This form of sports training is an approach to physical conditioning that focuses on improving an athlete’s overall physical abilities. It combines strength, speed, agility, endurance, and mental focus through structured, age-appropriate exercises and routines.
Early investment in structured sports training for kids supports comprehensive development, enhancing physical abilities, mental resilience, and emotional maturity. The UPSWING Foundation emphasizes youth programs designed to nurture young athletes, recognizing that early training is essential for setting the foundation for long-term success.
Building a Strong Athletic Foundation
One of the most critical aspects of training youth athletes is building a strong foundational skill set. Programs that emphasize fitness for youth incorporate varied, age-appropriate kids’ fitness activities that boost fundamental athletic skills.
Organizations like the UPSWING Foundation specialize in creating programs that help young athletes build a strong foundation in athletic development. Open to athletes of all backgrounds, UPSWING Centennial is the first dedicated space built to deliver the UPSWING experience to aspiring athletes in Denver and the surrounding communities with world-class services in sports performance training, dance, and recovery. In addition, we offer scholarships for qualified athletes.
With a unique approach, sports performance training addresses specific needs in the athlete’s body to achieve their full athletic potential by blending health and performance, allowing athletes to stay healthy while playing any sport and perform at a higher level.
Classes at UPSWING include:
- Speed Training
- Speed & Acceleration — Explode off the line, hit top speed faster, and build game-changing endurance. This class focuses on running mechanics, max velocity, and sprint endurance using curve treadmills, sled pushes, wall drills, and resisted sprints. Perfect for athletes looking to leave opponents in the dust.
- Strength Training
- Strength & Stability — Build powerful, balanced strength that translates to real performance. Develop core control, prevent injuries, and master proper lifting form through dynamic bodyweight exercises, medicine ball work, resistance bands, and sled pulls. A must for anyone who wants to move with power and purpose.
- Agility Training
- Plyometrics & Explosiveness — Jump higher, react faster, and generate serious force. Boost your vertical, increase explosiveness, and land safely with jump rope, box and broad jumps, hurdle drills, and deceleration training. Great for athletes in high-speed, high-impact sports.
- Agility & Change of Direction — Own your movement. Sharpen your footwork, increase coordination, and improve your ability to stop and go on a dime. With ladder drills, cone patterns, 5-10-5 sprints, and speed skaters, you’ll master control and stay injury-free through better mechanics and awareness.
- Dance Training
- Dance, powered by Spark, ensures the breakdown of unfailing fundamentals necessary to succeed in any dance team program. Dancers develop refined dance skills as they focus on strength, alignment, injury prevention, power, and flexibility within a carefully structured framework.
- Ranging in difficulty levels and age groups, dance classes range from jazz, hip hop, and ballet to acro, pilates, and college dance prep.
- Recovery
- As a part of both sports performance and dance training, athletes have access to a state-of-the-art Recovery Center.
- We provide access to leading technologies such as hydrotherapy and pneumatic compression to expedite muscle recovery and reduce inflammation. Our goal is to help athletes restore their performance, minimize downtime due to injury, and enhance their health and wellness, all within the same space as their training.
UPSWING’s comprehensive programs provide a powerful foundation for athletic growth, making it one of the most effective and enjoyable ways to promote exercise for kids.
Injury Prevention and Long-Term Health
Early sports performance training isn’t just about immediate athletic excellence — it’s also about ensuring long-term health and injury prevention. Proper safe sport training teaches young athletes correct techniques and promotes the development of balanced musculature, thereby reducing the risk of overuse injuries.
A critical element of injury prevention involves enhancing flexibility in sports, vital for reducing muscle strains and joint injuries. Comprehensive youth exercise programs prioritize exercises that improve flexibility, range of motion, and joint stability, significantly decreasing the likelihood of chronic injuries as athletes age.
Research continually shows that structured and monitored training programs can significantly reduce injury rates in youth sports. A comprehensive meta-analysis involving over 27,000 athletes under the age of 19 found that exercise-based injury prevention programs led to a 46% reduction in overall injury rates. Programs incorporating jumping and plyometric exercises were particularly effective, reducing injuries by up to 55%.
These findings underscore the importance of implementing age-appropriate, well-designed training regimens to enhance safety and performance in young athletes. They also show the importance of investing in quality training environments like those provided by specialized sports performance training facilities.
Mental and Emotional Benefits
Early sports training significantly contributes to mental and emotional development, resulting in higher chances of long-term mental wellness. Research indicates that teens who played school sports reported less depression and better mental health as young adults compared to those who didn’t play.
Participating in structured athletic programs helps young athletes cultivate:
- Discipline and responsibility through consistent training schedules and practice routines.
- Resilience and adaptability, essential traits fostered by facing and overcoming sports-related challenges and setbacks.
- Teamwork and collaboration, developed in team sports contexts where mutual support and collective effort are paramount.
Moreover, structured athletic programs often emphasize character-building components, such as sportsmanship, integrity, and respect, thus nurturing well-rounded individuals who excel both on and off the field. Our success stories vividly illustrate how sports positively influence youth, shaping confident, motivated, and emotionally intelligent individuals.
Specialization vs. Sport-Agnostic Training
Early sport specialization (focusing intensively on a single sport from a young age) does not necessarily lead to superior athletic performance compared to peers who diversify their athletic activities. In fact, research indicates that early specialization can increase the risk of overuse injuries, burnout, and decreased long-term participation in sports.
Conversely, youth athletes who diversify their athletic experiences often develop a broader range of motor skills, enjoy greater overall athleticism, and have longer, more successful sports careers.
Programs like those offered by the UPSWING Foundation emphasize sport-agnostic training, fostering well-rounded physical development and reducing the risks associated with early specialization. By encouraging participation in various sports-agnostic activities, these programs help young athletes build a solid foundation for future success while promoting enjoyment and sustained engagement in physical activity.
In addition to promoting balanced athletic development, the UPSWING Foundation is deeply committed to the safety and well-being of every participant. As a SafeSport-certified organization, we uphold the highest standards for creating a positive and secure environment for young athletes. We also extend this commitment to families by offering SafeSport training for both parents and athletes. For more information, please visit the link at the bottom of our login page.
Investing in the Future
Investing in structured sports performance training during a young athlete’s formative years yields profound and lasting benefits. It sets the stage for a robust athletic foundation, protects against injuries, nurtures emotional maturity, and enhances performance. Committing resources and energy to quality youth sports programs represents an investment in the future for individual athletes and the broader community.
By supporting initiatives dedicated to youth athletic development, we contribute to healthier, more disciplined, and resilient future generations. If you’re inspired to make a lasting difference in young athletes’ lives, consider supporting these valuable programs by making a donation today. Early sports training empowers youth athletes, setting them on a promising path for lifelong achievement and holistic success.
UPSWING Foundation was founded in 2020 by Harmony and Jason Myers as a Colorado-based nonprofit with a vision to connect people and catapult dreams. We know access to sports, education, and other opportunities is too often limited by barriers such as socioeconomic factors. We also know all kids should have an equal opportunity to experience sports, to learn and grow, to connect with others, and to discover and pursue their dreams.
Our mission is to develop strong, confident, successful student-athletes who are able to give back to their communities in meaningful ways. We can do that by crushing barriers that limit access. We work to crush those barriers by:
- Developing high-quality programming to support athletes, their families, and our communities
- Creating world-class amateur sports campuses that integrate multiple sports, fields, training, and educational spaces
- Ensuring access to programming and facilities through dedicated scholarship and support programs
- Partnering with and supporting like-minded organizations to create opportunities for aspiring athletes and our communities
If you’re interested in supporting young athletes, you can learn more about what we do, view our partnership packages, or donate to support our critical work!
If you want to sign up for Sports Performance, Dance, or Recovery Training at UPSWING Centennial, you can do this by either downloading the “UPSWING Foundation” app on the App Store or Google Play, or by visiting our website.
ABOUT UPSWING FOUNDATION:
UPSWING Foundation, a Colorado nonprofit corporation, exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Code, is the only youth sports foundation based in Colorado’s mile-high training grounds that provides access to world-class programs alongside top athletes for kids of all backgrounds in order to connect people and catapult dreams. Where access to sports and other opportunities is often limited by barriers such as socioeconomic factors, the UPSWING Foundation works to crush those barriers by creating first-in-class, accessible programming and training spaces to develop strong, confident, successful student-athletes who are able to pursue their dreams and give back to their communities in meaningful ways. To learn more, visit us at upswingfoundation.org.
Main Office:
1746 Cole Blvd, Ste 300,
Lakewood, CO 80401
contact@upswingfoundation.org
(720) 608-0259
ABOUT UPSWING CENTENNIAL:
UPSWING Centennial is the first dedicated space built to deliver the UPSWING experience to aspiring athletes in Denver and the surrounding communities with world-class services in performance training, dance, and recovery.
UPSWING Centennial:
7460 S University Blvd, Centennial, CO 80122
facilities@upswingfoundation.org
(720) 500-5100
ABOUT SPARK:
SPARK is a contracted program through UPSWING, owned and managed by the renowned Nicole Kahre. Nicole is an award-winning choreographer with an impressive and diverse background, including serving as the choreographer for the Denver Nuggets Dance Team. Her expertise and passion for mentoring young athletes have led to her dancers being featured on shows like So You Think You Can Dance and Dancing with the Stars. Nicole created SPARK to train high school and college dance teams, contributing to multiple 4A and 5A State Championships and three National Pom and Dance Program victories. At UPSWING, SPARK boasts a team of about 10 highly skilled dance instructors from various backgrounds, including a CU Dance Team alumna and two Broncos Cheerleaders. Decades of teaching dance at an elite level and studying the science behind all technical skills will provide athletes the technique and mastery of fundamental skills necessary to succeed in any dance team program.
SPARK at UPSWING Centennial:
7460 S University Blvd, Centennial, CO 80122
facilities@upswingfoundation.org
(720) 500-5100
