Sports are a great way to keep your children healthy and active, especially in this day and age of electronics and video games. To make sure your kids enjoy their respective sports, it’s important to get them excited. There are so many great ways to pique their interest–whether it’s awesome gear like custom athletic socks sold by Strideline, or taking them to watch their favorite teams. However, it is never good to force you kids to do things they don’t enjoy (except for chores and studying, of course).
Looking for ways to get your kids moving? Here are 5 Ways To Get Your Kids Into Sports Without Forcing Them.
- Find The Right Sport
Many parents make the mistake of forcing sports upon their children. Each child is different and enjoys the world in different ways. Before you think of buying your son or daughter some gear, ask yourself: “What does my child truly enjoy?”
When your child enjoys a sport, the more likely he/she will stick to it. Not only will they have more fun doing the things they enjoy, they’ll also be more motivated to practice and keep at it. Give your kid a little freedom to express himself/herself. Besides, you don’t want to be the parent who forces things on your children.
Looking for ways to get your kids excited? Buy them some custom socks in their team colors.
- Focus On Fun, Not Competition
Always remember you’re raising kids, not professional athletes. In your child’s earlier years, sports should be about enjoyment and camaraderie. Competition should come only when they’re older.
Sports are already competitive by nature. By virtue of putting your child in an athletic program, you’ll already be exposing them to winning and losing. That said, there should be no need to put undue pressure on your children, even if it hurts to see them lose. Allow them to discover themselves through sports and the competitive drive will follow.
- Get To Know Their Idols
Who do your children look up to? Is it LeBron James? Marshawn Lynch? Simone Biles? Misty Copeland? Tiger Woods? Michael Phelps?
Knowing who your kids look up to is a great way to get them into sports. Find out who their role models are and you’ll have a much easier time convincing them to get out and play.
photo credit to cbssports.com
- Surround Them With A Healthy Group Of Friends
Children tend to gravitate towards what their peers do. If you want to get your child into sports, surround them with like-minded kids. Take him/her to your local recreation center and allow him/her to make friends there. The more your child is surrounded by kids who play sports, the more likely he/she will pick it up.
- Limit Electronic Devices
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the average American child spends almost five hours on TV, three hours on Internet and video games, and two-and-a-half hours listening to music. That’s over ten hours doing sedentary activities.
If you want your children to go out more often, take away unnecessary distractions and allot limited time for videogames and TV. When you take away their electronics, they will inevitably find other ways to have fun. Time to let the kids be kids again!
No parent should ever force their child into sports. By allowing your children to gravitate towards what they like doing, you’ll be giving them more freedom and teach them to think for themselves. Plus, they’ll enjoy it so much more!
