Twin Cities Elite Volleyball is a small, non -profit volleyball club that offers a wide range of programming to meet athletes in every phase of their journey, from developmental competitions designed for players new in sport, to competitive travel teams. Two years ago the leadership of the club saw a growing need to support players in areas such as mental health, nutrition, recovery and overall lifestyle balance. They wanted to make a program that athletes not only rest with the physical tools to succeed, but also about the knowledge and habits they will bring in adulthood as a healthy, well -rounded individuals. In the 2023–24 season, they applied funds from the JVA Grant program to launch a three-part holistic health and wellness series.
The Holistic Health and Wellness series focused on important areas of athlete Wellness:
- Nutrition and performance – Helping athletes understand how food feeds their bodies and supports top performance.
- Mental health and stress management – Give players aids to cope with stress, anxiety and the pressure that is accompanied by both students and athletes.
- Injury prevention and recovery -Atleteten training the right warm -up techniques, strength training and recovery strategies to reduce injuries and keep them healthy throughout the season.
The experience was designed to apply directly to the life of the student athletes. Each session gave players the opportunity to learn concepts and then put it into practice immediately. During the food session, for example, athletes not only learned about feeding their bodies, but they also worked through real meals and snack planning. In the mental health and stress management workshop, players practiced breathing techniques, mindfulness exercises and strategies to manage pre-game nerves and daily stress. The athletes felt comfortable to ask questions, share their own experiences and walk away with practical tools that they could apply immediately, or now meant that they made better food choices, the use of breathing techniques before a large match or adding recovery to their daily routine.
“In general, experience gave players a sense of property about their own health and well -being, which strengthens the idea that taking care of their bodies and mind is just as important as the development of skills on the field,” “ Said coaching director Alysia hear. “This holistic approach ensures that athletes not only improve their play, but also on building healthy habits that will benefit them long after their play career.”
Role of the parents
Although most sessions are specially designed for athletes, TCE also held a special food session for parents because family support is a key factor in the general success of an athlete. Parents received the same information as their athletes, while they also learned practical ways to better support healthy eating habits at home. They left the session with a better understanding of how nutrition influences performance and recovery, as well as strategies for meal planning, groceries and snack preparation that match what their athletes are taught.
“By involving parents directly, we ensured that the lessons that athletes have learned in the gym could be strengthened in their daily routines. The dedicated parent -oriented session generally strengthened the program by creating the coordination between athletes and families, and many parents shared that it gave them valuable tools to both their athletes, both” “” “” “ Alysia added.
Role of the coaches
Coaches played a crucial role in the Holistic Health and Wellness series by helping the gap to bridge between what athletes learned in the sessions and how those lessons were applied in the gym. While the workshops were led by experts on the subject, the coaches were actively involved in strengthening important collection restaurants during practices, games and team discussions.
After the workshop in mental health care, coaches were more intentionally about creating a support team culture, checking in with players and modeling positive coping strategies. They also encouraged athletes to make healthy food choices by reminding them of the concepts introduced in both the player and parents sessions. Furthermore, coaches used the series as an opportunity to strengthen team union, to build in activities and conversations that helped to make contact with each other, support each other and create a positive team environment.
“By weaving the health and welfare content in their coaching, our coaches ensured that these lessons were not a one-off event, but part of the current TCE experience,” “ Sharet Alysia. “Coaches were essentially the daily accountability partners who helped athletes to practice what they learned, while also promoting stronger team relationships that were transferred to the competition.”
Positive results
An important success was the coordination between athletes, parents and coaches. By including parents in a special food session and fascinating coaches to strengthen lessons in practice, TCE created a shared language and a consistent support system around each athlete. This made it easier for athletes to build healthy habits and to feel supported in all areas of their lives.
Moreover, the club saw positive consequences for team culture and bonding. The series opened meaningful conversations about mental health, personal challenges and self -care, which helped athletes to make contact with each other at a deeper level and reinforced the feeling of community within the teams.
“In general, the greatest success that the program went beyond education – it promoted permanent changes in customs, thoughts and relationships. Athletes not only became more self -assured in their ability to take care of their bodies and mind, but also bore those lessons in how they approach the game and support each other as teammates,” “ said Alysia.
From that pilot series, TCE volleyball learned that the athletes and families were enthusiastic for more information and practical collection restaurants that they could use every day. For the 2024–25 season, the club expanded the program and refined. They collaborated with professionals in the field of health care and well-being to offer expert guidance and plan to make the workshops more interactive, whereby hands-on activities and discussions are recorded to ensure that student athletes remain involved and actively involved during each session.
“Ons doel is om van de Health and Wellness -serie een integraal onderdeel van de TCE -ervaring te maken, iets dat onze atleten in staat stelt niet alleen beter te presteren op het veld, maar ook om te gedijen in hun dagelijks leven. Als JVA -lid hebben we geprofiteerd van een bredere gemeenschap van volleyballenclubs die best practices, educatieve middelen, en netwerk hebben, en een paar lokaal zijn, en een paar Being locally, and even sharing some of our ideas with their own athletes.
Because of the health and wellness programming of TCe, the leaders of the club believe that it is vital to show athletes that it is good to talk about the challenges they are confronted, to seek support and to ask for help.
“Being part of JVA has strengthened our programming, strengthens our development of athlete and strengthened our dedication to offer a high -quality, supporting environment for all players.”
Twin Cities Elite Volleyball (Oakdale, MN) is a member of the Junior Volleyball Association, the only national association that is 100% focused on Junior Volleyball and the needs of the club community. Our mission is simple: improve the junior volleyball experience. Founded in 2006 Through Club directors and for Club directors, JVA, supports more than 1600 member clubs with resources, events, education and advocacy that help the sport grow in the right direction. With a focus on innovation and inclusiveness, JVA allows clubs to lead with goal on and next to the field. JVA offers education for coaches, directors and athletes; Promotes responsible development of athlete; And champion opportunities for disadvantaged communities to gain access to the sport. Read more at www.jvavolleyball.org And follow @jvavolleyball on Instagram.
More information about the JVA subsidy program
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