sports, if you praise them for being so good rather than working hard then when they become an average player at a higher level and are receiving less praise then they will want to return to the lower level. Praise them for effort however and they will want to continue to work hard no matter where they stand in their team or against opponents.
Always praise effort rather than talent to increase motivation to continue to try their best and improve at the fastest rate possible. Your child could be the fastest because they have developed early and praising them for their speed (eg. You won the race! Wow you are so fast!) could lead them to not work as hard because they don't value effort. But more importantly when the other kids catch up to them or when they are faced with competition at the next level they will be more likely to select easier competitions because that's when they were praised for being fast. This is the same with playing sports, if you praise them for being so good rather than working hard then when they become an average player at a higher level and are receiving less praise then they will want to return to the lower level. Praise them for effort however and they will want to continue to work hard no matter where they stand in their team or against opponents.