Of course, we know the COVID 19 pandemic has affected several aspects of our life but especially our children. Physical activities, social skills, and even mental wellness have been replaced by screen time, isolation, and behavioral disorders. These unwanted effects can unfortunately have lifelong implications. One of the ways many people are helping to combat them is through local sports programs. Sports are an excellent way to develop soft skills and foster emotional and mental growth. In my other blog I talked about how organized youth sports help mental health. This time we are going to talk about the top 5 things youth sports can do to help combat some of these adverse effects and show excellent improvement in your kids.
Staying Active
Developing an active lifestyle early means that there’s a better chance that kids maintain it in the long run. Physical exercise is essential for everybody - kids as well as adults. Youth sports offer an opportunity to move around, which helps build strength and endurance. In addition to the obvious physical benefits, staying active can help fight depression and anxiety. Playing team sports provides an appealing and entertaining way for kids to exercise. Regular exercise helps kids become stronger and healthier, reducing the risk of diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure that can continue to affect them well into adulthood.
Self-esteem and Confidence
When kids actively contribute to team results and see tangible outcomes of their hard work, they feel a sense of pride in not only their team’s, but also their own accomplishments. Moreover, receiving recognition and praise from a coach or teammate for a job well done goes a long way in boosting self-esteem and confidence. Youth Team sports provide a great setting for developing self-esteem.
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
Team sports teaches children the importance of teamwork at an early age as they interact with teammates and work together towards achieving a common objective. Participation in sports allows children to make lasting friendships and develop communication. It gives you the feeling of belonging and a sense of community. It helps learn to respect people starting with their teammates and coaches. Even athletes in individual sports learn to work as a team with their coach and make lasting friendships with others in their sport. Teamwork is an important life skill - and an essential part of team sports. It also starts to prepare them to be a responsible and dependable member of the society while learning to recognize and respect the strengths and weaknesses of their peers.
Communication
This is important not only in sports but in life. Communication is needed for being able to effectively express your wants and needs. It is perhaps the most important of all life skills. Clear communication can help avoid misunderstandings and develop strong relationships. Enabling children to develop excellent communication skills, both verbally as well as non - verbal, is another benefit of playing team sports. And since communication is a two-way street, it also teaches them to be a good listener and take feedback positively. It’s great when you hear your kids speak about things in discussion even when they do not agree with the matter. For example, how the opponent team is playing. They listen and give feedback, all while improving their communication skills.
FUN
Making new friends, running around and playing is just plain fun. If you or your child feel unsure about joining, start by attending a youth sports game to see how the game works and how the players interact. How fans cheer for them on and off the course. How after the game they get the long-awaited snacks. I mean a youth game is not a youth game without the snack! Just watch your kid smile and soon they will be itching to join the fun!
Every one of these things is what makes us who we are and helps create us to be better adults. These are some of the keys we need in our everyday life and it’s great to start to develop these things at a young age through something they can love and enjoy.
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