ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the concept of non-functional overreaching and overtraining in young swimmers. In the competitive world of swimming, the importance of the health and well-being of the young athlete cannot be underestimated and yet compared to adult training performance data, relatively little is known for youth swimming. Whilst the topic of overreaching and overtraining has been researched more extensively in adults, the prevalence rates, presenting symptoms and causes in young people appear to bear similarities to adults. It is however important not to treat the young swimmer as a mini-adult, and to account for physiological and psychological differences especially related to training practices. Training load information is described and discussed both in relation to the monitoring and progression of the training programme. Recent debates on the merits of early specialisation versus late specialisation have turned the spotlight on understanding the training processes more effectively for young athletes. Consequently, future studies that take a holistic approach to resolving many of the issues affecting young athletes will go a considerable way to benefitting the athlete and not just the sport.
