Looking Back at 2010...

As 2010 comes to a close, the economy is struggling, companies are laying off employees, kids are continuing to participate in youth sports, and colleges are still awarding athletic scholarships.

Looking back on the year, here are a few random observations in no particular order:

• Parents are still having babies and secretly wondering if their new little one will play pro baseball one day.
• There will always be crazy, overzealous, out-of-control sports parents.
• Parents are insanely traveling with their children for youth sports events from the East coast to the West.
• Almost the entire City of Cleveland is angry at Lebron James.
  
• When one family pulls their child out of travel sports because they can no longer afford the costs, there's always another family ready to step up and pay for their less talented child to play in the game.
• We all lose sight of reality of one time or another.
• Stopping a determined young athlete is nearly impossible.
• There are many grateful parents and kids in the world.
• 2011 is a new year with new opportunities.
  

We wish each and everyone of you a wonderful New Year!

Kim and Ed

Fans, You are Role Models (whether you like it or not)...

Last night I attended a hockey game and was surrounded by quite a few crazy fans. First, I need to tell you that I'm fairly patient and don't mind the occasional crazy fan running through the stands leading a chant or beating on a drum just for fun. However, I'm definitely not happy with fans holding up a sign that says: You suck.

Sorry, but I draw the line when it comes to lack of respect. I have an impressionable twelve-year-old daughter who naturally gets caught up in the hoopla. One glance at the sign and Breea started yelling you suck right back at the fans. Not so good. Kids learn from what they see and hear. If they hear nasty language in public places, then they tend to think that's OK. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

Another example of disrespect at last night's game was when the announcer introduced the opposing team's players. The fans again chanted you suck after every name. Even I, as an adult who realizes the difference between respect and disrespect, was offended by this behavior. This is just not nice. There are better ways to fend off the enemy.

What happened to the good old days of having wholesome (for lack of a better word) fun at the game? Where did the simple chant hey, hey, hey, goodbye... go? Or we will, we will, rock you...? We are all raising the next generation and our country's future adults. One day these kids will be in charge. Please, oh please, think before you act.

Ultimate Sports Parent Radio

Last month I appeared on Ultimate Sports Parent Radio (www.youthsportspsychology.com): Helping Young Athletes Envision Who They Want to Be (click on Sept. 15, 2010 podcast or click here to listen). Hosts and youth sports experts Lisa Cohn and Dr. Patrick Cohn focus the show on the mental game.

Lisa and Dr. Cohn are the founders of The Ultimate Sports Parent (website) and Kids' Sports Psychology (a members-only website), which also center on the mental game. Both of these sites are terrific resources for sports parents and young athletes.

I feel like the mental aspect in youth sports is often overlooked. Many of us tend to get wrapped up in training and coaching and physical aspects in athletics. Yet the truth is that the mental game can often make or break an athlete.

If you have a few minutes, click to Lisa and Dr. Cohn's sites to learn more on this topic.

Disgusting Punishment for a 6-year-old Football Player

A father punished a 6-year-old child for not paying attention during football practice. This makes me sick. He actually made the child run over a mile. Honestly, I couldn't believe it when I heard it.

You can read the article here. According to various articles, the child was forced to run approximately 1 mile. I'm certain that if the police felt strong enough to arrest the father, then this punishment was not appropriate.

Please remember that youth sports are simply youth sports. Kids, especially at age 6, should be having fun and learning to enjoy the game.

Kim

Bye, Bye, LeBron! Hello ______?

You have to face it, Cleveland Cavalier fans, LeBron James is gone. Now what? You will persevere (at least I certainly hope you will).

I have a strong belief that excellence breeds excellence. Although the fact remains that LeBron is gone, there were, and still are, many other players that makeup the CAVS team.

Who were (are) they? My guess is that many of you don't know the names of the supporting players. Well, it's their turn to shine. King James is gone, so there is no longer a shadow.

This concept also applies to youth teams--there are always "stars" and supporting players. Terrific. Everyone has a role. And everyone will likely improve by playing with better players.

If your child is tired of being in the shadows of a star, please remind him or her to persevere. Teams change daily--players improve, players come and go, coaches come and go. Life goes on. Encourage your child to look towards the future because he or she might be tomorrow's star.

High-Level Youth Sports are Expensive...

Unfortunately, most high-level youth sport programs have extraordinary costs. And this is often a disadvantage for young athletes who can't afford proper training.

Hockey, figure skating, lacrosse, soccer, dance, swimming, and other sports can cost anywhere from $500 per year to more than $10,000 per year, including travel. This is nuts and there's not a lot you can do to avoid it.

NHL blogger Alan Adams discusses this issue further in the following article: Brian Burke: Money, Parents Hinder Youth Development.

I'm a huge believer in free-form sports. You know what I mean--playing kick ball outside in the yard or meeting at the park for a pick-up soccer or basketball game. Yet at some point high-level coaching and training and organized competition is necessary for young athletes who desire to persevere and progress in a sport.

If you can't afford the costs of high-level programs, what should you do? Well, I only recommend pushing the financial limits only if your child desires to persevere. There are sponsors, scholarships, and plain good will out there. You'll have to talk to coaches, parents, local program directors to find a potential route to success.

Progressing in youth sports is not always an easy path on the pocketbook. If your child is determined, driven, talented, and bugging the hell out of you to participate in a sport, then I encourage you to search for ways to help your child succeed. Just do it!

Girls, please toughen up...

Your twelve-year-old daughter runs across the field with her arms flapping and and swinging, holds up her lacrosse stick, and misses the ball. Yikes!

I'm fired up after seeing this scenario over and over again in a real-life youth lacrosse games. Perhaps I'm wrong, but as I see it, parents are babying their daughters too long.

Dads, I know you get out there and teach your sons to run, throw, and catch a ball at very young ages. But what about your daughters? Oh, my. Are you keeping those girls in the kitchen?

Your daughters are just as capable of learning athletic form and strategies as your sons. Even at young ages, there are travel teams in soccer, softball, and other sports that available for girls or boys. And I've seen young girls demonstrate just as much talent and good form as the boys. Go, girls!

Let's face it, many of us go easier on our daughters. There is no need for twelve-year-old girls to run around a field in a beehive like a bunch of preschoolers. Girls are not any more fragile than boys.

Please encourage your daughters to participate in sports with good form and with some strategy.

Sorry that I'm ranting, but I thought some of you could use a pep talk.

Kim

Against the Odds...

As we all know, many athletes train hard from very young ages. Now and then I hear a story about an athlete who waits until his high school years to try a sport and manages to prevail with success. If you saw The Blind Side movie, you know precisely what I'm talking about.

To my surprise, I stumbled upon one of these intriguing stories last week that we can all learn from. Basically, an inexperienced high school tennis coach pulled together a group of inexperienced tennis players. Do you want to hear the result? Read the article here (scroll down to "Brookhaven").

This is a nice reminder that pure heart, determination, and effort can go a long way. And it is quite inspiring when a coach and all the team members have these traits. Nice!

Sports Injuries: Navigating Medical Care

***Disclaimer*** I am not giving medical advice. I'm simply pointing out how a mom handled her daughter's injury situation. Please consult your physician for all formal medical advice.

My friend's daughter (Anne) fell and hit her toe on something. Within minutes, Anne's toe and foot were swollen. My friend (Michelle) took Anne to urgent care, and an x-ray revealed a broken bone in her toe and a possible broken growth plate. The doctor referred Anne to an orthopaedic physician for further analysis. Instead of taking Anne to see the orthopaedic physician, Michelle called her pediatrician who recommended seeing him first. The pediatrician reviewed the x-ray and declared that the toe was not broken. This was in direct contrast to the radiology report and the urgent-care doc's diagnosis.

Now what? Well, Michelle called me and asked what I would do--she knew I've dealt with at least 10 sports injuries with my own children, including approx. 4 broken ankles, 2 broken arms, an avulsion fracture in the hip, a broken collarbone, a high-ankle sprain, and many others. Again, I am not a medical expert. I am a mom that uses her best judgment, just like you.

First, I suggested that Michelle get another opinion since the 2 prior opinions contrasted each other. Next, I suggested that Michelle find an orthopaedic physician who specializes in pediatrics and in foot injuries or sports injuries. Why? Because she wanted the best possible person to read the x-ray and because she wanted clear parameters for treatment and for when-to-return-to-sports.

Michelle did exactly as I suggested. (Honestly, I'm sure it would have worked out if she hadn't taken my advice because Michelle has good judgment.) And she was please with the results. The orthopaedic physician (who specialized in pediatric sports injuries and in foot and ankle injuries) agreed with the urgent care doc--the toe was broken. He specifically told Anne to take a 2-week break from gymnastics class and from her volleyball league. He also told her to immobilize it with tape and walk normally because her pain and swelling at that point was minor. Then he asked her to return in 2 weeks for a re-check and to re-judge return-to-sports parameters. (I'm leaving out a few details here, but I think you can get the gist of it.)

At the 2-week check, a new x-ray revealed that the broken toe was healed. And the doctor cleared Anne to return to sports.

Medicine is an art and a science. It is not exact. You, the parent, usually navigates your child's medical care using your best judgment. When your child gets injured, there are often many choices and routes that are appropriate. I'd love to hear what choices you've made in the past and why the results were successful.

In the meanwhile, I hope your young athlete stays injury-free.

-Kim

Olympic Heartbreak

Yesterday, Dutch speedskater Sven Kramer was disqualified in the 10,000 meter final. He should have won the gold. Unfortunately, Kramer's coach Gerard Kemers actually shouted instructions in error, resulting in the disqualification. You can read more about it here.

This is truly heartbreaking. But the reality is that mistakes and disqualifications happen at all levels of sports.

After seeing this at an Olympic event, kids might realize that it's not quite so bad when they or their coaches make a mistake. Here are a few examples of common mishaps in youth sports: Swimmers sometimes forget to finish with a 2-handed touch, football players catch a ball out-of-bounds, football coaches call the wrong play, baseball coaches give the wrong signal.

These types of things happen and life goes on. I commend Kramer for forgiving his coach and moving forward to his next event with class.

I've Hit My Limit!

That's right, I've had enough. I usually don't mind driving kids to sport practices, but tonight was ridiculous.

Here's the driving scenario:

1. Home to point A.
2. Point A to point B.
3. Point B to point A.
4. Point A to point B.
5. Point B to point C.
6. Point C to home.
7. Home to point C.
8. Point C to home.

That makes EIGHT trips in one evening. EIGHT! My advice to you is don't do this. Just say no.

Now, you might be thinking that I signed the kids up for all of this so it's my fault. But that's not the case. When I signed the kids up, their schedules weren't a problem. Then the swim team changed practice from late evening to early evening. And the hockey team changed off-ice practice to a different rink. This change meant that the boys had to go to off-ice at one rink, followed by hockey practice at another rink fifteen minutes down the road. Crazy!

OK, in truth, I've survived the year thus far thanks to a carpool. However, that boy separated his shoulder so he's not going to practice for a month. My backup possibility got injured too--he broke his knee cap. (Look for an upcoming post on injuries...)

Could my daughter skip practice? Sure, but she's already missed several times because of her brother's practice.

The next time that my husband is unavailable and there's no car pool, I will say no to my children. The coaches will have to understand. Period.

Did I mention homework? Two tests and a paper? It's going to be a late night...

-Kim

Give Your Child the Gift of Lessons

Ski season has arrived with a vengeance all over the country. Kids are itching to hit the slopes.

Unfortunately, parents are dropping their kids at the ski hill. Most of these kids have little or no prior experience and no clue how to ski or snowboard. They don't know how to turn, slow down, or stop.

Folks, this isn't sled riding. There are specific techniques and skills needed simply for the sake of safety. Your child could run into a tree or even another skier.

When my daughter was three, an out-of-control skier went speeding down the hill and flew right between my mom and my daughter. I saw this with my own eyes. Both were lucky to come away without injuries. However, my mom's ski pole did not survive the event. Yes, her ski pole was bent almost in half. Good thing it wasn't mom's knee.

Even if your child begs to skip the lessons, please don't give in. Remember that safety is first.

-Kim