Under Pressure: The Toll Sports Take on Today’s Youth
But first, the benefits of sports
I know for myself and my son, sports provided an outlet to clear the mind, especially for ADHD, and an avenue to build confidence and social skills. For myself, it was also a positive distraction from using alcohol to calm my anxiety as a teen. Sports are also known to teach kids the benefits of teamwork, while also working hard toward a common goal. For some, sports can also improve a student’s attitude toward school and improve academic motivation.
When sports become too much
The trouble with sports today is the ever-increasing level of competition. As coaches and schools compete to grow the strongest athletic teams, students become chess pieces on a board game. Stronger programs attract better athletes, and some buy students to play at their school to fortify their roster. This trickles down to the pressure for athletes to not only choose schools, but also choose one sport to play year-round to keep up with the competition. This opens Pandora's box to the issue of overuse injuries, burnout, and lack of overall enjoyment in participating in different sports.
What if you are not the Chosen One?
Having followed my son through football and lacrosse into his senior year, while also being a JV team parent and then president of the Poway Lacrosse Foundation these past 3 years, I’ve witnessed the greater divide between dominating athletic programs and those struggling to keep up. Programs with winning athletic teams continue to pull players from other sports and other schools, while teams considered subpar get smaller and smaller and work twice as hard to keep up.
At the same time, parents lose control as coaches play mind games with kids to keep up with the competition. Just this season, I witnessed 3 players that left our team because they needed to choose another sport year-round. Anxiety rises and parents sometimes add to the pressure to keep their kids “in the game,” while others struggle to witness that it has come to this. The pressure starts early, as elementary-aged kids increasingly become involved in year-round sports so that they can play in high school. College planning also adds an element of competition when kids have goals to play beyond high school.
So what is the solution?
Be sure to ask your kids or teens if they really enjoy what they do? If there was no pressure, would they choose differently? Are you noticing increased anxiety in your child or teen? Are they meeting their basic needs first with enough sleep and eating well? Do they have downtime to include activities that are not about competition?
As a family, we decided that it was important to play more than one sport, as well as include activities that were non-competitive, such as backpacking/hiking. Even when there was some pre-season playtime, we opted out of tournaments that were too far or interfered with time for family or fun activities. We also enjoy supporting programs that are about the love of the sport, versus purely for the competition. Yes, we all want to win, but at what cost?
There is no easy answer to this question, but better choices can be made. Most importantly, we want our kids to be happy and healthy, while playing sports for the fun of it. This includes learning valuable lessons of sportsmanship and avoiding “better than” or “less than” labels based on competition.
My heart truly goes out to kids these days with the anxiety-provoking level of competition. For that reason, I’m offering some free upcoming webinars for teen athletes and their parents. Details are below:
Teen Nutrition for Optimal Performance
INVITE NORMA TO SPEAK TO YOUR GROUP
Invite me to speak on Teen Nutrition for Optimal Performance
As an Integrative and Functional Nutritionist, my focus includes treating root causes of mental health imbalances that are beneath increased anxiety among teens today. For this reason, I offer virtual workshops to not only address nutrition for mental and physical performance, but also discussion of daily challenges and increased pressures that teen athletes face today.
If you’d like to invite me to speak to your teen sports team or organization, please contact me for more information.
About the Author: Norma Jean Flood, Integrative & Functional Nutritionist
Norma Flood is not only an experienced registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) with a Master’s degree in nutrition, she’s also a mother of two teenagers and has worked with many teen organizations in her community of Poway, California. She understands firsthand how daily stressors can negatively impact a teen’s physical and mental health.
With a deep commitment to holistic well-being, Norma provides personalized health counseling and applies functional nutrition therapy to effectively support digestive health, mental health, and eating disorder recovery for both teens and adults. She offers in-person and group counseling as well as online education. Follow Norma Flood on YouTube as she shares small, easy steps that you can take each day to support better gut health and mental health using an integrative and functional approach.