Parenting Elite Athletes

 

One way parents and coaches can help a child realize their full athletic potential, says four-time Olympic medalist Angela Ruggiero, is to explain what they may be able to achieve by setting goals and working hard.

Four-time Olympic women's ice hockey medalist, Angela Ruggiero, says parents should be realistic in evaluating their child's level of talent by looking at the big picture.

The best piece of advice four-time Olympic medalist Angela Ruggiero ever got was from her dad, who told her, since her dream was to play professional hockey, to always pretend when she was playing that a pro scout was watching her from the stands.  Ruggeiro's advice to young athletes: work hard, but have fun, because if the sport isn't fun, the athlete will get bored, but pushing yourself is the only way to get better.

 

Four-time Olympic women's ice hockey medalist Angela Ruggiero says that starting ice hockey at age 10 is not too late to become an Olympian; that some of her Olympic teammates, in fact, didn't start until age 12 or 13.  What she reminds parents is that their child will only achieve athletic success if they love their sport, so it is critical to find one they love to play.

Four-time Olympic medalist Angela Ruggiero lists 10 essential ingredients for achieving athletic success.

Taking an athlete's gym on the road is easy, says strength and conditioning guru Mike Boyle, if they just bring along a few simple tools.

Most of the elite athletes he has worked with, says strength and conditioning guru Mike Boyle, did not specialize too early or play a single sport all year long, but took time off from sports or played lots of different sports. 

Plyometrics is an Eastern European name for jumping, popping, and throwing exercises which train an athlete's nervous system to become more explosive.  For young athletes, says strength and conditioning trainer and coach Mike Boyle, a little bit of plyometrics is good (around 25 to 30 jumps a couple times a week); more not so much.