Monday, 26 November 2018

Published Monday, November 26, 2018 with 3 comments

This Thanksgiving Show You Are Truly Grateful



Volunteer with your team to help the needy


Gratitude is a wonderful emotion. While we celebrate life’s most precious gifts - family, food and love this Thanksgiving, wouldn’t it be a great idea to share our blessings with people who aren’t as privileged? Bring together the team to volunteer and spend a Thanksgiving with true gratitude.

Here are a few things you can do:

Feed the hungry

You can either hitch up with an NGO or do this on your own. Since you have the full team, you can organize a potluck for the homeless.

Clean the beach

This would be a good idea. It can be a day event, wherein kids go home to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with their families.

Volunteer at an organization

There are various organizations that undertake charitable work. You can look up the internet for such organizations working in your area and get in touch with them to understand how you can participate as a team.

Spend the day at Senior Foster Care

These people are in the evening of their lives and all they need is love. Spending the day would mean so much to them, especially on a day like Thanksgiving, when they miss their families so much. This would be an awesome way to spend thanksgiving.

Spend the day at animal shelter

Animals need love too. Besides, research has proven that a child who can love and care for an animal with kindness and patience, may grow up to become a more compassionate and kinder individual.
Share winter clothes with the homeless
Organize a neighborhood collection or a school collection of winter clothes people are willing to give away. Share those clothes with the homeless. Nothing better than spreading warmth.

More than for those who would benefit from your volunteering, do it for the children. Sharing love and care on this beautiful holiday will teach kids a lesson for life. Like I said, gratitude is a beautiful emotion.


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Tuesday, 20 November 2018

Published Tuesday, November 20, 2018 with 2 comments

The Pouting Dilemma: How to Deal with a Kid with Behavioral Issues




It isn’t a rare case or an uncommon problem these days. If you are a coach, or working with youth sports, every now and then you come across a kid who has an attitude problem. There’ll be battering, or throwing a tantrum and then the pout. As a coach you become helpless because there are other children watching and learning. How should you handle such a situation, by positively dealing with the child’s anger, or by being upfront and benching the kid?

It is indeed a tough situation, especially for a coach. To understand how to deal with such a situation, as a responsible adult you need to understand what causes this behavior. Children naturally react with anger when they feel incapable of something or powerless in a situation. It can also be an outburst of the frustration from either being lonely, isolated, embarrassed or scared. In any of the cases, the child is perhaps going through something. Talking to the child can help. Politely explain acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Also explain there shall be consequences of unacceptable behavior. Teach the child positive ways of venting out; using the energy to do something. If the child’s behavior does not improve, talk to the parents. This will help you understand the child’s situation. You can work with the parents to improve the child’s behavior.

In most cases you will see a change in the child’s behavior. The child would start responding to the sensitivity and positive changes in the environment. But in some cases, the child may continue showing outrageous behavior in spite of the parents being informed. Either the parents are not being able to control the child’s conduct, or they feel perhaps it’s okay. But as the coach, who is responsible for the conduct of the whole team, you know it’s not.

Here’s something coaches, parents and players need to understand is that discipline is the most important aspect of youth sports. Discipline is indispensable in a sports person. A child can have great talent, but if the kid is not disciplined to go through the journey that is required for an athlete, the kid can never be successful in sports, or other aspects of life for that matter.

That said, if the child persistently behaves outrageously, it may be possible that the kid needs professional help. Talk to the parents and teachers to ensure the kid is given the required counselling or program for the child. You might also have to counsel the parents to take it seriously, a stich in time saves nine.

One of the most important things you do as a youth sports coach is to help children become positively motivated, disciplined and happy individuals. While it can be a very consuming process, it can be very gratifying. Your endeavor can help a child have a happy childhood, and as a result a happy adulthood.

Here’s to helping build a happy nation – CHEERS everyone!


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Friday, 16 November 2018

Published Friday, November 16, 2018 with 0 comment

Thanksgiving Food: Dos & Don’ts for Young Athletes



Time of the year again. Food, scrumptious food, sinful food, and more food. But if your child is an active participant in sports, you know how much important balanced nutrition diet for your child can be and you cannot take chances. Undoing the damage of an imbalanced diet is definitely going to be more time and energy consuming than keeping a check.

To begin with keep a check on fat consumption. It’s natural to crave for Holiday food, just have enough to satiate your craving. Keep the portions in check, especially with desserts. Make sure you include greens, vegetables and fruits. Lean meat is also a good option. Including eggs alongside a whole wheat or multi-grain bread toast is a good idea. You can relish your pumpkin pies and stuffing, but eat in moderation.

After eating, it is important to burn the fat you’ve consumed. After dinner go for a stroll or an easy ball game. Make sure you include an exercise regime every day. An early morning workout can be very beneficial, especially before and after the day of Thanksgiving.

If your family is travelling on Thanksgiving, or you have elaborate plans with family coming over, workout regime and control on diet can become challenging. In many cities, Thanksgiving morning walks/runs are organized for people. This can be a fun way of keeping check on health. Find out if something like that is organized in your city too. You can encourage the whole family to be a part of it. It would be a good bonding activity for the whole family; the festivities can start early. If there is no Thanksgiving walk in your city, create a fun activity for everyone to do. Organize a family game, or a little neighborhood marathon, or maybe an outdoor Yoga session. Everybody could use a workout with all that food extravaganza that comes with holidays.

Last, and one of the most important things to keep in mind, stay hydrated. Drink liquids, lots of them. Water is the best way to stay hydrated, but if you have to take, prefer taking beverages without added sugar. Prefer natural sugars instead as in fruit juices (without added sugar) or fruit punches.

The most important thing for Thanksgiving is to stay happy. Both body and mind should be rejuvenated during holidays, such that the coming season can have a great start. Stay happy and stay healthy.

Happy Thanksgiving!


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Thursday, 15 November 2018

Published Thursday, November 15, 2018 with 1 comment

A Sports Parent’s Thank-You to Everything Sports




With Thanksgiving around the corner, my heart is oozing gratitude for all the blessings that bring joy and warmth to our lives. It’s not about just this time of the year. Every moment that brings a tiny giggle, or even half a smile, I secretly thank the Lord for it; but with Thanksgiving, I love the tradition of expressing it to all those who make it happen. 

While we are at it, I want to thank everything that revolves around my son’s sports-life, from school to coach to teammates to parents of other players and everybody else. As a mother of a young baseball player who is committed to the game, I know how much of an influence sports can have on a child. I am thankful to each and everyone who have contributed to enriching our sports experience.

I am grateful to the school

·        For organizing and encouraging kids to play sports and have a healthy life style.

·        For providing a good facility to play sports.

·        For having a good coach on board.

·        For selecting my son in the school team.

·        For listening to us.

I am grateful to the Coach

·        For working so hard on our kids to teach game-skills.

·        For teaching kids not just the game, but values and discipline as well.

·        For being there; for games, practices and beyond.

·        For believing in the spirit of sport, not just in victory.

·        For appreciating the effort when the team loses.

·        For working diligently with each child, focusing on his strengths and weaknesses.

·        For believing in our children.

·        For making our kids believe in themselves.

·        For teaching our kids to lose gracefully.

·        For making our kids love the game, and enjoy it too.

·        For putting in efforts to keep the teamwork alive and in-action at all times.

·        For talking. Talking to parents about the game and everything around it.

·        For listening.

I am grateful to the Team

·        For being such a wonderful team together.

·        For being so supportive of each other.

·        For bringing cheer in our lives with your cute little joys and vivid you-know-what-happened-in-the-game-today stories.

·        For taking care of your health and eating well.

·        For including us in your team picnic.

·        For being such a wonderful lot, we’re proud of.

 I am grateful to Team Parents

·        For cooperating.

·        For the car pool.

·        For supporting all kids in the team.

·        For volunteering and helping out, even though I mostly can’t.

·        For helping my son when I am not around.

Thank you everyone for making our sports experience so gratifying. Happy Thanksgiving!  
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Tuesday, 13 November 2018

Published Tuesday, November 13, 2018 with 4 comments

Single Parent’s Guide to Good Sports Parenting


Youth sports have become more demanding than ever. The kind of time and resources that one needs to put in, it gets difficult managing other things around the house. Especially if you have a child at home who actively participates in sports, things get even more difficult. You have to manage your full-time job with the kid’s sport commitment, invest in all that expensive sports gear and save money for home needs. We haven’t even started about the college fund yet.

We’re sure you are already doing your best at it. but just to make your life easier, here are a few tips that can help make your child’s sports experience richer while easing it all on you.

·        Don’t focus on winning, winning, winning. Let the child enjoy the game and the overall experience of playing.

·        Let the coach do his job, don’t try and meddle with the technique or strategy of the game. You will not only spoil it for your child and the team, but you will also upset the coach and damage the coach-team trust.

·        Support your child by being her no.1 fan when she wins, and when she loses, be sure to give her your silent support until she’s willing to talk about it.

·        Build a support system around with other parents wherein you could take turns with carpool, volunteering, being by the stands, etc.

·        Always look for used stuff for sports gear since children outgrow fast. You’ll be amazed to find how reasonable the used stuff can be, and most of it is as good as new.

·        If you have to, cut down on entertainment expenses. Find something fun to do around the house.

·        Do not get in-secure if your ex comes to the games or shows interest in the child’s sport, rather have them share some of the responsibility.


Remember, set realistic expectations from child’s sports participation. Let the child make the most of the sports experience overall. Sports will help build strength, character, discipline and team spirit, which will all come in handy in the long run. According to a study by USA Today, only 1 in 6,000 high school football players goes pro, whereas in baseball the chances are 1 in 4,000 and in basketball the chances are 1 in 10,000 kids. If your child has that kind of exceptional talent and passion for the game it will show. Don’t burden the child with the aspiration of college scholarship as well. Various studies have suggested that most kids quit organized sports by the age of 13. So, all you must look for is a happy experience for the child; happiness has become extremely rare, especially with kids these days.


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Thursday, 1 November 2018

Published Thursday, November 01, 2018 with 2 comments

Youth Sports: It’s the Journey That Matters


Participating in youth sports is a great way of growing up. Each child should experience the joy and learning of sports at least once in life. The skill, confidence, discipline, nuances of co-existence and cooperation and all the virtues that the kid learns along with the physical exercise and healthy growth, all of this changes the child for life.

If your child is starting her journey in youth sports, congratulations to you; this will mark a very important milestone in your kid’s life. Here are a few pointers that will help you make the sports experience more enriching for the kid.

·        Look for a coach who is more concerned with the learning part of it, aka right technique (of the game) and the right values, more that the winning part of it (like win at any cost). The game does come first, so of course a coach needs to be proficient with the game, but alongside the coach, especially for youth sports, should be like a mentor or guardian on the field. Ask yourself – “Is he the kind of person who will teach my child essential life skills, character traits and values that the sports participation would provide exposure to?”.  In all, your coach should value ethics more than athleticism.

·        Don’t choose a club that downright values sports glory more than sports spirit. Most clubs stay so focused on winning and glory that kids do not learn the art of graceful losing. This encourages negative aggression, which harms he child’s psychology, character and also the game itself.

·        Tell your child about the objectives and learning that you expect out of sports program. Tell your child how becoming a good person scores over winning each time, and how leaning certain character traits scores over the game skill. Tell your child how intangibles matter, values matter. If they can be better people, they can be better athletes as well, and not necessary vice versa.

·        Discourage your child to be aggressive or a bully, but at the same time, teach her to stand up for herself or against any wrong. Give her the confidence to share with you if there’s something unpleasant or something that upsets her.

·        Educate your child about good and bad touch.



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