Testing new ground, trainers at a hospital-based fitness center teamed up with area high school coaches this fall to help reduce injuries of teenage athletes.
Mike Kett, director of sports medicine at Edward Health and Fitness Center in Woodridge, helped coaches develop a six-week jump training and strengthening program for several girls volleyball teams to increase jumping capacity and reduce knee injuries.
Fifty-seven girls from Lisle High School and Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville participated in the test program at the beginning of the season. Kett said the program is being done as a public service as part of the fitness center’s sports medicine outreach program.
Research published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine shows that girls are more prone to have serious knee injuries than boys in running and jumping sports, such as volleyball, basketball and soccer, Kett said. “Part of it is a strength issue. Part of it is the landing,” Kett said.
“You have to teach them the right technique. You can’t just tell them to go out and jump,” he said.
The girls did jump training three times a week and strength training twice a week. Each week Kett would demonstrate a new technique and critique the girls on their performance.
“That way the coaches knew specifically what it was supposed to look like,” said Katherine Seguino, the girls volleyball coach at Neuqua Valley. When Kett approached her about testing the program, she thought it would fit in well with the girls’ existing conditioning routine.
“He talked about improving jumping skills, but also the idea of training them to prevent injuries, especially the knees and the ankles,” Seguino said.
There are typically three or four knee injuries each season, she said.
By the end of the six weeks, the average improvement in the standing jump was more than 1 1/2 inches. The height of the approach jump increased by about 2 1/2 inches, Kett said.
No serious knee injuries were reported.
“We got some great results. Both of my middle blockers just became a lot more explosive in their jumps,” Seguino said.
Kett, who has been trying to reach out to other area high school coaches to help improve athletes’ health and performance, chalks up this initial attempt as a success.
“In terms of working with coaches for conditioning, it’s pretty new,” Kett said. “Coaches don’t have the experience or the time to put into this.”
Eventually, he hopes the staff at Edward can serve as part-time conditioning instructors at the high schools.
With practice time limited to a few hours after school, coaches can find it difficult to squeeze in time for additional conditioning exercises.
“It’s kind of rare right now. I’m not sure how many coaches are going for the conditioning type aspect. A lot of them are still working toward skills,” Seguino said. “But my coaches are interested in fitness as well, not just improving volleyball skills.”
Kett hopes the program’s results will spur other coaches into action.
Seguino plans to incorporate the six weeks of training into the volleyball team’s first preseason conditioning program next summer.
And Neuqua Valley’s boys volleyball teams will begin a similar program when their season starts this spring.
