Another Summer Risk

Being able to get out and walk, run, bike, skate, etc. is one of my favorite parts of Summer. On my walk yesterday I had the misfortune of disturbing a 3 ft. long Rattle Snake! Although both my dog and I came out of the encounter just fine ( as did the snake ) it could have been a different outcome. It was at that point that I realized I did not even have my cell phone with me. I was on a rather isolated part of the pathway, and help would have been a long way off.

Lesson learned: take a phone, or make sure you are close enough to civilization to get immediate help if you need it!

Get out there and be active: just remember to be safe.....

summer fun

Summer fun brings new risks for kids. Pools and beaches are very dangerous places for anyone who does not know how to swim. It is important that kids are taught to swim, and well supervised anytime they are around water. No one should ever swim alone!

Beaches also bring added dangers like sharks, sting rays, and strong currents. Life jackets are a must on any boat!

Remember sunscreen for everyone!

Get outside and enjoy summer safely....

Betting on Sports

With all the March Madness going on in the basketball world and all the brackets that get filled out and entered into pools in schools and offices: where is the line of acceptability? We tell our kids that gambling is wrong, and then we gamble on sports.

My Dad always told me that betting was stupid unless you were 100 percent sure you were going to win, and then it was wrong.

Betting on sports is very dangerous because even if you think you know a lot about the teams involved, there are so many factors beyond your control. There are injuries, eligibilities, contract disputes, suspensions, team discord; the list goes on. Why would you take a chance on losing money when you have no control over the action?

How about all the money in the pool being donated to a charity? Then folks could get the excitement of the betting, but the money is going to a good use. The main thing is to teach kids that any money bet should be money that would not mind throwing away.....

Change Is Good!!!!

A change in your routine is a good thing! Your body will get used to a regular stress, and soon it will require either more of something to get the same benefit or a different stress. If you are a runner and you seem to be getting stagnate in your training you can add in hills, speed work and fartleks to jazz up your workouts and jolt your body.

Cross training is also a great way to spice up your routine. Add in swimming, biking, stairs, weights, aerobics classes: whatever you want. This will switch up the stress you are putting on your body. It will also give your mind a new challenge!

Try something new!

Tough lessons for parents too

I have talked about how sports presents many opportunities to teach kids some tough life lessons. They have to learn how to win, how to lose, how to be a part of a team and fulfill a role that they may not be happy with, how to get along with coaches and team mates that they may not like, and how to deal with poor officiating. They learn how to handle pressure, and poor sportsmanship on the part of opponents. They learn about hard work and commitment.

What about their parents? It can be very hard for a parent to sit back and let a child experience something negative. Learning to let a child get hurt and work through that is extremely difficult for parents. But in my opinion it is beneficial to both parent and child.

A positive and logical discussion can help to ease the pain for parents and children who are going through tough times. This lesson applies to life in general, not just sports. Using the relatively small and fleeting troubles in sports can indeed help a child mature. It can also help a parent grow........

Just as the physical stress of exercise makes bones and muscles stronger, so too does mental and emotional stress make our spirit stronger.

Pure Joy

There is nothing better for the soul than getting to be a part of the pure joy a child experiences when they finally master a skill that they have been struggling to get. If you can let yourself go back to that time in your life when learning something new was all it took to give you joy and happiness, then you can keep some of the child in you that we lose as adults.

Try a new sport, or go back and try something you haven't done in a long time. It will bring back memories, and hopefully some joy! Remember to laugh at yourself if you need to.......

Dance like nobody is watching you.

Handling Failure

What can your child learn about themselves when they "fail" at something? Kids are going to try lots of things in life. They will not be successful at everything. Sports can teach kids a lot about how to handle not being good at something.

How to practice, persevere and be happy for others who are successful are just a few of the things kids learn when they participate in sports. These are lessons that will apply to life in general as well.

It is O.K. for kids to "fail" and sometimes can teach powerful lessons.