Have you ever thought about how a few simple strategies could keep your child safer and injury-free during playtime? In this episode of the Hercules Podcast, we’re diving into injury prevention for active kids outside of sports. We’re covering it all: practical ways to build strength, the importance of rest, and the power of teaching safe movement patterns as your child grows.

We’ll explore fun, creative exercises that make injury prevention engaging and effective—because keeping things fresh helps kids stay active and strong. From swimming to balance drills, variety isn’t just for fun; it’s a key part of preventing overuse injuries and supporting healthy development. And let’s not forget the basics: a good night’s sleep, which plays a huge role in their performance, recovery, and overall health.

By the end of this episode, you’ll have practical tips to help your child stay active and safe, ready to take on their next adventure. So let’s get into it and set up your young explorers for success, one step at a time.

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Transcript

Dr Alec: 0:00

Hey everyone, welcome back to the Hercules podcast, where we break down the latest in health, fitness and injury prevention to help youth athletes, active adults and their families. I'm your host, dr Alec, and today we're diving into a topic that's especially relevant for any of you, parents who have kids who are always on the move and I'm not talking just the youth athletes who play football, lacrosse, baseball, soccer, all the above, but kids who just like to go outside and play. What are some things we can do to keep them healthy and safe in this coming end of the year, as things are shifting up and kids are back at home a bit more and playing out back? Now we tend to think about injuries. We picture kids getting hurt during, like I said, organized sports, but here's a surprising stat for you Close to half of all child injuries happen actually outside of recreational and competitive sports, and they often occur during playtime or everyday activities. Think recess, think playing out back when they get home from school. This means if you got a kid who loves climbing trees, biking or playing endless rounds of tag or wiffle ball, in my case growing up, there's a real chance for injury if we're not careful. But don't worry, we're going to cover some of the simple tips and tricks that we can use to help mitigate that. I'm always going to say there's no perfect way to reduce injuries entirely, but there's things we can do that can help mitigate or reduce that risk, which is always going to be key. We're human and sometimes we just step off a curb wrong, but there's a lot of things we can do to help reduce the risk of injury, especially in our kids. So, whether you're a parent, a teacher, a coach or just someone interested in learning more, this episode we're going to jump into all things. Injury prevention for active kids outside of sports. All right, to kick things off, I want to touch on why this topic is so important. Things off, I want to touch on why this topic is so important.

2:09

Play is natural for kids. It's how they learn, grow and develop physically and socially which is key here. But with all that activity there's also a real need to support their developing bodies. Kids are still learning, and about not only how to move their body but balance and coordination, and their bones and muscles are growing stronger at the same time, so they're actually at an increased risk for strains, sprains and falls. Think back to when you were younger and there were growing pains. Your calves hurt, your Achilles hurts, sometimes it's elbow, sometimes it's knee Actually, a lot of times it's knee, sometimes it's elbow, sometimes it's knee Actually, a lot of times it's knee. So today I want to cover five key areas that can help to reduce that risk. Some key ones are strength and stability. Teaching safe movement patterns. Balancing activity with rest and I would say that's a biggie. That falls more into my sporting youth athlete crowd.

3:12

But sometimes kids that even have just a lot of recreational stuff going on, from playing outside to riding your bike etc. Can fall into that category as well. Adding variety to prevent some of the overuse we see. Going for swims is great, but going for a lot of swims could potentially cause overuse. And then, lastly, making sure they have the right shoes. On that one's kind of a way out there idea, but I've had kids come to the clinic where they're wearing shoes that you would just look at them and naturally go. These aren't meant for running right. These aren't meant for moving around on concrete. Especially if your kid's play area is a basketball court or they're outside running around in front of the house and there's concrete there, you should be having good shoes on, it can cause a lot of feet problems as well. These tips are practical, they're straightforward and the biggest thing is with kids. You've got to have fun with them. If you're giving them a bunch of boring exercises to prevent injury, it's just not going to work. You've got to have fun. It's got to like play and in fact it's a lot of fun to get out and move yourself. So these are some things you can do to actually get exercise as well as helping your kids reduce some injuries. So let's get started with strength and stability.

4:21

One of the biggest reasons kids get hurt during everyday activities is simply because they haven't yet developed strong, stable movement patterns. They're still learning. Their muscles are still building coordination, so even basic activities can sometimes throw them off balance. I remember looking back on a baseball field and I'm not going to name names, but I had a friend who was a rather tall kid at the time playing shortstop and there would be baseballs hit up the middle that he would go to dive for and it would just look like a baby giraffe kind of falling to the ground there. He, many years later, is one of the most athletic people I know, and it's just when you're going through growing phases and you're young. You're learning to use those long legs that are developing, and part of that is a little periods of in coordination. They just have to move and learn their bodies a little bit more. So it's just good to know that when you look at your kids running around, don't expect them to move the same way as you. So a fun way to start building some strength and stability is to integrate body weight exercises that are simple but effective and key fun Talking about exercises like squats, lunges and even balancing on one foot.

5:34

So how do you get your kids interested in doing squats and all these things that seem unfun on paper? That's where a little creativity can go a long way. Try tuning into a game. Creativity can go a long way. Try tuning into a game. You can challenge them to see how long they can balance on one foot. Or even set up an obstacle course in the yard and see who can compete with the fewest wobbles. These are all tricks that we actually use in the clinic. They're fun activities. They're ways to get the job done of strengthening, spending time on a single leg and working outside their center of mass without the typical three sets of 10. Because even as adults, three sets of 10 is really boring. There's many other ways to accomplish the same goals, so let's use the more fun ways and keep kids interested. It's also going to build a really, really, really good basis for wanting to exercise in the future, especially when it's fun.

6:24

Another favorite is animal movements. Ever hear of the bear crawl, the crab walk? These exercises are not only fun, but they're also fantastic for building core stability and coordination. If you've never tried any of these, they're things that you try and you just laugh at yourself because they are hard. And if you've never done them before, it just becomes a joke and you have to laugh at yourself a little. And you can do a lot of fun games with these. Put a ball, potentially on. If you're in a crab walk position, you could put a ball on the stomach and you can tell your kid to walk around, or can you do this as fast as you can and try to keep the ball on your stomach and that's gonna promote coordination through the midline but also get them moving and sweating and breathing hard. Coordination through the stomach, through the midline, there, is key for low back stability and preventing any low back things going on and what you're going to see is there's a lot of different ways to do exercises, but the key is fun. Another option is play, follow the leader and see who can keep up. Not only does this strengthen their balance and stability, but also a great way to spend some quality time together. There's so many opportunities or I should say, lack thereof opportunities to hang out and have fun, even as adults. See, if we can pair all these things together, where your kid is getting around and moving some different patterns, you're making it fun to move in more of these exercise-type motions, but also you're getting out and moving as well.

7:53

Number two teach safe movement patterns. This blurs into that first one, especially when we're talking about using some different fun activities to reteach motor patterns and coordination To teach safe movement patterns. Kids are learning to move all the time, and establishing safe movement habits early on can have long-lasting benefits. Talking about things like learning to land softly when they jump or understanding how to pick things up without rounding their backs I think we always look at gym movements and we go. These are unsafe for kids because this adult's using a ton of weight or this guy's rounding their back or whatever it is, and the earlier you start someone, like in a sport the kid that learns to swing a baseball bat. 20 years later they always swing the baseball bat better because they learned proper mechanics earlier on, when it's much easier and our brains are ready to absorb like a sponge all those new patterns.

8:55

Teach your kids how to lift. I'm not saying go out and max out a deadlift. There are certainly reasonable expectations and boundaries there. But teaching them to move with a proper hinge at the hips or teaching them to squat properly, those are all going to add up in the future. And instead of working on these things when you're injured later in life, when you start doing more things and you start not recovering as well, teach it now so that those movement patterns are ingrained and we're preventing injury in the future. I should say reducing the risk of injuries in the future.

9:29

For example, next time your kid needs to pick something off in the ground, try to show them how to squat down, grab it and stand back up with a straight back. Believe it or not, kids don't know how to naturally do that. All the time. We live in different environments where we're sitting on chairs and we're looking at computers. If we go back thousands of years. If we're spending all our time on the ground and we're picking things up and we're not statically in one position like we are now, we would naturally pick up on these things. So let's promote environments that that can happen, and that could be something as simple as having floor time at night too, where we're moving around on the floor and we're having to get into these squat positions. Not only can you incorporate things like building puzzles or spending time as a family together, but we're also working on just mobility and movement and proper patterns.

10:17

You can also try to make this fun, which again is key when working with the youth. Athletes and just active young kids Keep it fun. One thing you can do is pretend they're lifting a heavy treasure chest and have to use their super strong back to protect it. Reinforcing these basics helps create some muscle memory that encourages safe movement later on. Another simple drill you can try is practicing soft landings.

10:47

Kids naturally want to jump off things. It's fun. Everyone wants to do that, but have some reasonable expectations here. Don't make them jump off a swing set. Higher isn't always better, so let's teach them to land safely. One of the ways we can teach this is pretending when they jump off something to land in a squat position or land with a soft knee bend.

11:06

Now, granted, when you say that to kids, they're not going to know what that necessarily means. This is where the imitation game is fun where you show them something, make a game of it. How many times can we do this? Can you catch the ball being thrown at you while you land? Imitation is so key. Show them what you want. Have them do it. Show them again. We have receptors in our brain that are built for that and kids are so attuned. Use that. Use your body to show them what you want. And if you're not sure how to move a lot of resources on YouTube, you can reach out to me. I can help you with that as well. But learn how to land your kids landing better. That's one of those things we look at and return to sport after an ACL injury because they either didn't know how to do it before or they just weren't strong enough to handle that position. A long way of saying teach it before, it's an issue All right.

12:01

Let's move on to number three balancing activity with rest. I know this one can be tough, especially for kids who just want to go, go, go and just move around and run all the time. But just like adults, kids need recovery time to avoid injuries. Their muscles and joints are working hard when they're active and they just don't get enough chance to rest, they're going to be at an increased risk. They're reaching their volume threshold in activity. It doesn't matter if it's organized sports and weightlifting. I have this conversation all the time with my clients that it's not just about what you do in the gym, what about all the other things you did. In Vero Beach we recently had a hurricane and there was a lot of shutters going up and people started having back pain. When they came in to see me and I said to them have you moved shutters lately? I know everyone wants their bodies to be perfect and be able to do stuff, but you're not used to doing something. Your body will become sore and achy. It's adapting to that volume. That's the point. That way, if you do it again, you're stronger for it. It's a prime example of why, even in kids that don't do sports, they might get achy and sore and have these injuries later on because they're tired from that volume. So understand that rest is still important, even in youth, in youth, kids youth athletes, I should say and kids.

13:20

An easy way to encourage more rest is by setting up a quiet time in the afternoon. It doesn't have to be long, but it's time for them to relax, read a book or do something a little less physical. I'm going to say, for kids who are very active, I would say a lot of kids these days spend more time on their video games and computers. Don't encourage more lying on the ground at that point in time. Get them up and moving, which is the opposite end of the spectrum. Here I'm talking about kids that are really active. Maybe play some sports, maybe do a lot of recess, run around constantly, Enc. Encourage some relaxing time. Have them read a book. I'm not going to encourage more digital time a different topic.

14:01

If they're reluctant, try reframing it as something like recharge time so they have more energy for the next round of play, or try tying some sort of incentive to it as well. The goal of all this is to give their bodies a break without feeling like they're cutting into their fun. So if there's an ultimate fun activity that's a bit more inside-based, let's add it to it, and a bonus if you get it to be on the floor and you're also working on some hip mobility. On days they're especially active, like after a big playground day, consider building in an early bedtime to ensure they get the sleep their bodies need. Quality sleep is a powerful tool for recovery. Some kids have a really easy time going to bed. Others, I'm sure it's a fight. Try to make some sort of again tied-in incentive. Connect it back to what it is they want and I think that goes for a lot of other things, even in the adult rehab world.

15:08

If it's they love to play baseball, encourage the fact that by sleeping better they're going to perform better on the field. Whatever it is that motivates your child, do that with sleep, because sleep is super important as well. Don't just sweep it under the rug. Keep it varied. Our four tip is a key one, especially in kids that play a lot of the same sport. Again, this topic's more on activities outside of sports. But if you look at a kid who loves to use the jungle gym and they're constantly arms overhead, swinging around like monkeys on monkey bars and they're starting to get some shoulder stuff, this could be a a good practical tip for them.

16:01

Variety is a key factor in injury prevention here. Here's why, when kids repeat the same movements over and over, like constantly running or jumping or, like I said, monkey bars, they start to overuse the same muscles and joints. This can lead to injuries over time. It's the same thing in kids as in adults. To be honest, encourage them to switch up activities, and this is where keeping it fun will also keep them moving here, just like adults, I see you just get bored with the same thing over and over again, and kids are especially acceptable to that.

16:35

So try something that's similar or a little different than what it is they normally do. You don't have to totally accident if they just love it, but give them some variation, either in hand position or foot position, with whatever they're doing, just to allow their hips and shoulder joints and all those joints and muscles to experience something new. It also gives some of the other muscle groups a break. So if you, for example, have been spending a lot of time running, suggest they take a break and swing or swim, climb or do something completely different, like I said is an option. Or if they're biking a lot, try introducing them to balance-based activities like tightrope walking, which is a really fun one. You basically put a line of tape on the floor and you have them stay on there and again tie either a competitive motive to it or something fun at the end. One of the things we found in the clinic is, if we're throwing something at them, especially if they do enjoy sporty activities, they just keeps them way more engaged by introducing some new ways to play and not only helping them prevent overuse but also keeping them mentally engaged. As I said, think of this as in quotes cross training for kids, for my folk that love crusted and functional fitness. Keep all muscle muscle groups engaged in their minds as well. All right, number five.

17:59

I told you I was going to talk about shoes. Good, supportive shoes are one of the simplest ways to protect active kids from injuries, but I'll say they're often overlooked. Like I said, I've had a few kids walk in here with shoes with peeling off bottoms or just non-active shoes in general, and when I ask them do you wear these shoes when you run around out back when you play, and they're like yes, then I follow up. Do you do that outside on your sidewalk or on the street, and they go yes, I immediately start to think well, this could be part of the reason your, your feet hurt all the time or you're having some of these volume-based issues on the street where other kids don't. Shoes are just as important for kids, if not more important for them than adults. Yes, they heal quicker. Yes, they adapt quicker. But on the same token, be mindful.

18:52

If your kids are running around, get them some good sneakers. I'm not saying go out and spend the world of money on them, but they can't be running around in Sperry's. That's not what they're designed for. Every few months, check to see if the shoes are getting tight or showing signs of wearing out. That's one of the easiest recommendations for that. If they out grow them, invest in a new pair. It's going to happen. Good shoes will protect their feet and ankles will certainly help them with better balance if they have shoes that are actually stable and just make them comfortable too.

19:26

If they're super irritating, kids aren't going to wear them. They're going to run around barefoot on the concrete, and that doesn't lead to great things as well. That doesn't lead to great things as well. Those five are a pretty good start, I will say, as far as helping your kids mitigate some injury risks, especially kids who are less into sports. Here are just a few more quick ones, I would say encourage barefoot play. That's huge. Keep teaching body awareness through introducing new activities. I guess that goes with one of the ones above, but I think it's important to always touch on adding variety. Keep adding variety. Add more stimulus, change the positions they're in. The more movements they're exposed to, just the better they're going to move and the more they're going to understand their bodies, which is going to be key for joint health in the future.

20:20

Encourage some sort of stretch routine, make it fun. I will say with this one. If you get on the floor and start stretching and you encourage your kids to, that's going to be a big game changer and just a really good way to build some solid habits going forth. To build some solid habits going forth, we think of flossing our teeth all the time, but we forget that our bodies need to be moved too and they need to be stretched constantly. And dentists have done a really good job pointing out that you should floss because you don't want cavities, and there's good research to show that. But there's also good research to show that staying limber and mobile is going to help your body's joints later on. So install those habits now, the day the medical world starts to talk about movement as preventative is going to be the day we have a lot less of these joint issues, a lot less of chronic pain, a lot less diabetes. So start it with your kids now. Diabetes so start it with your kids now. Sometimes the world of medicine and modern health and wellness is 15 years behind. So don't wait 15 years to catch up, especially with your kids. Institute that type of behavior now.

21:29

So, wrapping up our five tips here build strength and stability with simple body weight movements. Make them them fun. That's a key. Make it fun. Teach safe movement patterns, like how to land off boxes. I would say. Use the imitation game. You jump off something and land in a way that is proper and safe. So will your kids Teach them. Show them Balance active play with rest.

21:58

Again, the caveat being, if your kid is active, if he spends all day looking at computers and games, probably doesn't need more rest. He needs to move more. So this is one of those things. Take with a grain of salt. Encourage a variety of activities. Kids get bored, so this is an easy one. Promote them to change the activity up. But for the kids that love one thing, encourage them at least for a few hours a day or a few moments.

22:20

If we need to start with that to do something else, it can be similar. Just get them out of that same routine. It's going to help their movement patterns. It's also going to prevent or reduce injuries and, lastly, ensure they have protective footwear. This is overlooked, mainly because kids just have less pain, I believe. But just understand that if your feet hurt on concrete with shirt and shoes, theirs probably do too, and their feet are growing and they're developing. Give them the best shot possible.

22:51

Now I'd rather kids be barefoot running on grass that's a topic for another day. But for kids that are running on concrete or on courts and all that, just give them the right, proper wear. Just a sneaker, right? I see a lot of people wear Sperry. I love Sperrys for the right occasions, but cut them out if they're running around playing in them. That's all I got for you guys today. We'll come back with more tips on how to keep your youth athletes and kids healthy over the years. Thanks so much for joining me on the Hercules podcast. I hope you found some of these tips helpful and if you have any questions, feel free to reach out. Remember, keeping our kids safe doesn't mean we slow them down. It just means we give them tools to play smarter and stay healthier. And again, the key is more fun. All right, guys, till next time.