How to Increase Your Chances at Getting an Athletic Scholarship :

Today, strength training influences every athletic program in the country, no matter what the sport - male or female. The improvements in sports performance over the last 10 years has been incredible. Athletes are running faster, jumping higher and getting stronger than ever before. To earn a sports scholarship, it is necessary for athletes to strength train and participate in conditioning programs to better prepare themselves for the rigors of the athletic season.

Strength training is not just lifting weights like a body builder. That type of training could actually make you slower if it is not done properly. Incorporating body weight, resistance bands, medicine balls, plyometrics and Olympic lifts are a much better strength training choice for an athlete to improve their chances of getting that sports scholarship.

The benefits of a sports specific strength training program are numerous. The athlete will not only build a solid strength base (which is key to ALL athletic movement patterns), but he or she will also reduce their risk of injury; increase their speed, quickness and agility; increase vertical jump; make bones, ligaments and tendons stronger; and boost the athlete's confidence in and out of the classroom. And if an injury does occur to an athlete who has been strength training properly, it will probably not be as serious and will tend to heal faster.

So remember, the main function of the body's 600 plus muscles is to move our body parts. Only muscles can cause movement. The stronger the muscles and the more force behind the contractions, the faster the athlete will run, the higher she will jump, the further she will throw and kick, and the harder he will hit. It really is that simple!

The NCAA gives thousands of scholarships every year and spends millions of dollars on the education of student-athletes, but the process of earning a scholarship isn't easy. That's because natural talent alone isn't enough anymore. These days, it's as much about private coaching as it is about getting exposure in your sport.

So next time someone tells you weight training is just for bodybuilders, think again. A proper strength-training program, in-season and off-season, just may be the final piece the "puzzle" to earning that athletic scholarship!