Sports for Your Child

Unless your child is at an age where the score of the game isn’t tracked, winning counts and losing hurts.  The original quote was “It’s not whether you win or lose, but how you play the game.”  I believed this for a long time, but as I found out in my first year of coaching, losing is not fun at all.  I would prefer if the quote went like this “It matters if you win and how you play the game.”

The funniest quote that I read on the subject was “It’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you place the blame” by Oscar Wilde.  I also read a witty comment that the person who originally said “It’s not whether you win or lose, but how you play the game” obviously lost a lot.

Getting back to my first year in coaching; my best friend at the time had a vision where kids could play to have fun whether they won or lost.  We went 1-7 and, believe me, when you see kids crying in the huddle you know they’re not having fun.  That was when I realized that if you want kids to have a lot of fun in sports you have to each them how to win.

You can’t go out on the field and play to win, either.  The best way to win is to work hard and smart and then focus on execution.  If you focus on winning only your eye is on the outcome, and not the moment.  The best teams are focused entirely on the ‘moment in time’ and that moment continually moves forward.  If players continually focus on the present, they can’t possibly beat themseleves up for making a bad play.  This is the best way to have a ’short memory’.

Work hard and smart, train diligently, focus on the moment and you stand a great chance of winning.

Happy July 4th weekend, everybody.

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Whoa!  This is truly a sensitive subject!  I’m sure to lose some friends over this post.   

Certain parents love their children so much that they think they should get the most playing time on the team, whether they deserve it or not.  If this is you, I apologize for being so blunt with my statement. 

OK, you’re right, on a recreational team playing time shouldn’t be withheld from any player.  This post only addresses competitive teams in competitive situations.  If your child is on a “rec” team and they’re not getting playing time then talk to the coach.

My boys have been in both situations (lots of playing time and not so much) and I agree that it hurts to watch your child sulk on the sideline.  It’s no fun watching unless the player just wants to be on a team to hang out with the other players and say that they were a part of something.  I’ve watched my oldest son ride pine (sit on the bench), in baseball, on the 4th ranked team in the country.  When my youngest was just starting in football, he stunk up the joint and earned plenty of time watching from the sideline.  He was the most polite player on the team . . . on defense! 

I don’t fault those coaches.  When you’re playing to win, and you know that losing sucks, a coach will put his best foot forward every time.  In both of those situations, the downtime just served as a catalyst to incent my boys to work that much harder going forward.

As a caution to parents and kids when they get to high school (actually on any competitive team); don’t ask for playing time; earn it!  Chances are that if you ask for more playing time, you’ll spend more time on the sideline than you would have.  Would it be fair to take playing time away from the kid who earns it?  The answer to that question should be obvious!

As Mike Green, founder of The Sports Family Club, said very eloquently on Twitter “hard work and a desire that can’t be measured or created are the true differentiators of a pro athlete”.  This applies to athletes at any level.  The harder you work and the more desire that you have, the better you’ll be.  If you improve from working hard, you’ll get serious playing time.  That’s what it’s all about!  You’ll be proud of the playing time that you receive.  Oh, by the way, when you get playing time, make plays so that you continue to be in the mix in the future.

Best wishes to all players as they strive to achieve! 

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This blog post is intended, mostly, for parents who are just getting their kids into tackle football.  There are certain suggestions that impact more experienced players or those who are switching teams as well.  

Youth tackle football practices will begin within the next month.  If your kids are new to tackle football, buying equipment is very exciting, especially if they’ve watched football on televison.  Don’t get ahead of yourself on buying the equipment though.  The first thing you should do is talk to your son’s football coach to find out what the team requires from it’s players. 

You will have some very important considerations:

The team colors can have an effect on some of the accessories that you purchase such as : helmets, gloves, and cleats. Your child’s helmet can be specific in color so find this out before you buy.  Also, helmets can have many upgrades, mostly in the area of protection from head injuries.  Gloves and cleats don’t have to match the uniforms, but if you have a choice why not go for a matching color.  Remember it’s not only important how they play, but they must look mahvelous (thanks, Billy Crystal).

The position your child plays can impact the shoulder pads that they wear as they get older.  If they are going to play a line position, the pads should be more protective.  At skill positions, players need to have flexibility in their pads so they can lift their arms up high for a pass.  As your kids get older, you should have a pretty good idea of their position, although this can change at any age. 

The coach of your team may have an arrangement with selected stores for your purchases.  If they don’t and you want to save money, you may want to check into a store that sells used equipment.  This is your choice, but I always error on the side of good protective equipment.  By the way, I’ve had good luck buying equipment online, in many cases you can save many and get more options. 

If you purchase visors for helmets, be aware that leagues may prohibit dark colors.  This is for the safety of your child because, if there is an injury the attending coach/caregiver will need to see your child’s eyes to make an informed decision as to how to care for your child.

Football is almost here.  Can you feel it!

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Many youth players don’t realize how the power of their minds can benefit them when it comes to sports.  Obviously, if the mind is focused, a player can achieve much more than when it isn’t.  Any player with ‘athletic ADD’ is going to have problems whether they are trying to hit a baseball/softball with a bat, catch a football, or score a goal in hockey, basketball, soccer or lacrosse.   Please note that I’m not referring to kids who have ADD, but kids who don’t focus when they’re playing sports.

As many East Indian gurus have told us there is a monkey in the back of the mind that is always trying to distract us.  A player must focus and refocus to stay in the present and prevent emotions from taking hold.

It is also true that both winning and losing can be mindsets.  To transition from a losing mindset to a winning mindset, the whole team has to be focused on every play.  It requires steadfast alignment of the collective thinking of the team that they can win.  They must stay focused throughout the game and think about the outcome after the game is over.  If players are focused on the outcome then they aren’t in the moment.

We’ve all seen teams with big leads lose games and that happens because the players aren’t thinking in the present.  This is true for all actions in life and it’s certainly easier said than done, but coaches and captains need to be aware of the power of the mind.

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They’re not all fast, strong, agile, or quick, but all professional athletes have one thing in common with each other.  They were all youth athletes!

Coaches and parents have a lot to say about the development of youth athletes, but ultimately it’s what’s inside the athlete that determines whether they succeed as a high school, college or, ultimately, professional athlete.  If an athlete isn’t determined and willing to work hard, it doesn’t matter how much talent they have.

So maybe pros have two things in common;  they were youth athletes and they work(ed) hard.

If your youth athlete wants to continue in sports as long as possible, the key is hard work.  All pro athletes have skills that came easily to them and other skills that they had to work hard to master.  Guide your child by inspiring them to give 100% effort every time they practice or play.

You’ll be surprised what’s possible with hard work. 

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Too much talent?  We’ve seen this in professional sports many times.  A general manager stacks his team with many of the best talents in the game.  Observers expect those players to overcome any adversity and then the team doesn’t gel.  Every team must have team players to win.  If a team has too many stars and the players do not subordinate their egos, there won’t be team play.

Our summer lacrosse team has many players that have outstanding talent and our challenge as coaches is to manage the player’s “collective team thinking” as well their talents.  If we do this, the team can go a long way.  If we don’t accomplish this task, we’ll follow a long list of underacheiving teams.

We have our first summer team tournament this weekend and it will be interesting to see how well we do against some excellent teams.  More info on the tournament will follow after the weekend.  Enjoy your weekend, all.

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I’m not an expert in Sports Medicine.  It’s necessary, however, to talk about sports injuries as they do happen and you want to provide a good long-term solution for your child.  Here are some quick pointers that come from my experience as a father of two youth athletes:

1) If an injury looks like it could be a broken bone, go to a doctor immediately for x-rays, preferably an orthopaedic physician.  Some broken bones will heal by themselves after being set and some will require surgery.

2) If your child keeps getting chronic injuries to their ankles, heels, knees, back or neck, the problems could be resolved by chiropractic care.  Look for a chropractic doctor or clinic that specializes in sports injuries.  My boys were adjusted over several months by Dr. Dennis Nikitow of DTC Chiropractic in Denver, Colorado.  Both boys showed considerable improvement as evidenced by before and after x-rays.  It may be necessary for your child to be fitted with orthotics to correct foot alignment problems.  This can make a huge difference as our feet can be the starting point for problems with the spine.   Here is the website for DTC Chiropractic: http://dtcchiropractic.com/

3) Dehydration can be a serious health concern.  Make sure that your child is sufficently hydrated at all time but especially when playing sports.

4) Ice or Heat?  Here’s a very simple rule to use.  Apply ice packs or a baggy filled with ice if there is swelling.  Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, etc.) is an anti-inflammatory medicine and can also help to reduce swelling.  If there’s no swelling, then heat would be better. For a much better explanation just click on this link: http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/rehab/a/heatorcold.htm 

5) If your child needs surgery for a sports injury consider the Steadman Hawkins Clinic or a comparable team of doctors.  They are experts at diagnosing and treating  sports and orthopaedic problems.Here is the website for The Steadman Hawkins Clinic: http://www.steadman-hawkins.com/aboutUs.asp

This is not the most comprehensive and detailed information regarding sports injuries, but I hope it helps you.

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Players, listen up.

It’s important that you understand exactly what you want to be as an athlete.  Are you most interested in just having fun?  There’s nothing wrong with that, but this article won’t be very interesting to you.

If you want to compete at the highest level available to you then I have one word for you: Work . . . hard.  OK, I know, that’s two words.  The message is simple.  If you want to be the best, no matter how much talent you have, you’ve got to work harder than anyone else.

What’s an important attribute for an athlete?  Strength, endurance, speed, quickness, balance, hops?  All of these can be improved with exercise, stretching and practice.  If that’s sounds boring to you, then be creative and find a way to love working hard.  If you don’t work hard, someone else will.  The only way an athlete can excel in today’s competitive environment is to strive to be the best that they can be. It takes to the right attitude to exceed others.

Be smart about what you’re doing, also.  There are books, videos and articles available in hard copy or on the web, that can show you how to improve.  Find out what you need to do to get better and be persistent.  Stick with doing what will make you better.

Just know what you want!  If you don’t want to work hard, then don’t maintain high expectations for yourself in athletics.  Find another hobby.  It’s an expansive world and there are many things you can do that will be fun and challenging for you 

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If you’re a sports fan, you’ve probably heard about the problems that brewed between Jay Cutler and Josh McDaniels, head coach of the Denver Broncos football team. This blog is intended to put this situation in focus for youth athletes and parents.

Unless a coach is abusing your child, the coach is always right, period! Many things happened, behind the scenes, that led up to this disagreement between the coach and his player. Jay Cutler had hurt feelings over the fact that his coach and co-offensive coordinator/quarterback coach were dismissed from the team without his agreement. Now, listen very carefully, the quarterback is very important to any team, but he better not run the show.

Josh McDaniels, as the head coach of an NFL football team has made some mistakes. Who hasn’t?  He may have hurt Cutler’s feelings but we don’t know what happenned behind the scenes.   Based upon how Coach McDaniels has conducted himself so far, I think he will be one of the best coaches in the NFL.  The trade for Kyle Orton and three draft picks will probably help to rebuild the team.  I never felt that Cutler was accurate, at all, on long passes.  Orton or Simms can play within a system and that’s what Coach McDaniels was looking for.  Here’s a bet that the QB of the Broncos has a higher passer rating than Cutler this year.

To bring this back into perspective for kids and parents, there are times in life when we don’t get our way. It’s a shame, but life isn’t always fair! We must be resilent enough to “go with the flow” in life.  If a coach, parent, teacher or boss thinks that we should do something a certain way, then that’s what we should do unless it is illegal, immoral, or hurts people. As a person who has been a youth coach, I think it’s important to hear the player out, but at some point somebody has to make a decision. It can’t be the player and it should be the head coach.

Since Jay Cutler wanted to be traded, it would not have been good for the Broncos for him to have stayed.  He should have been traded. The Broncos received great value and Cutler will probably go back to being an up and coming player.  It sounds like a win/win situation to me.

It’s just my opinion, but I don’t recommend the Jay Cutler method as an approach to life and I have told my kids that I’d be disappointed if they lived their lives in that manner.

If you don’t agree with me on this or any issue, please let me know as I always welcome different perspectives. Just click on “comment” and you’ll be able to express your opinion.

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According to the Free Online Dictionary by Farlex, an athlete is defined as follows:

ath·lete
n.
“A person possessing the natural or acquired traits, such as strength, agility, and endurance, that are necessary for physical exercise or sports, especially those performed in competitive contexts”

A more general definition of an athlete might be anyone who plays a sport.

There is a difference between the words “athlete” and athletic”. Someone who is athletic, typically, exhibits additional attributes than listed in the formal definition above. There are many good athletes who are not considered athletic.

Speed and quickness are prominent skills, along with agility, for anyone who is athletic. Speed is the ability to run from one point to another at a quicker pace than most of the other individuals playing at the same level. If a player has speed they are considered “fast”.

Quickness is different than speed. If a player is quick they can move their feet or hands at a pace that exceeds the individuals that they compete against.

For instance, a great skill that some elite offensive tackles exhibit is the ability to move their feet quickly. This ingredient does not make them fast. In fact, all of the top offensive tackles in the NFL are considered slow when compared to skill position players (i.e. running backs, wide receivers, cornerbacks and safeties). Professional prizefighters who possess “quick hands” have a considerable advantage over other fighters who aren’t considered to be blessed in that way.

Balance is another important ingredient for someone who is athletic. Running backs and wide receivers, who are typically considered excellent athletes, excel if they can keep their balance as opposing players try to tackle, hit or drive them.

In closing, being considered athletic is a great compliment for anyone who is an athlete.

We’re interested in your opinion on this subject. Please feel free to comment.

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