Sports-performance training is rapidly increasing in popularity. As little as ten years ago, only college or professional athletes had strength and conditioning coaches, whereas now many high schools employ strength coaches and trainers. Young student-athletes today are participating more in organized sports, while in the past, they played neighborhood pickup games. They are also specializing more in one sport. Instead of playing three or more sports, kids are choosing to play one or two and playing them year-round. The results are an increase in the levels of skill and competitiveness, as well as injuries and muscular imbalances.

Why Is this Training Unique?

Sports-performance training is unique because you are trying to improve very specific skills. When you perform traditional personal training, your general goals are to increase overall strength and cardiovascular conditioning. When you train athletes, you will be working to improve foot speed, agility, vertical-jump height, and power to name a few. Your entire program revolves around the athletic season and the specific skills required for the athletes' sports and positions.

This is a much more complicated type of training, but is also quite fun and interesting for trainers who enjoy athletics.

Selling Your Services

Selling your services to an athlete is easy. All competitive athletes want to reach their full potential and be the best they can be. The issue is that most of the time the athlete is not the person paying your fee; it is the parents, coaches, or school. If you try to sell yourself to the athletes, you are wasting your time. You need to present the benefits of your services directly to the decision-makers. Since the person paying for the services will not see an immediate return on investment, you will have a tough sell. Consider selling your services on the fact that the athletes will gain:

• Strength

• Muscular endurance

• Power

• Injury prevention

• Speed

• Agility and balance

Emphasizing these benefits to a potential client during a presentation can help increase your potential sales. You must overcome the price objections: “it's too expensive” or “it's not cost-effective.” You can accomplish this by stressing the skills the athletes will improve by performing sports-specific training. Remember, most athletes want to be better, and most parents will bend over backward to help their children reach their goals. If you are still finding price to be a major objection, you can create small group sessions to make your services more cost-effective.

Interacting with Young People and Adults

There are many differences to consider when dealing with adolescent versus adult athletes. Your approach will vary significantly with the age of your clientele. Emotionally, adult athletes tend to be more mature, disciplined, and motivated. In addition, adults are physically more mature and developed, where adolescents are still in the process of growing. The musculoskeletal systems of adolescents are not fully developed, which demands extra attention when you are creating your programs. The adult athlete can handle a much more physically demanding workout. Adolescents will tend to have less strength and endurance, so your programs for this group will not be as advanced, but they should find it no less challenging.

When you choose to work with adolescents, you should be very structured and specific with your expectations. Their immaturity necessitates rules be in place in order to keep them focused and in line. You will not want to spend the short time you have disciplining your athletes. So make it clear from the beginning that you will not tolerate disruptions. You want their experience to be enjoyable, but chaos does not lend itself to a good working environment.

Another consideration when working with adolescents is their motivation. You should have a feel for where each athlete's motivation is coming from. Is she in your program willingly in order to become a better athlete, or did her parents or coach persuade or force her to join? The athlete's motivation will determine how willing she is to participate and how hard she's willing to work. Understanding the student's motivation will help you know how to coach her.

Working with adolescents can be a juggling act. There are many considerations and factors that must be taken into account when creating and implementing programs. The key is becoming educated on this age group and the issues that may arise. Being prepared can help ensure a smoothly run program, and will ultimately make your programs more profitable.

Income Potential and Financial Considerations

Your income potential will depend mainly on the setting you work in. A strength coach employed by a college will have different salary and benefits than one employed by a high school. Your work hours and ability to make money on the side will also be quite different. It can actually be more lucrative to work full time in a high school than at a college, depending on the NCAA division. You will also work fewer overall days in a high school, because most college positions are twelve months long.

If you are a self-employed sports-performance trainer, your income will be even more variable. It will depend on how many programs you run, how many people are in each program, and how much you charge for your services. Because most sports-performance training is done in groups, it can be quite profitable if you are self-employed. A group of ten athletes who each pay $15 per session will provide you with $150 per session. That is a nice rate. Keep in mind that you will likely have to reinvest some of that money into advertising and purchasing equipment. You will also not be receiving benefits or vacation time as you would if you were employed at a school or university, which may be a factor to consider.