Sports for Your Child

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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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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“Exertion is a concept describing the use of physical or perceived energy. It normally connotates a strenuous or costly effort related to physical, muscular, philosophical actions and work.” — Wikipedia

“Fatigue (also called exhaustion, lethargy, languidness, languor, lassitude, and listlessness) is a state of weariness. It can describe a range of afflictions, varying from a general state of lethargy to a specific work-induced burning sensation within one’s muscles. It can be both physical and mental. Physical fatigue is the inability to continue functioning at the level of one’s normal abilities.”  Wikipedia

 

Parents and coaches spend a great deal of time and money preparing youth athletes for tournaments.  That investment should be protected to ensure that the child has the very best experience on the field.  When there is a tournament that requires sleeping away from home, there is a tendency to let the kids have fun in the wrong ways.  Anything that requires physical exertion is draining for an athlete both physically and mentally.  When the body is tired the brain doesn’t function as well.

 

 

Any activity that is physical, time spent in the sun, or anything that depletes the body of fluids such as a sauna or hot tub should be avoided as much as possible. A few years back, the players on my older son’s baseball team thought it would be great idea to have a catch, with a football, at a baseball tournament during a long wait between games.  When they played in the championship game, that followed the break, they lost 15-0.  Coincidence?  I don’t think so.  I have watched several outstanding teams crumble from unnecessary physical exertion during tournaments. 

 

Pool activity should be limited to a maximum of 30 minutes per day. Players should refrain from playing catch. swimming, or conducting horseplay of any kind. 

 

While chatting with Kirk Mango, a friend who has been a high school coach for 17 years and is the author of “Becoming a True Champion”, I confirmed my concerns about the negative effects of over-exertion.  When chatting about teenage athletes engaging in recreational swimming during tournaments, Kirk said “. . . they are at the age when real competition begins. . . . discuss it from the standpoint that it is important that they can wind down and find other (non-physical) activities to get their mind off the game, release stress, and bond as a team.  They need to consider how certain choices affect not only them, but their teammates. I would start by coming right out and asking, or reaffirming, the goals they have for the season. Then I’d bring them full circle to show them how that choice they made – swimming for that many hours - diminished their chances of reaching their goal.  Good kids, competitive athletes will not do that again.” 

Kirk also mentioned that:

·     Fatigue breaks down the body to the point where the risk of injury is increased

·     His daughter’s competitive soccer team restricts time in a pool during tournaments

Be smart about the way you allow youth athletes to exert themselves during tournaments and they’ll have a more satisfying experience.  Competitive players shouldn’t allow fun off the field to jeopardize fun on the field where it counts.

 

Here’s the link for “Becoming a True Champion” by Kirk Mango  http://www.becomingatruechampion.com/

 

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Winning coaches understand that they need conditioned, strong athletes to win.  When you watch your child practice and you see that the coach is having the kids do pushups, run laps or run sprints just understand that they’re doing that to get the team in tip-top shape.

If you have a football player for a son, you should be aware that when they get to high school, weightlifting becomes an integral part of many days.  It’s important for your child to pack on muscle if they’re going to be able to endure the physical pounding that is a part of football.

What if your child plays another sport like: soccer, basketball, baseball, lacrosse, swimming, tennis, golf, rugby, softball, wrestling, volleyball, badminton, ping pong, etc? Did I say ping pong?  They should do anything that will make them stronger, have more endurance and realize greater speed.

Working hard can make up for deficiencies.

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Most americans understand the game of baseball, right? Maybe not. This blog is a brief, easy to understand overview of America’s Pastime.

In baseball, each team fields nine players on defense. There are three outfielders, four infielders, a catcher and a pitcher. The pitcher throws balls from the pitching mound to the catcher who is positioned behind home plate. The batter from the other team, who is standing next to home plate, attempts to hit the ball.

There is an imaginary rectangle which is the width of home plate and extends from the letters on the jersey down to the knees of the batter. This rectanglular area is called the strike zone. When the pitcher throws the ball, to the catcher, if it passes within the strike zone and the batter doesn’t swing it is called a strike by an official called the home plate umpire. Also if the batter swings and doesn’t hit the ball, no matter where it is pitched, it’s also a strike. Three strikes and the batter is out. If the pitcher throws four balls (outside of the strike zone and the batter doesn’t swing) the batter goes to first base on a “walk”.

If none of the defensive players can catch the ball on a fly or field the ball and throw to first base before the batter can reach the base, the batter has a base hit. If the batter tries to extend the hit by running to second, third or home plate and gets tagged out when they’re not planted on a base or having touched home plate they are out. The last base they reach determines the type of base hit that is recorded.

At the youth levels, different age groups play a different number of innings and with different rules. Additionally, there are different sponsoring organizations in the United States that have different rules.

An inning is when each team has an opportunity to send at least three batters to the plate with a chance to get on base. Each teams “at bat” is not complete until three outs are recorded. The other team tries to get three outs as quickly as possible. The object for the defense is to limit the number of runs that score.

There are four types of base hits:

1) Single – The batter reaches first base safely
2) Double – The batter reaches second base safely
3) Triple – The batter reaches third base safely
4) Home Run – The batter reaches home plate safely

Whenever a runner circles the bases, either on their own hit or after reaching base and then being “driven in” by a teammate, their team scores a run. The team with the most runs at the end of the game wins.

There are many more intricacies to the game, but this is just a basic overview.

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How do you play with your four year old child?  If you’re reading this article and you have a young one, chances are that you either play or you’re considering playing with them.

These will be some of your fondest memories when they’re older and no longer need you as a play companion. Trust me . . . I miss those days.

When you first introduce your kid to sports, start them off with baby steps.  In other words, before you throw a baseball to your three year old girl, try rolling a tennis ball to her.  As your kid becomes increasingly athletic you can elevate the challenge.  If you start early enough, they should be catching a football or baseball, with a glove, by the time they’re four or five.

When you work with them on skills, teach them advanced tricks right away.  For instance, when they run, teach them to step out with their first step.  This will help with their speed, as most new high school athletes tend to take one or two steps in place before they get going.

I know several ex-baseball players who started their boys out by teaching them to hit and throw lefty even though they were right-handed.  This increased their value as they got older.

Also, don’t put huge expectations on their tiny shoulders. You can talk about college and the pros when they’re older. If they do come to you with lofty dreams of grandeur let them enjoy it for a little while, but make sure they ultimately understand how stacked the odds are against them.  Here’s a statistic you can tell them; one in 52,000 high school basketball players make it to the NBA.  Out of the players who make it to the NBA, at least half are out of the league within five years.  You need to bring them to reality so their dreams aren’t eventually crushed.

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

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Baseball is still America’s Pastime, although competing sports are drawing America’s youth away from the game every day. There are more sports in the spring and the summer, and some kids enjoy a more up-tempo game than baseball. American baseball officials are aware of the issues concerning the lag in popularity and are looking into measures to increase the popularity of America’s sport.

If we see attendance drop significantly at major league ballparks in the coming years, this will cause a serious problem as professional ballplayers make far too much money for owners to be able to afford the costs with lagging attendance numbers.

We have already seen fewer under-privileged athletes in the United States playing baseball and the lack of interest in baseball appears to be filtering into the more affluent communities.

Some of the ramifications that we could see might mirror what we’ve seen in some other sports:

1) Several major league baseball clubs could fold and close their operations
2) Fewer high dollar contracts could be awarded
3) Top players could leave to play baseball in other countries where the popularity remains strong
4) Some of the best athletes in the country could drift to other sports such as basketball, lacrosse and soccer.

It would be sad for some of us to see baseball fade away as we have fond memories from our childhoods that will linger as long as we’re around.

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

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Lacrosse is rising in popularity across the United States and in other parts of the globe. Boys are leaving baseball to play a sport that they feel is more fun and utilizes some of the skills that they have learned in football, hockey, basketball or soccer. The most common statement that I hear from boys that play lacrosse, who once played baseball, is “I got tired of waiting for the ball to come to me”.

This blog is intended to help you to understand the sport of lacrosse and determine if it is appropriate for your son or daughter.

It’s no mistake that I mentioned the four other sports as they all have something in common with lacrosse.

Just like most sports the primary objective is to score more points than your opponent. A lacrosse game begins with a faceoff just like hockey. The field is slightly larger than a football field and slightly smaller than a soccer field. There is a goal positioned close to either end of the field, but there is room for players to play behind the it. Typically, most of the players play in front of the goal because that is the best (only) place where the player can score a goal. Usually one player is positioned behind the goal to either: “cut the crease” (a circlular area around the goal) to shoot or to make a pass to a player who is cutting towards the goal.

The equipment required for boys lacrosse is a helmet, shoulder pads, elbow pads, thick protective gloves, a cup, a mouthguard, one ball and a stick. Players pass and catch the ball using a mesh pocket in the head of the stick. The boys play a physical game within the framework of the rules. Injuries happen much less frequently in lacrosse than in football, but it’s always best to be safe.

The equipment required for girls lacrosse is goggles, gloves, a mouthguard, a sports bra/support bra for older players, and a stick. Goalies can wear shin guards and knee pads if they choose. The girls game is much less physical which is why there is less required equipment. The modified checking rules are designed to protect the player.

The ball is typically possessed by the offense and passed from offensive player to offensive player until:

1) The ball is thrown or caught poorly and the other team’s defense takes the ball away
2) A goal is scored
3) A shot is missed and the defense gains possession
4) There is a penalty against the offense

There are three methods of scoring a goal:

1) One player will drive and shoot the ball past the goalie and across the goal line.
2) A player will receive a pass, either on a set play or on an improvised basis, and then will shoot the ball past the goalie and across the goal line.
3) A goal crosses the goal line by accident

There are several types of checks that are allowed, but if executed incorrectly they will result in penalties.

Defensemen typically use a longer stick, called a long pole, but otherwise the equiment is the same as a player who uses a short pole.

In boy’s lacrosse there are four basic positions:

1) One goalie who attempts to stop goals from scoring
2) Three defenseman who protect the goalie by trying to prevent shots from being attempted
3) Three midfielders (middies) who can play on the offensive or defensive sides of the field
4) Three attackmen who focus primarily on offensive plays. There is a misconception that attackmen do not play defense. This is incorrect because when the defense takes the ball away they become the offense. This mean that attackmen must play defense until the ball crosses mid-field.

If you would like to go further and read the rules of the game, check with your league to determine which rulebook is used.

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