What happens when kids don't practice as much

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In most cases, the kids who train the most, improve at a faster rate. If you miss training sessions, and don't make up for it on your own time, you might get left in the dust.

On my daughters club team, this past Summer, kids who missed just one week of training for vacation, looked slower when they returned, and lost playing time and starting spots because of it. But they usually bounced back.

You just have to be careful because if you miss too many games or practices, your "spot" will be filled with another player who then gets the opportunity to prove themselves. They may prove that they are the better option, and show that the team can go on without you.

Everybody's replaceable. Even in the B teams.

Improving at a faster rate based on more practice is probably accurate. Even so, it is all relative. An awful player can improve at the fastest rate and never be close to as good as a great player who improves marginally from year to year.

This is just my opinion, however your vacation analogy is ridiculous. This is a parent issue combined with a club mentality of justifying more fees with year round events, training, practice and games. There is a lot of evidence suggesting that vacations are good for people in general. This is also true in sports. Then as a back up you throw out the Everybody's replaceable even on the B team. Are you suggesting that players on a B team should focus only on soccer? To me this seems rather cruel as they are pouring everything they have into something that they may never be that good at. To me it makes far more sense for a person to play on a B team in order to enjoy oneself while still having a life

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b-teams can still be great teams

Improving at a faster rate based on more practice is probably accurate. Even so, it is all relative. An awful player can improve at the fastest rate and never be close to as good as a great player who improves marginally from year to year.

This is just my opinion, however your vacation analogy is ridiculous. This is a parent issue combined with a club mentality of justifying more fees with year round events, training, practice and games. There is a lot of evidence suggesting that vacations are good for people in general. This is also true in sports. Then as a back up you throw out the Everybody's replaceable even on the B team. Are you suggesting that players on a B team should focus only on soccer? To me this seems rather cruel as they are pouring everything they have into something that they may never be that good at. To me it makes far more sense for a person to play on a B team in order to enjoy oneself while still having a life

they maybe aren't right now, because players that don't want to dedicate -what an hour and a half per day?, fill up half of the squad. as someone said in a different thread, if you are playing for fun, play rec. and that's not a knock on playing for fun, it's just that maybe there are too many kids playing for the wrong reasons, maybe even poorly placed on A teams, when there is someone on a B team who will take the time and has the desire and fantasia. lol

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they maybe aren't right now, because players that don't want to dedicate -what an hour and a half per day?, fill up half of the squad. as someone said in a different thread, if you are playing for fun, play rec. and that's not a knock on playing for fun, it's just that maybe there are too many kids playing for the wrong reasons, maybe even poorly placed on A teams, when there is someone on a B team who will take the time and has the desire and fantasia. lol

In my opinion, all kids should be playing for fun. I wish had done more fun things when I was a kid. I have one daughter playing D1 soccer currently and she is having the time of her life. Honestly, she really is having fun. I never pushed her and she did have a year or so where I think she was somewhat burned out so she slowed the pace and stopped participating in everything that was offered her. It had no negative impact on her. In fact, it allowed her hamstring and ankle to heal and she seemed to enjoy soccer even more when she started college and threw herself into the regiment with vigor. It is her body, her sport, her mind and her choice.

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In my opinion, all kids should be playing for fun. I wish had done more fun things when I was a kid. I have one daughter playing D1 soccer currently and she is having the time of her life. Honestly, she really is having fun. I never pushed her and she did have a year or so where I think she was somewhat burned out so she slowed the pace and stopped participating in everything that was offered her. It had no negative impact on her. In fact, it allowed her hamstring and ankle to heal and she seemed to enjoy soccer even more when she started college and threw herself into the regiment with vigor. It is her body, her sport, her mind and her choice.

that is one way to look at. the other is she might have been national team material if she had tried harder.

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Improving at a faster rate based on more practice is probably accurate. Even so, it is all relative. An awful player can improve at the fastest rate and never be close to as good as a great player who improves marginally from year to year.

This is just my opinion, however your vacation analogy is ridiculous. This is a parent issue combined with a club mentality of justifying more fees with year round events, training, practice and games. There is a lot of evidence suggesting that vacations are good for people in general. This is also true in sports. Then as a back up you throw out the Everybody's replaceable even on the B team. Are you suggesting that players on a B team should focus only on soccer? To me this seems rather cruel as they are pouring everything they have into something that they may never be that good at. To me it makes far more sense for a person to play on a B team in order to enjoy oneself while still having a life

Vacations are important, yes, but when they come right before a tournament, the player suffers. Vacations are usually a time for slowing down and relaxing. This means, the child has taken a week or so off of fitness. When they return, they are often off their game for a bit, and can't run as long, but I said that they can recover.

As for everybody's replaceable - it is true. You have to remember, just because you aren't training right now, doesn't mean that others are on break too. Some B team kids are pushing for the A team, and some B team kids are just pushing for a starting spot. In the meantime, some C team kids may be fighting for a B team spot.

Decide what is important and what is fun for you, and go for it, but don't expect coaches to hold your spot.

[Unregistered]

Club soccer should be for kids who are passionate about soccer. The kids train in the blazing heat, the wind, rain, sleet, and sometimes snow. When the rec kids call it quits, the club kids play on, and they do it because they love it.

Can club soccer kids take breaks for other sports? If they want to, go for it. If your child only has a passion for soccer, then just put them in soccer.

Just remember, you get what you put in. Athleticism, speed, and natural talent can go a long way, but how long? It depends upon the child, the level at which they play, and the coaching style.

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If

that is one way to look at. the other is she might have been national team material if she had tried harder.

If my aunt had balls she would be my uncle.

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Specialization

http://changingthegameproject.com/is...to-specialize/

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Can club soccer kids take breaks for other sports? If they want to, go for it. If your child only has a passion for soccer, then just put them in soccer.

I agree with this. However, I also believe that it is often the parents that are deciding what their child has a passion for.

Throughout the club soccer craziness there have been many parents that obsessed, pushed, complained and even got angry at their children for not performing to the standard that they would have preferred. I can remember one dad in particular who I have little doubt loves his daughter with all his heart. Even so, he was always frustrated that his daughter did not make the A team. Additionally he would have her try out each year for ODP. He would pace up and down the field during practice and then try and explain what she could do different during breaks. It was hard to watch and I always felt bad for this young lady.

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Most College Athletes Come From a Multi-Sport Background:

Very, very few D-1 athletes play more than one sport. I'm not sure where you got that idea, but it's not true now in top D-1 programs.

A 2013 American Medical Society for Sports Medicine survey found that 88% of college athletes surveyed participated in more than one sport as a child

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There are Many Paths to Mastery: the 10,000 hr rule

A 2003 study on professional ice hockey players found that while most pros had spent 10,000 hours or more involved in sports prior to age 20, only 3000 of those hours were involved in hockey specific deliberate practice (and only 450 of those hours were prior to age 12).

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that is one way to look at. the other is she might have been national team material if she had tried harder.

The problem is who is she trying harder for? Is this a parent (dad) who is pushing the "if onlys"…? or is it her? If she has that passion then go for it. But if it is only for dad, there are a lot more important things in life.

Allowing your kids to grow up and feel in control and satisfied with what they have accomplished is a real gift.

Satisfied doesn't mean only 80% or only mediocre… it means they are making the decision.

[Unregistered]

A 2003 study on professional ice hockey players found that while most pros had spent 10,000 hours or more involved in sports prior to age 20, only 3000 of those hours were involved in hockey specific deliberate practice (and only 450 of those hours were prior to age 12).

Can you find a study for soccer? I don't care about hockey.

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Can you find a study for soccer? I don't care about hockey.

It wouldn't do any good. If you can't make the correlation then no amount of data is goingi to move you. Too bad though, hockey is another great sport.

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Can you find a study for soccer? I don't care about hockey.

10,000 Hours is not a Rule: In his survey of the scientific literature regarding sport specific practice in The Sports Gene, author David Epstein finds that most elite competitors require far less than 10,000 hours of deliberate practice. Specifically, studies have shown that basketball (4000), field hockey (4000) and wrestling (6000) all require far less than 10,000 hours. Even Anders Ericsson, the researcher credited with discovering the 10,000 hour rule, says the misrepresentation of his work, popularized by Malcolm Gladwell in Outliers, ignores many of the elements that go into high-performance (genetics, coaching, opportunity, luck) and focuses on only one, deliberate practice. That, he says, is wrong.

An additional thought is provided by top youth sports researchers Jean Cote and Jessica Fraser-Thomas. They suggest that at no time should a young athlete participate year round in a single sport. While they recommend that athletes in sports whose competitors peak after age 20 need to accumulate around 10,000 hours of general sports participation, no more than half of that needs to be deliberate practice of their chosen sport. As a general rule they recommend the following age breakdown for athletes trying to achieve elite status in a specific sport:
Prior to age 12: 80% of time should be spent in deliberate play and in sports OTHER THAN the chosen sport!
Age 13-15: 50/50 split between a chosen sport and other athletic pursuits
Age 16+: Even when specialization becomes very important, 20% of training time should still be in the non-specialized sport and deliberate play.