Youth Soccer - The Truth

The Reason Behind the Creation of
Youth-Soccer-Fitness.com

This site is about giving you the player, parent and coach the truth about youth soccer training for fitness, strength, power, injury prevention and nutrition by cutting through all the media hype from TV, newspapers, magazines and radio.

My name is Mike Grafstein and I am the owner and creator of Youth Soccer Fitness.com.

I have been involved in sports medicine for over fifteen years with a unique combination of certifications and experience in both rehabilitation and strength and conditioning:

• Canadian Athletic Therapist –CAT(c)

• Certified Strength and Conditioning Coach – NSCA-CSCS

• Certified Youth Conditioning Specialist – IYCA-YCS

• Registered Massage Therapist – RMT

Since 1989 I have had the opportunity to work in a clinical setting performing rehabilitation for sports injuries, working with house league, rep and provincial teams implementing conditioning and injury prevention programs.

I have and still also work in the "trenches" on the field in the cold, heat, snow, rain and hail providing emergency care, pre game warm up and athlete prep. There is little that I have not experienced.

I worked with the Ontario Soccer Association in the early 1990’s as the Senior Therapist implementing both strength and conditioning programs as well as injury prevention strategies. During that time there was a 75% decrease in both acute and overuse injuries.Furthermore I had the good fortune to be the therapist with three national championship winning teams. This was just the beginning.

Currently I am grateful to hold the position of Senior Therapist and Conditioning consultant for Bryst International Inc. Internationally recognized leaders in technical and tactical youth soccer training and development. A position I have held since the summer of 2000. They have given me the opportunity to grow both professionally and personally.

I have been fortunate to have traveled internationally with male and female soccer teams to Austria, England, France and Germany.

Over the past six years there has been a significant demand for current information on conditioning, injury prevention and nutrition for youth soccer players as the game has grown in popularity.

Unfortunately, still to this day, many coaches and parents still place their children on outdated exercise machines, give them running programs that make them slow and believe that strength training causes growth plate damage.
There are changes in youth soccer training for fitness, injury prevention and nutrition.

Out of my PASSION to make a POSITIVE difference and share current youth soccer philosiphies towards fitness, strength, power, injury prevention and nutrition...

This is my way of sharing with you my over fifteen years of injury rehabilitation, injury prevention and strength and conditioning experience for young players male and female, parents and coaches of all levels of play.

Sign up for the Youth Soccer Fitness Results Newsletter for current training info on strength, power, injury prevention and nutrition for young male and female soccer players.