Right Moves: A LiiNK Center for Healthy Play Podcast

LiiNK Center
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Health & Fitness
  • Updated Weekly

The Right Moves Podcast, brought to you by TCU’s LiiNK Center for Healthy Play, features conversations regarding whole child and adult health. This podcast will focus on the current state of U.S. education systems, the health of our nation, and what the right moves are to develop wholeness again in all of us. Our goal is to highlight and discuss basic health principles that should never be violated and introduce evidence-based practices that work very well in the home, in the workplace, in schools, in the medical community, and other community-based support groups.

  1. 3d ago

    What is the Secret Sauce to Sport Readiness in our Youth?

    There is a debate on when and how to develop sport readiness in our youth. The research is clear on how we as physical educators, parents, and youth sport coaches should address sport in children and adolescents, especially the relationships between outdoor play (recess), sport readiness, and sport specialization. Dr. Rhea sits down with former LiiNK PhD student, Dr. Kate Webb, to share her doctoral research on this very topic, introducing two very important fitness variables, muscular strength and neuromuscular control, and why a new set of fitness assessments associated with these variables are crucial for identifying muscular weaknesses prior to advancing into sport. This is a must listen for many different aspects of decision makers for our youth and why we need to consider the child’s needs first, not the competitive edge. Dr. Kate Webb is an adjunct professor for the TCU Kinesiology Department. She is also a fitness instructor for youth through seniors and a performance enhancement coach for youth through elite athletes. Her background is in public education, where she taught Biology and Physical Education, served as a head track and field and cross-country coach, and holds a principalship certification. With a PhD in Health Science, her research focuses on increasing movement opportunities for children and youth, as well as the benefits this movement yields for whole-child development. She is especially interested in free-play for children, and its relationship to appropriate and increased muscle strength and neurological development in childhood.

    What is the Secret Sauce to Sport Readiness in our Youth?

  2. Sep 23

    The Societal Pressures Pushing Youth into Sport Specialization Too Early

    Youth sports in the US have become increasingly competitive and expensive especially since kids are becoming more specialized making it earlier in their elementary school years. What is the drive behind this? With only 1% of youth athletes playing at the college and professional levels, and many youth athletes quitting their sport by the age of 13, we have to ask ourselves where this immense pressure to enroll our children in sport early and specialize in a single sport is coming from? Dr. Rhea brings back Dr Sophia Ulman from the Movement Science Lab at Scottish Rite Hospital in Frisco to share her lab’s research findings on the “why” behind parent’s decisions to allow their kids to specialize in sport at earlier ages. Listen as they discuss these findings and what they mean for how parents and coaches make decisions with the child’s health in mind. Sophia Ulman, PhD, is the Division Director of Movement Science at Scottish Rite for Children, where she leads a motion capture laboratory focused on identifying biomechanical risk factors in sports medicine patients and healthy athletes to address clinical questions related to rehabilitation, recovery, and injury prevention. Her research broadly focuses on lower-extremity injuries and conditions, injury risk-reduction strategies, and risk factors specific to female athletes. Dr. Ulman holds faculty appointments at UT Southwestern Medical Center as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and the School of Health Professions. She teaches in the Prosthetics-Orthotics Master’s Program and advises clinician scientists pursuing PhDs in Applied Clinical Research. She also serves on the Board of the Pediatric Research in Sports Medicine Society and has received national recognition for excellence in teaching and research.

    The Societal Pressures Pushing Youth into Sport Specialization Too Early

  3. Sep 16

    Early Sport Specialization – The Focus on Winning Comes at a Loss of Physical and Emotional Wellbeing

    What should parents and coaches really be focused on to ensure well-rounded success for their young athletes? Sport specialization may sound like the key to success in any given sport, but in reality, it increases injury risk and limits the young athlete’s ability to round out their physical literacy. Dr. Rhea brings back Dr. Tim Baghurst, to dive deeper into the culture around youth sport specialization in the U.S. and the hurdles young athletes often face that prevent them from cross-training in other sports. Dr. Baghurst advocates for parents to let their children pursue their passions, and to do their research on developmentally appropriate skills training if they really want to see lifelong physical success in their children. Dr. Timothy Baghurst is a professor, coach educator, researcher, author, and practitioner with extensive experience developing coach education programs and professional learning systems. A full professor at Florida State University and Founding Director of the FSU Center for Athletic Coaching, he has built multiple academic programs from the ground up, including FSU’s Graduate Certificate and Master’s in Athletic Coaching and Oklahoma State University’s Sports and Coaching Science program. His work integrates curriculum design, applied coaching practice, research, and organizational leadership, with expertise in coach development, ethics, pedagogy, motor learning, leadership, communication, team culture, coach retention, athlete welfare, and coach stress and burnout. He has consulted with organizations including the NCAA, the World Anti-Doping Agency, USA Basketball, USA Wrestling, the Milwaukee Bucks, the American Volleyball Coaches Association, and the Florida Coaches Coalition. Dr. Baghurst has authored numerous books and more than 150 peer-reviewed articles and is an experienced keynote speaker and workshop facilitator who helps sport organizations develop practical, evidence-informed coach education that improves coaching practice and supports athletes.

    Early Sport Specialization – The Focus on Winning Comes at a Loss of Physical and Emotional Wellbeing

  4. Sep 9

    Epidemic of Early Sport Specialization and Untrained Coaches in the U.S.

    Our adult population is hugely competitive, especially in sport. The questions are, “when should children begin playing sport?”; “what should be the objective of sport in a child’s life?”; “what should adults know about a child’s developmental stage and how it impacts their health for a lifetime?? We may think signing our children up for sport early is what’s best for them – it keeps them active and hey, if they train enough they’ll go pro one day. Dr. Rhea brings on a good friend and research peer, Dr. Tim Baghurst, to share his research and expertise on the consequences of sport specialization and the epidemic of untrained coaches in the U.S. He reminds parents and coaches why they should prioritize developmentally appropriate skills training and athlete enjoyment over athlete success if they want to produce lifelong physical activity and sport engagement in their athletes. Dr. Timothy Baghurst is a professor, coach educator, researcher, author, and practitioner with extensive experience developing coach education programs and professional learning systems. A full professor at Florida State University and Founding Director of the FSU Center for Athletic Coaching, he has built multiple academic programs from the ground up, including FSU’s Graduate Certificate and Master’s in Athletic Coaching and Oklahoma State University’s Sports and Coaching Science program. His work integrates curriculum design, applied coaching practice, research, and organizational leadership, with expertise in coach development, ethics, pedagogy, motor learning, leadership, communication, team culture, coach retention, athlete welfare, and coach stress and burnout. He has consulted with organizations including the NCAA, the World Anti-Doping Agency, USA Basketball, USA Wrestling, the Milwaukee Bucks, the American Volleyball Coaches Association, and the Florida Coaches Coalition. Dr. Baghurst has authored numerous books and more than 150 peer-reviewed articles and is an experienced keynote speaker and workshop facilitator who helps sport organizations develop practical, evidence-informed coach education that improves coaching practice and supports athletes.

    Epidemic of Early Sport Specialization and Untrained Coaches in the U.S.

  5. Sep 2

    Former TCU All-American, Jaden Oberkrom, left the NFL to Develop Youth into Kickers

    Former TCU All-American kicker, Jaden Oberkrom, set multiple records while kicking for TCU from 2012-2015. He was drafted into the NFL and had his professional sports career set, but something didn’t feel right. Jaden walked away from a contract with the Cleveland Browns when he realized his true passion was helping kids achieve their dreams through sport development. Dr. Rhea sits down with Jaden to share his story about how he got started and what his goals were for youth sport development. His passion to work with youth who wanted to develop their kicking skills led to the creation of the Oberkrom Kicking Academy. The incredible part of this podcast is how much he understands his training and the success of his students are about far more than just kicking. Jaden Oberkrom was an All-American TCU kicker from 2012-2015. He made the most FGs in Big 12 history; most FGs and points made in TCU history; and the longest FG in TCU history. He was drafted into the NFL but felt God was leading him to go a direction. He left without signing a contract and started his own company called Oberkrom kicking (www.texaskicking.com) where he coaches younger kickers. He has now trained over 200 kickers in the DFW area.

    Former TCU All-American, Jaden Oberkrom, left the NFL to Develop Youth into Kickers

  6. Aug 26

    Optimizing Youth to be Sport Ready: What Does it Take?

    Optimizing athletic ability as an adolescent while avoiding injury is often the goal across all sports. While in children who aspire to be athletes, what should that really look like if we want the best for our children, both physically and emotionally? Dr. Rhea brings back Dr. Sophia Ulman to discuss how her Movement Science Lab at Scottish Rite Hospital in Frisco uses motion capture technology and neurocognitive testing to indicate deficits in motor skills in order to reduce injury risk in youth athletes. Dr. Ulman focuses on physical literacy, gender and sport differences for the movement patterns required to prevent injuries. She also highlights why coaches and parents should realize each child and adolescent athlete has different movement/physical activity/training needs to support a strong brain and body while limiting injury risk. Sophia Ulman, PhD, is the Division Director of Movement Science at Scottish Rite for Children, where she leads a motion capture laboratory focused on identifying biomechanical risk factors in sports medicine patients and healthy athletes to address clinical questions related to rehabilitation, recovery, and injury prevention. Her research broadly focuses on lower extremity injuries and conditions, injury risk-reduction strategies, and risk factors specific to female athletes. Dr. Ulman holds faculty appointments at UT Southwestern Medical Center as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and the School of Health Professions. She teaches in the Prosthetics-Orthotics Master’s Program and advises clinician scientists pursuing PhDs in Applied Clinical Research. She also serves on the Board of the Pediatric Research in Sports Medicine Society and has received national recognition for excellence in teaching and research.

    Optimizing Youth to be Sport Ready: What Does it Take?

  7. Aug 19

    Are Parents Putting Their Children in Sport for the Right Reasons?

    Becoming a star athlete is intriguing to most kids and parents, sometimes to the detriment of the child’s future physical and mental health. Research shows that children need to play many different sports as children and well into adolescents to decrease risk of injury and athlete burnout. Sadly, the culture around youth sports in the U.S. has led to a professionalization of youth sports that is unrealistic and unhealthy for most athletes. Dr. Rhea brings on a biomedical engineer focused on biomechanics research, Dr. Sophia Ulman, to explore pressures young athletes face and discuss the complex physical and psychological hurdles of sport readiness and injury. Dr. Ulman reminds us that youth sports, especially with children, should really be about what is fun and developmentally appropriate not the outcome. Sophia Ulman, PhD, is the Division Director of Movement Science at Scottish Rite for Children, where she leads a motion capture laboratory focused on identifying biomechanical risk factors in sports medicine patients and healthy athletes to address clinical questions related to rehabilitation, recovery, and injury prevention. Her research broadly focuses on lower extremity injuries and conditions, injury risk-reduction strategies, and risk factors specific to female athletes. Dr. Ulman holds faculty appointments at UT Southwestern Medical Center as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and the School of Health Professions. She teaches in the Prosthetics-Orthotics Master’s Program and advises clinician scientists pursuing PhDs in Applied Clinical Research. She also serves on the Board of the Pediatric Research in Sports Medicine Society and has received national recognition for excellence in teaching and research.

    Are Parents Putting Their Children in Sport for the Right Reasons?

  8. Aug 12

    Sneak Peek Into the Fall 2026 Sport Readiness Series

    We're excited to announce our 2026 Fall Sport Readiness Series! Kicking off next week, we will be hosting a variety of professionals including national researchers,coaching experts, physicians, and physical therapy professionals who will discuss the impact of sport on children and adolescents. This series will focus on the whole child and why sport is not in and of itself the best developmental physical or cognitive approach for introducing physical activity and movement to children. Listen for a sneak peek of some of the guests we will be featuring.

    Sneak Peek Into the Fall 2026 Sport Readiness Series
See All (114)

Trailer

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

The Right Moves Podcast, brought to you by TCU’s LiiNK Center for Healthy Play, features conversations regarding whole child and adult health. This podcast will focus on the current state of U.S. education systems, the health of our nation, and what the right moves are to develop wholeness again in all of us. Our goal is to highlight and discuss basic health principles that should never be violated and introduce evidence-based practices that work very well in the home, in the workplace, in schools, in the medical community, and other community-based support groups.

Information