For the first time in a while, there was no football this past Sunday.  I miss football, and if your youth football athletes are like me, they are probably going through a similar football withdrawal.

Parents and coaches should encourage their kids to be active during this period. Playing other sports help kids stay physically fit and prevent those lazy days. If playing a winter sport isn't a possibility, I suggest keeping your child physically fit with these three golden football offseason exercises. These exercises are simple to perform, highly effective:

• Pushups. Pushups are simple and are great for strength building and for building a strong foundation. Pushups are the ultimate exercise. Pushups will build core strength and overall upper body strength.
• Planks. This is a personal favorite of mine. When I'm in the gym, I enjoy the challenge of working my core. Planks are perfect for strengthening your core with little effort.  Just a matter of getting into pushup position, leaning on forearms, for an extended time.  The hard part is staying up!
• Jump Rope. This is also one of my all-time favorite exercises and perfect for building endurance.  I enjoy this exercise because it's so much more fun than running on a treadmill in a gym.  Also, images of Rocky prepping for a title fight against Apollo Creed pop into my head.  Jumping rope is highly beneficial for youth football players- a great way to improve agility, footwork and even coordination.

The off-season is a time when youth football players need to become bigger, stronger, and faster. Many kids will end up playing other sports but doing push-ups, planks, and jump rope every single night will pay for in the long term. If kids want to continue playing football, they need to stay active and continue to focus on improving their physical fitness. 

Vin Sehgal is the co-founder of YouthFootballOnline.