From sleep deprivation to social isolation to attention fragmentation, social media use for youth and high school students is harmful. The academic literature suggests it is the cause of the mental health crisis we face today in our country.
What many do not know yet is that social media use inhibits training gains and game performance.
A recent story from LetsPlayHockey.com detailed the studies’ findings and how they relate to athletes performing their best. Below is an excerpt from LetsPlayHockey.com.
Many other studies are showing the same: late-night social media use is correlated with lower point production in NBA athletes and with worse performance outcomes for college swim and track, and field athletes. In these cases, the reduction in sleep quality is a major factor in worse performance outcomes.
The nature of social media itself is also the problem. Watching TV is a largely passive activity. The entertainment does not really interact with you. With social media, nearly every second requires a decision – do I continue to scroll, like, comment, switch apps, or search for something? Imagine watching television for 30 minutes, but the entire time you only watch a show for five seconds, then change the channel. That would be exhausting!
Serious athletes should understand that social media use has a myriad of negative impacts on their health, physically and mentally, and that using it before training and competition has performance implications. Youth and high school sports coaches, organizations, and leaders should lead the charge to get phones out of team settings and educate their players on the negative impact phone use is having on their performance.
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At Fortis, we have a social media and video games seminar for parents and athletes that reviews this and other research, helping to educate and inspire youth and high school players to put the phone down and become better athletes! Reach out if you’d like to learn more and schedule a seminar with your high school, team, or association.
Josh Levine is the owner of The Fortis Academy, a sports performance training organization that works with youth to professional athletes. Fortis provides training, sport-specific skills work, leadership and parent education, and nutrition services. To learn more, go to www.thefortisacademy.com.
To read the full story from LetsPlayHockey.com, click here.
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