Successful Parenting

In the face of the growing epidemic of overuse injuries in youth sports, sports parents are often given two different kinds of advice: to make sure that their kids don't play sports all the time (too much sports) and to make sure their child isn't playing a single sport too much (too much sport).

Balance and variety is best

In considering what "too much sports" and "too much sport" mean it is helpful to use real-world examples.

Try This At Home

The next time your child loses, use the opportunity to help him or her learn from the situation. Have your child draw a line down the middle of a piece of paper. On the top of one side write Good and on the top of the other side write Improve.

First, on the Good side, write down all of the things he or she did well. Then, on the Improve side, write down all the things he or she could have done better. Look at the list of things to work on and come up with ways to practice or fix them for the next time. Remind your child that everyone wants to win, but we don’t learn nearly as much when we do; losing is an opportunity to raise his or her game to the next level.

This is the most recent post from my weekly blog, Sports Lessons For Life. You've heard Robert Fulghum's saying that All I Ever Need To Know About Life, I learned In Kindergarten. I contend that everything you need to succeed in life you can learn through sports. Please visit www.erinmirabella.com for more information.

Try This At Home……

(I know the description of the game below is long, but the actual game is short, so just stay with me. It’s worth it, I promise. Your kids will really get it.)

There are many people on this website more qualified than I to give advice on how parents can help their children become successful individuals (athletics being only a part of that formula). I would like to discuss the flip side: how to maintain a balanced lifestyle as the parent of athletes (thereby raising well-adjusted and happy kids!). It's not an easy task.