tailieunhanh - MEDICINE BALL TRAINING FOR KIDS: Benefits, Concerns, and Program Design Considerations

Why can some athletes seemingly play through injuries but succumb to incredible pain immediately after the competition ends? The explanation is thought to be related to the intense motivational states that may interfere with the perception of pain. The effects of emotional states may also explain why individuals with clinical depression report more pain than their counterparts without depression, and why anxiety increases pain perception. To explain why thoughts, emotions, and life experiences influence pain perception, Ronald Melzack and Patrick Wall proposed that a gating mechanism exists within the dorsal horn of the spinal cord where cells that project pain. | MEDICINE BALL TRAINING FOR KIDS Benefits Concerns and Program Design Considerations by Avery D. Faigenbaum . CSCS FACSM and Patrick Mediate . CSCS LEARNING OBJECTIVE The primary learning objective is to review the potential benefits and concerns regarding medicine ball training for kids and to describe program design considerations for developing safe effective and enjoyable fitness programs for school-aged youth. Key words Children Resistance Training Weight Training Youth Fitness Physical Activity Children and adolescents need to participate regularly in physical activities that enhance and maintain cardiovascular and musculoskeletal health. Current recommendations indicate that school-aged youth should participate daily in 60 minutes or more of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity that is developmentally appropriate and enjoyable and involves a variety of activities 1 . In addition to aerobic activities such as swimming and bicycling resistance training also can be part of a health-enhancing physical activity program for school-aged children provided that appropriate guidelines are followed 2 3 . Whereas different modes of resistance training such as weight machines and free weights barbells and dumbbells have proven to be safe and effective for children and adolescents 4 medicine balls are becoming increasingly more popular in schools fitness centers and sport training facilities. Medicine balls were originally used in Europe in the 1920s for the rehabilitation of muscle function in older patients. A few years later medicine balls became popular in the United States when White House physician VOL. 12 NO. 3 Admiral Joel Boone invented a game with medicine balls to keep President Hoover physically fit. The game was called Hoover Ball and was played with teams of two to four players who tossed a 6-lb medicine ball over a net 8 ft high on a court similar to volleyball. Nowadays fitness professionals youth sport coaches and physical education teachers