Developed by USA Lacrosse, LaxFit® is a science-informed training program designed to reduce lower-body injury risk and improve athletic performance. This comprehensive curriculum targets key areas like core strength, balance, and proper landing mechanics — all critical in preventing ACL tears, ankle sprains, and other common injuries.

Officials are athletes. Like others on the lacrosse field, they must stop, start, change direction, and move in quick bursts. And like other athletes, officials can maximize their time on the field (less injuries) by training properly, including preparation before the season.

Six important areas of focus for season preparation are:

Low back pain is a common complaint among adolescent athletes and a frequent cause of time lost from sport. Most cases are muscular in nature and short-lived. However, stress reactions and fractures of a specific area of the lumbar spine, the pars interarticularis (a small but important bony connection in the lower spine), are an increasingly common cause of low back pain in young athletes. When identified early and managed appropriately, most of these injuries heal well, but delayed recognition can lead to prolonged time away from sport.

Early sport specialization — where kids focus on one sport too soon — is a growing trend among youth athletes. But what many parents and young athletes may not realize is that there are risks associated with specialization.

The data shows that athletes who specialize early are up to twice as likely to suffer overuse injuries, burnout, or psychological stress. The risks are real, and the payoff is rare. Less than 2% of college athletes ever go pro.

Playing lacrosse has great benefits — fitness, teamwork, and social connections. But like all sports, there’s always a risk of injury. Most lacrosse injuries are minor, such as bruises, sprains, or muscle strains. Still, more serious injuries can happen, and very rarely, even life-threatening ones.  

USA Lacrosse and MedStar Health are working together to make the sport safer. Injury prevention is key to making the game better for players, families, and fans.  

Today, USA Lacrosse joins organizations from across the country as well as around the world in recognizing International Safe Sport Day 2025, a day dedicated to promoting safety, respect, and well-being in all areas of sport.

Whether on the field, on the sidelines, or behind the scenes, it's our shared responsibility to ensure every athlete, coach, official, and volunteer is protected from abuse, harassment, and misconduct.

Much like their beloved smartphone or tablet, your athlete has an internal battery — a storage system of energy that's quickly released into their muscles to help them sprint, jump, lift, and push hard in a race or competition. But like a smartphone's battery, that storage system can only work for so long before needing to be recharged.

TrueSport expert Stephanie Miezin, a registered dietician and the director of nutrition for the NWSL’s KC Current, explains how your athlete uses their energy stores, and how they can optimize their intake to fuel peak performance.

Prioritizing personal safety while training has always been very important. How can athletes stay safe when training solo, especially if they are running alone at night or in unfamiliar areas? For student-athletes juggling tight schedules, sometimes these situations are hard to avoid.

MedStar Health and USA Lacrosse have partnered to produce a new series of articles and podcasts on health, wellness and performance.

“Lacrosse Health” will feature subject matter experts in these areas, as well as coaches, skills professionals, researchers, social scientists and leaders from the lacrosse community.

Developed by USA Lacrosse, LaxFit® is a science-informed training program designed to reduce lower-body injury risk and improve athletic performance. This comprehensive curriculum targets key areas like core strength, mobility, balance, and safe landing mechanics — all critical in preventing ACL tears, ankle sprains, and other common injuries.