How to Determine Whether Your Youth Athlete Is Burned Out

Sometimes there's a tendency for coaches and others to push youth athletes, or for these athletes to push themselves. But it's important for them to stay within age-appropriate capabilities.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Watch for overtraining. This is the surest path to burnout. Persistent muscle soreness and complete fatigue are sure signs.
2. Check enthusiasm levels. An uncharacteristic resistance to training is a sign of burnout.
3. Watch for moods. Emotional swings - including lack of enthusiasm, crankiness or withdrawal - are signs of burnout.
4. Pay attention to lifestyle patterns. A loss of appetite or insomnia can be signs of overtraining or burnout.
5. Look at relationships. An escalation of arguing with siblings or other family members can also be a sign of sports burnout.
6. Be careful of crossover. A drop in academic performance, or a change in other areas outside of sports, can indicate burnout.
7. Check your child's pulse. If you regularly monitor his or her resting pulse, you'll notice if there's a significant rise. This is a sign of overtraining.

Tips & Warnings

• Talk to your child. Make this a regular habit so you'll notice early any change in participation or performance patterns.
• Monitor your athlete. There's a limit to the number of times any athlete should go "all out" - both physically and emotionally.
• Prevent burnout with cross training. Introduce other sports to add variety and utilize different muscles.
• Stress the social aspect. Sports should include socializing, not just competition.
• Speak to your child's coach. Do this before there is a problem in order to prevent one.
• Work with teams or schools. Help create guidelines to prevent burnout in youth athletes.