Recognizing burnout before it shows up on the field
The signals come weeks before the bad practice. Here's what to watch for, and how to talk about it without making it bigger than it is.
Burnout almost never starts on the field. It starts in the small things: shorter answers, longer mornings, a quiet drift away from teammates, a sudden disinterest in the game tape they used to ask to watch.
Watch sleep, appetite, and mood as a set. One off-day is nothing. A two-week pattern is a conversation. A month-long pattern is a conversation with a professional.
When you bring it up, name what you see — not what you fear. "I noticed you haven't talked about Friday all week" lands better than "Are you burned out?" The first invites them in. The second asks them to defend themselves.
The goal isn't to fix it on the car ride home. The goal is to make sure your athlete knows the conversation is open. Burnout that's named early almost always passes. Burnout that gets ignored almost always grows.