The Athletic Screen - Wisdom Wednesday #5
- Coach Grant
- Jul 17
- 2 min read
Today I wanted to dive into an important topic, the athletic screen. The screening process is an invaluable starting point with any athlete in any sport, but I hold it to a higher priority when working with overhead athletes (baseball, softball, volleyball, etc.)
My number one priority as a strength and conditioning coach is to keep my athletes healthy and playing their sport(s). To do my job to the best of my ability, I need an understanding of who the individual athlete is in front of me. The athletic screen solves this problem.
The screening process starts with general questions such as age, sport(s) played, and past or current injuries. We then move into a postural screen (visual observations of the athlete from the anterior, sagittal, and posterior view), then to the movement screen, which takes the athlete through a series of drills that helps me understand the movement capabilities, faults, soft-tissue limitations, areas of concern, and general athletic capabilities of the individual. The screen covers everything from our plantar fascia on the bottom of the foot, all the way to our cervical spine.
This is the most important part of any strength and conditioning program. If I don’t know how the athlete is put together or how they move through space, how am I supposed to give them the best program possible for their development? Sure, I can make them stronger and faster by not knowing any of this, but, I may also be driving them slowly towards injury and dysfunction.
Let’s break down two of my athletes' screens, Xander Jones and Dylan Burgess. I thank them both for letting me share this information with you.
Through this presentation I will convey why this process is so invaluable for individual development and in selecting weight room exercises, soft-tissue and mobility work, etc.
Thank you for your time, check out the Power Point here for a full topic breakdown!
-Coach GD
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