Balancing Sports & Family

Are You a Parent or a Chauffeur?

Author of new children's book, Hey Dad, Let's Have A Catch!, advises parents to do more than just drive their kids to practices and games.

Unstructured Free Play Important for Kids

Too often these days, parents feel they have no choice but to pack their child's schedules with adult-supervised, adult-driven activities such as organized sports, even in the summer, when kids have the most free time.  But, as a report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) makes clear, such activities should not come at the expense of free and unstructured play, which is critical to healthy child development.

.

Balancing Sports and Family: 13 Tips for Parents

It is possible to create balance within your family's everyday life, even with children who participate in sports. But it is up to you as the parent to make certain that your kids don't over-schedule and establish the right priorities.

Parents: Have The Courage to Say No to More Sports

Youth sports parents, especially moms, seem to have a hard time
summoning up the courage to say no to their kids when it comes to
more sports.  The fact is that sometimes the best thing a parent can do for a
child is nothing.

Over-Scheduled Kids: The Warning Signs

Do you think life is too hectic, too crazy? Don't just shrug your shoulders and chalk it up to life in the 21st century. Being competitive shouldn't be what being a mother is about; moms need to avoid getting sucked into unhealthy peer pressure with other moms to push their kids into more and more activities.

Balancing Sports With Family: A High Wire Act For Many

Parents are under increasing pressure these days to help their kids succeed and to keep up with other parents (It is ironic that parents worry about the effect of peer pressure on their kids but fail to appreciate the effect peer pressure is having on them). We have become a nation of "helicopter" parents, hovering over our kids, trying to "enrich" every second of their lives with activities and feeling guilty if we don't. But finding a balance between sports and family life is vitally important.

Balancing Sports and Family Is Often A Challenge

There are lots of positives to youth sports. Participation in organized sports can provide healthy, non-violent competition, regular exercise, and ready-made social life. Ballparks and gyms can offer wholesome gathering places for parents and for children - somewhere to relax, to have fun. Sometimes, it's easier to go along with the sports scene than to develop a family's more varied activities and interests. But iff you sense that your children's participation in sports is overwhelming your family life, it may be time to make some tough decisions.

Creative Ways for Parents to Exercise While Kids Are Playing Sports

If you're like many parents with kids in sports, how do you schedule time for yourself, especially when it comes to exercise? Here are a few tips on how to get active while your kids are on the soccer field or in dance class

There Is Life After Sport: It's Called Work

All athletes, all levels will have to adjust to life after their playing careers are over. This is a very difficult time in most players' lives, and it can happen most unexpectedly.

This is exactly what happened to all three of my kids as well as myself.

My daughter Alexandra broke her nose, which was so dramatic she decided not to play and hasn't played ever since her senior year in college. She is currently working, and has adjusted very well to life after sports.

My son James tore both ACLs in a matter of 12 months, which ended his professional playing career. He is also currently working and doing well. A devastating year for James, but he has poured his energy into working and is very successful.

All athletes, all levels will have to adjust to life after playing. It is a very difficult time in most players' lives and it can happen most unexpectedly.

Parenting for the Game of Life

March is a busy time of year as winter sports wind down and spring/summer sports wind up. This is a time of year where the demands on parents to get kids to their in-season activities and the early sessions of the next season is daunting. Being a parent is hard with all of the pressures that your kids place on you and the pressure to participate non-stop all year-round in almost every sport. 

A longtime youth hockey coach advises sports parents to just say no, to place limits on excessive sports, and have their kids spend more time on things that matter more in life in the long run.

Syndicate content