Athletes….they aren't machines (although sometimes we treat them like they are) THEY ARE PEOPLE! And sometimes, they just need a break.

If you've never heard of overtraining syndrome, it's when the body really starts to shut down when there have been too many energy and physical requirements put on it. Maybe they're doing extra work and really pushing it, or trying to progress, but it's our job as parents to look at that and figure out when it's time to pull back and take a little break and start recovering better. 

If your athlete is following the athletic pyramid in the proper order (-Nutrition and Hydration-Rest and Recovery-Proper Movement-Strength-Skills), then you can look at the following clues to tell if your athlete needs a break:

• They stop progressing- they're no longer moving up in skills (weekly, monthly), they're not even getting little wins; they're just struggling to do anything in the gym or on the field. You can see it in their eyes; they're just getting down all the time.
• Tired all the time- falling asleep on the way to practice or on the way home; always exhausted with little to no energy.
• Overuse injuries- injuries that happen when they're doing too much…heel pain, Sever's disease, knee pain, lower back pain, wrist pain, elbow pain, shoulder pain. If they're getting overuse injury after overuse injury, they need to pull back, they've done too much.
• Start to talk about quitting- they are starting to say it's too much for them and they don't want to do it anymore.

*On the other hand, if your athlete is not following the athletic pyramid in the proper order, then that's where you need to start!

We all want our athletes to be the best they can be and to give it their all. We want them to have fun and we want them to accomplish their goals. We want them work hard and we want them to win, not only in their sport, but also in life.

If you realize that your athlete needs a break, it's not the end of the world! It's not even the end of their sports career, in fact, it could be just what they need to get them back on track and ready to excel again. Overtraining syndrome can be corrected in 24 hours to 28 days. That's right! They may just need a few days off to relax and recover. I don't know about you, but I think that's great news…and MUCH better than the alternative of continuing the downward spiral of the overtraining syndrome.

#1 Takeaway

TALK TO YOUR ATHLETE

Ask them questions to see how they're feeling, and listen to them…it'll go a long way in the future of their sports career to find out this information now before it's too late.

We want to hear from you! Start the conversation with your athlete and let us know how things are going. We want to know if things are going great, and we want to know if they're struggling. We are on your team, and we are here to encourage you and to help you out. If you have any questions or concerns, leave those in the comments as well and we'd be glad to help.