Move before practice, stretch after it. Every routine here is written for one age band and one sport, with the steps, the hold times and the research behind them.
By Coach Evan WaechtlerYouth coach (U11, Cache Valley, Utah) and founder of SSTrackerUpdated October 30, 2026
The short answer
When should kids start stretching?
BeforeMove: a warm-up game, then a moving warm-upTrainThe sessionAfterStill, gentle stretches
Moving warm-ups start at the first practice, at any age, and for ages 4 to 6 the warm-up is a game. Still stretches belong after training, never as the warm-up. A short, gentle calm-down is fine from the start, and from U11 (age 10 to 11) it becomes a regular part of every session: many girls start their growth spurt around 10 and boys about two years later, the years when growing knees and heels are most often sore.
By age
What each age does, before and after
Ages 4 to 6
Before3 minutes before training. A game: follow the leader, animal walks, a freeze game, soft landings, then a little of the sport.
After3 minutes after training, holds of a slow count of 5. A calm-down: slow breaths and stretch shapes like a sleepy cat.
These are the tested programmes. Our routines use the same kinds of moves in our own words; they are not these programmes and have not been tested in a trial. A team that wants a tested programme should use it as written, at least twice a week.
Ages 7 to 13, soccer
11+ Kids
Seven exercises in about 15 to 20 minutes: hopping, jumping and landing, trunk strength, and how to fall.
Should kids do still stretches before a game or practice?
Not as the warm-up. In children of about 11, a warm-up of walking and still stretches left jumping and shuttle runs worse than a moving warm-up. Short holds followed by moving make little difference, but the long holds wait until after training.
How long should a child hold a stretch?
Gently, never to pain and never bouncing: a slow count of 5 at ages 4 to 6, a slow count of 10 at 7 to 10, 15 to 20 seconds at 11 to 13 and 20 to 30 seconds from 14.
Does stretching prevent injuries?
Not on its own: across 25 trials, stretching did not prevent sports injuries. Warm-ups with balance, landing and strength work did: across 16 youth trials they cut lower-limb injuries by 42%, and the 11+ Kids warm-up for ages 7 to 13 cut injuries by 48% in a trial.
What about growth spurts, sore knees and sore heels?
During a growth spurt muscles can feel tight and landings clumsy for a while. Keep the work light and the stretches gentle. Knee pain just below the kneecap or heel pain after sport is common in growing children: tell a parent or coach, rest it, and see a doctor if the pain keeps coming back, causes a limp, or is there at rest.
Ready when you are
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