AOSSM 2022 Annual Meeting Recordings - no CME-Early Sport Specialization: What’s the Problem?

Video Transcription

Video Summary

In this video, a speaker discusses the topic of early sports specialization. They begin by thanking the panelists and mentioning their own admiration for certain individuals. The speaker acknowledges Dr. Michele for his contribution to strength and resistance training early in their career. They also mention Dr. Neeru Jatnani as a world leader on sports specialization. <br /><br />The speaker defines early sports specialization as participating in one sport year-round, playing on multiple teams of the same sport, choosing a single or main sport, and quitting all other sports to focus on one. They emphasize that most athletes will specialize at some point but focus on those who specialize earlier in their career. They ask the audience for their opinions on whether it is okay for athletes to specialize early.<br /><br />The main focus of the talk is on the risks associated with early sports specialization, particularly in terms of underdeveloped neuromuscular coordination and impaired athletic development. The speaker presents empirical data that suggests multiple-sport athletes have better performance and fewer missed games due to injury. They also discuss the negative impact of early specialization on an athlete's ability to identify their best sport and the lack of diverse motor skills.<br /><br />The speaker brings up ACL injuries in female athletes as an example and highlights the mechanics associated with ACL injuries. They discuss a study that found altered hip-knee coordination in highly specialized athletes, which could lead to unstable landings and higher injury risk. They also present a study on neuromuscular training that aimed to improve an athlete's ability to respond to unexpected perturbations.<br /><br />The speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of training for primal strength and building motor skill before focusing on injury risk reduction. They highlight the need for integrated neuromuscular training to improve injury resilience and sports performance. They also mention the issue of under-training as a bigger problem than over-training in society. The video ends with the speaker thanking their team and the journal for the opportunity to present their work.

Asset Caption

Greg Myer, PhD, CSCS

Keywords

early sports specialization

strength and resistance training

sports specialization

neuromuscular coordination

athletic development

ACL injuries

injury risk reduction