Building Confidence in Young Athletes Lisa Cohn

Kids and teens say they lack connections with adults in their schools, says Paul Caccamo, CEO and founder, Up2Us Sports, a coach training program. Youth coaches can fill in the gap and build resilience, improved focus and self-esteem in young athletes, he says. To meet that goal, Up2Us partners with schools and community groups, and works on the ground to entice kids to join teams. Send us podcast ideas:
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When kids skip breakfast, they have trouble focusing and underperform in sports, said Steph Magill, a registered dietitian and mother to two teen athletes.
Too often, young athletes don't eat enough because they have such busy schedules.
She gives suggestions for when and what to eat before games, and gives specific suggestions for meals and snacks. 
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When sports kids see other young athletes perform well in social media, they make comparisons, which can sink their confidence.
Often, a 10-second clip on a social media site involves many takes, and can be misleading. But sports kids often don't realize this and feel like they don't measure up, says John Willkom, a former Division 1 basketball player and author of Walk-On Warrior and No Fear in the Arena.
Young athletes should focus on their own strengths, he said.
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When athletes feel pressure, they naturally tend to panic, said Conor Hogan, author of The Gym Upstairs: The Neuroscience of Future Champions. If they understand some of the neuroscience of sports, they can calm themselves with techniques like visualization and meditation, he said.
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In high school, girls in sports drop out at higher rates than boys.
Kathryn Ackerman, a physician and dirctor of the Female Athlete Program in the sports medicine division of Boston's Children's Hospital says that girls in sports deal with numerous societal pressures. They feel like they should look feminine, should avoid acting "bossy" and should have certain body types--among other issues.
Girls and women also experience higher rates of concussions and ACL tears than male athletes, she said. Another challenge is a condition called "relative energy deficiency" caused in part by not eating enough.
Ackerman gives tips for parents of girls in sports and suggests parents visit https://www.childrenshospital.org/programs/female-athlete-program to learn more about the challenges female athletes face.
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Sports kids coping with performance anxiety, low confidence and other mental game challenges can benefit from hypnotherapy, said Lark Ericson, a certified hypnotherapist and life coach.
During her sessions, she walks kids through possible games or competitions, raises their stress level, then helps them reduce stress on their own.  
Her techniques are a much deeper dive than visualization, she said.
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