What happens during a growth spurt
Bones lengthen quickly, and muscles and tendons follow rather than keeping pace. That temporarily increases tension where tendons attach to bone, and those attachment points are still developing areas rather than solid bone.
At the same time, limbs get longer and heavier, so the same movement produces bigger forces, and coordination temporarily drops because the body she is controlling has changed dimensions.
1
Height jumps
Bone lengthens fastest, often 8 to 10cm in a year.
2
Muscles catch up
Tension rises at tendon attachments, heel and knee pain is common here.
3
Control returns
Coordination and strength catch up over months, and capacity ends up higher.
The sequence, and where injuries appear
Why the timing matters for girls
Girls typically reach their fastest growth a year or two earlier than boys, around 11 to 12. Growth-related complaints like Sever's disease and Osgood-Schlatter therefore tend to appear earlier in girls, sometimes in athletes still treated as young children.
Boys also gain a large strength boost with puberty. Girls grow in height and mass without that automatic gain, so the strength needed to control a bigger body has to be trained deliberately. That gap is the reason knee pain and landing problems rise in this window.
What tends to show up
- Heel pain, Sever's disease, often in football, netball and running.
- Pain at the front of the knee, Osgood-Schlatter or patellofemoral pain.
- Lower back ache, particularly in gymnastics and swimming.
- Hip and groin niggles.
- Landing looking less controlled, knees drifting inwards.
- A temporary plateau or dip in speed and jumping.
How to manage the window
- Measure height every month, it is the only way to know a spurt is happening.
- Hold training volume steady during the fastest growth rather than adding to it.
- Keep strength training in, especially calves, hamstrings, glutes and trunk.
- Reduce, do not remove, jumping volume if heel or knee pain appears.
- Coach landing and deceleration with feedback on knee position.
- Add up load across every team, this is when a triple-booked week bites.
- Increase food, requirements rise sharply during a spurt.
Explaining it to her
Being told that a dip is temporary and expected, and that the strength will follow, is the difference between a frustrating season and a lost one. Growth spurts end with a bigger, more powerful athlete, provided she stays in sport through them.
Pain that is severe, in one small bony spot, present at night, or accompanied by swelling or limping needs assessment rather than management at home.