Coaching Tips, Sports Parenting Advice, and the Latest Talk about Youth and High School Sports
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Stocking Stuffer for your Youth Athlete
The best stocking stuffer your child will receive!
Play Like A Champion Today(TM) is offering a discount on its exclusive "Player Handbook." This is a tool for youth sport athletes, ages 8-14, designed to maximize the youth sport experience. The handbook guides athletes in setting goals and understanding the value of practice. It also highlights values such as teamwork, justice and sportsmanship. The handbook includes journal pages for your athlete to track his/her progress throughout a sport season. This handbook will facilitate your athlete's growth: physically, mentally, and spiritually through sport. Normally priced at $5, we are offering the Handbook through December 31, 2009 for $4, including shipping and handling.
Order your Player Handbook today by emailing plc@nd.edu with your address or through our office (574)631-9981.
Merry Christmas from PLC to you!
Connecting Spirituality within Sport: The PLC High School Athlete Retreat
"Thus, I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing." 1 Cor. 9:26). The retreat served as a break from the business of a high school athlete's life filled with school work, exams, practice, games and other commitments. It offered a time and a space to reflect upon God's role in sport and how God is forming these young athletes to become disciples not only on their team, but in the world.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Play Like A Champion Today Featured on the Notre Dame Homepage
Check it out at www.nd.edu!
Monday, December 7, 2009
Tim Donaghy: Rogue NBA Referee? 60 Minutes Interview Tells the Tale
A central theme of the interview focused on the integrity of NBA referees and officials in general. Both the FBI and the NBA did not find that his bets influenced the way he called his games. On the other hand, Donaghy claimed that he was able to win 80% of his bets exactly because of the inside information he was given by his fellow officials. He claimed in the interview that he knew of personal likes and dislikes of each official that would ultimately influence the outcome of the game. In other words, he made fair calls while benefitting from the unfair calls of his fellow officials.
Are officials influenced by personal opinions of teams, players, and coaches?
Two primary goals of the official are to protect the integrity of the game and ensure the safety of the players. Favoring (or disfavoring) a team because of personal opinions insults the integrity of the game. Just as coaches and players complete for the love of the game, so should officials officiate for the love of the game. There is no place for officials to make calls based on their personal opinions of the players or team.
At the same time, officials are human. As a former official, I seldom had players or coaches that I disliked a lot. Sure there were many who disliked me and never showed any sense of courtesy, but all that comes with the job. I can, however, remember a number of times when I would officiate a game with friends or even fellow officials who were participants. Sometimes they became the biggest critics! Occasionally I would make a call (the right call), knowing well that people would be upset by it. I may have felt guilty afterwards, not because of the call but because of the repercussions. I cannot imagine making a call (or not making a call) to teach a player or a coach a lesson.
Is Donaghy a “rogue official” as the NBA claims?
I hope so. In the interview, Donaghy made a number of accusations against the NBA. I hope that money does not play into the NBA’s influence on officials. At the same time, there were a lot of game 7’s last year. I also hope that the games I watch on TV are fair. I have had my fair share of yelling at the refs through the television – I just hope that it is caused by human error or my own ignorance and not personal vendettas.
What are your thoughts? Do you think he was impartial when he officiated games on which he placed some money? Can any referee truly call a game without any influence by personal likes and dislikes of teams, players and coaches?
Watch CBS News Videos Online
Watch CBS News Videos Online
Monday, November 23, 2009
PLC Welcomes New Partner, St. Hugo of the Hills
Play Like A Champion Today(TM) is proud to announce its newest partner, St. Hugo of the Hills in Bloomfield Hills in the Archdiocese of Detroit. Program Founder, Clark Power, traveled with Kristin Sheehan to Detroit on November 17, 2009 to conduct St. Hugo's first coach workship. Pictured are PLC friend and St. Hugo Parent, Connie Beckett, St. Hugo Principal, Sr. Margaret VanVelzen and Clark Power. St. Hugo's is our first Detroit area partner. We are looking forward to spreading the PLC message to St. Hugo coaches, parents and athletes. We believe the surrounding parishes in Detroit will feel the "PLC difference" when they witness the St. Hugo community in their sporting environment as the sport seasons go on for St. Hugo's. For additional pictures from the workshop, please check the PLC facebook St. Hugo photo album,
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Play-Like-a-Champion-TodayTM-Sport-Education-Program/79760084958
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Pope Benedict XVI Talks Sports!
“In fact, when they are directed to the integral development of the person and are managed by qualified and competent personnel, sports initiatives reveal themselves as propitious occasions in which priests, religious and laity can become true and proper educators and teachers of life of young people.”
He briefly speaks out against the use of performance-enhancing
drugs. He challenges the Church to “continue to support sports for young people” for its positive aspects like stimulating “competitiveness, courage and tenacity;” pointing out, however, that the Church must educate young people through sports to avoid “all tendencies that…are dangerous to the organism, as is the case of doping.”
“In a coordinated formative action, Catholic leaders, technicians and operators must be considered experienced guides for adolescents, helping them to develop their own competitive potentialities without neglecting the human qualities and Christian virtues which make the person completely mature.”
“In this perspective, I find it very useful that this third Seminar of the "Church and sport" section of the Pontifical Council for the Laity focus its attention on the specific mission and the Catholic identity of sports associations, of schools and of oratories managed by the Church.”
Some reflection questions:
- How does your sports program contribute to the “integral development of the person?”
- Does your school or league have a plan to effectively discuss with athletes the physical and ethical implications of performance-enhancing drugs? How would you describe this plan?
- Are your coaches “experienced guides for adolescents?” Could they use some additional formation and professional development? If so, in what areas?
- Does your school’s athletic program have strong Catholic identity?
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Elizabeth Lambert’s Apology - Does Sport Reveal Character?
Elizabeth Lambert kicked, punched, and even pulled a BYU player to the ground by her poneytail. Cameras caught it all, and even though Lambert received only a yellow card, she was suspended for the game. Later the University of New Mexico suspended her indefinitely. Predictably Lambert apologized. She excused her bad behavior as due to the intensity of game: I let my emotions get the best of me in a heated situation. This is in no way indicative of my character or the soccer player I am." Really? Lambert’s comment appears to fly in the face of conventional wisdom embodied in Heywood Broun’s famous saying (often attributed to John Wooden), “Sports do not build character, they reveal it.” It is discouraging enough to concede that sports don’t build character, but are we also willing to accept Lambert’s denial that they don’t reveal it either?
Lambert didn’t just blow up once during the game, nor was there an indication that she was acting in retaliation. If the “heat” of a close game can excuse her whole pattern of behavior, then one wonders whether character has anything to do with sports. Perhaps athletes’ behavior is, as Lambert’s statement implies, situation specific. Once our emotional arousal gets too high, it is very difficult to maintain control. But isn’t character all about self-control? Even those with the strongest characters have lapses of self-control but these are generally momentary.
Lambert believes that she is a better person and a better soccer player than her actions revealed. Perhaps she simply had a tough game. Although it may be true that we are all better people than our actions at any one time may reveal, character has no meaning except in relationship to our behavior. What was objectionable about Lambert’s play was a whole pattern of bad actions throughout an entire game. Lambert’s play wasn’t simply “outside the lines” or “unsportsmanlike,” it was violent and could well have resulted in a serious injury.
We are left with a puzzle. If Lambert is right and her actions were not indicative of her character, then should we throw out the concept of character as meaningless? If Lambert is wrong and her actions reveal her character, should we blame her for being a bad person? Perhaps we can keep the concept of character without unduly condemning Lambert. It is easy to well up with righteousness indignation when others’ act in blatantly offensive ways. It is even easier to come down on others for failing to own up to their faults. It is far more difficult, however, to acknowledge that Lambert’s behavior and subsequent denial that it had anything to do with her character reflects something about a toxic sports culture of our own making. Does anyone believe that Lambert didn’t resorted to dirty play until the BYU game? How long has Lambert been pushing, punching, and pulling hair? When did it start and what did her coaches and teammates say and do when it started? How did Lambert rise to the level of a starting D-1 player without others along the way intervening? Isn’t it a bit hypocritical for the University of New Mexico to suspend Lambert indefinitely for playing the way she had been playing before the bad publicity came? Why not punish the coaches and other players?
Character development is a complicated process. It involves emotional control as well an understanding of the right way to behave and a commitment to behave that way. Most importantly character grows out of community. Who I am as an individual player depends very much upon who we are as a team. Until the sports community makes a commitment to creating a culture that takes character-building as seriously as it takes it winning, we should be the ones who are ashamed.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Building and Crossing the Bridge
"Did you ever want to be an architect? Ever physically build something with your hands or make something that you thought was perfect or near perfect?
Well, you are a builder – you are an architect. In fact, all of us are. We are building a community right here, at this football game today. Look around you. There are other builders sitting right next to you. Now, look across the field. There are builders sitting there, too. We are something so beautiful, so wonderful…so blessed. We are like people with the same faith in God, with the same dreams for happiness and success for our children.
Through the FWCYFL, friendships and trust are being nurtured between boys from different schools. That same building process is being established with parents, and other family members, too.
Recently, at a soccer game, members from the same FWCYFL football team found themselves on opposing sides. When the football team members came together after the soccer game ended, it was “great game – high fives and see you tomorrows.” Their Christian attitude and respect for each other spoke volumes to other team members and the adults who watched. There was no mention of scores – who won or who lost.
For adults who witnessed this event, it brought smiles. It was an understanding of what God wants for us. He wants us to share and build friendships. He wants us to build bridges and cross them. Whether they are bridges across street, across town or across cultures, he wants us to build a community. After all, he sent us his only son, a carpenter, to show us how to build."
FWCFL Directors and PLC trainers, Frank Poeschel, Jim Breen and Brian Burkham, have built an exemplary program. This weekend, their season concludes with a "Faith and Fire" celebration and award ceremony. Watch our blog for a report on this end of season event!
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
The Berenstain Bears “Play a Good Game”
The book covers almost all the issues in youth sports today:
· Overemphasis on winning (in the wrong way)
· The challenges of playing fair against a cheating team
· The challenges of parents coaching their children
· Rowdy parent and grandparents in the stands
· Bad calls by the referees (and angry coaches)
· Coaches yelling at coaches! Spectators yelling at spectators!
How did they resolve the conflicts? Who won the game? You’ll have to find out for yourself! It is a great little book for young kids ages 4-7. It even has discussion questions that you can talk about with your children and activities to get out and do!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
PLC Chicago River Cruise
Despite chilly temperatures and stormy skies, the event was a hit. Approximately 70 Los Angeles area friends bundled up to enjoy food, drinks, and pre-game merriment with fellow ND supporters from Chicago and South Bend while enjoying the historic as well as state of the art Chicago architecture lining the Chicago River.
Play Like A Champion Today™ thanks all who braved the Chicago winds that evening to support our cause. Pictured is Bob and Kevin Byrne, hosts of the Los Angeles Notre Dame club trip. For additional pictures of the event, go to the Play Like A Champion Today™ facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/pages/Play-Like-a-Champion-Today-Sport-Education-Program/79760084958
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Play Like A Champion Today™ Partner Trusted Sports announces the High School Football Rudy Awards with $20,000 in College Scholarships
Trusted Sports, Inc. and co-founder, Daniel ‘Rudy’ Ruettiger are offering an exciting opportunity to honor true Champions. Trusted Sports is searching for The Most Inspirational High School Football Player with $20,000 in college scholarships to be awarded to the top three finalists.
The High School Football Rudy Awards honor high school football players who exemplify the values of inspirational football legend Rudy Ruettiger. The winner will receive a $10,000 academic college scholarship to the college of their choice and will be named ‘The Most Inspirational High School Football Player in America’. The two runners-up will each receive $5,000 academic scholarships.
The award honors student-athletes who demonstrate exemplary character, courage, contribution and commitment as members of their high school football team. Each finalist will be presented with a trophy and an academic scholarship by Rudy Ruettiger whose own story became a national sensation through the hit film, RUDY starring Sean Astin and Jon Favreau.
“The Rudy Awards are not about the stats – they’re about the heart,” said CJ Edmonds, CEO of Trusted Sports. “We’re looking for those outstanding players that bring passion and dedication to their game, and who inspire their team. Perhaps they’ve overcome a significant life challenge, yet they still turn up for practice, show respect for their coach and team, and give it everything they’ve got.” “America needs heroes right now,” he continues, “and we’re going to uncover those high school heroes and honor them”.
Nominations are currently being accepted at http://www.highschoolrudyawards.com/. Anyone can nominate a football player they believe to be a ‘Rudy’. America can support their favorite candidate online. Nominations close November 30, 2009.
The High School Football Rudy Awards are produced and managed by Trusted Sports Inc., a Bend, Oregon based company that motivates kids to thrive in life through sports by positively connecting young athletes, parents and coaches through fun, education, and inspiration. For more information about Trusted Sports, please visit http://www.trustedsports.com/. Where you can also view the High School Football Rudy Award video.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
National Award for Loyal Sons
Loyal Sons has been named an Award-Winning Finalist in the Sports: Autobiography/Biography category of The National Best Books 2009 Awards, sponsored by USA Book News.
This is on top of the award earlier this year of the Bronze Medal in Sports/Recreation/Fitness from the 2009 Independent Publisher Book Awards.
Congratulations to author and PLC friend, Jim Lefebvre.
As the holiday's approach, remember to keep Loyal Sons in mind for gift-giving.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Parent-Coach Communication about Playing Time
As a parent, how do you effectively communicate your frustration to the coach?
1. First, talk to your son or daughter about how they feel about the time they get to play. Are they having fun playing on the team? Do they feel they are not getting the game time they deserve? If so, ask them what they think they need to work on to get better? Set goals with them about specific ways they can improve in their sport.
2. Encourage your son or daughter to approach the coach before you do. Some children may feel uncomfortable or scared, but you must assure them that they have to take initiative. This is a lesson they should learn now so that later on in life they can stand up for themselves and take initiative in approaching teachers, college professors, bosses, potential employers etc.
3. Contact the coach in an appropriate way. Do not approach the coach before or after a game. If you approach him or her after practice, ask the coach if you can set up a time to talk either in person or on the phone.
4. During the coach-parent meeting, keep the following in mind:
- Start with a compliment and/or thank the coach for dedicating his/her time to working with your child. This will ease the tension in the conversation.
- Ask rather than tell. Rather than making accusations, ask the coach to explain what they see in practice.
- Ask them what specific areas your son or daughter will need to improve to be in the game more often. Decide on some goals and agree that you will both discuss those goals with your child.
- DO NOT compare your son or daughter to another player on the team.
- Do not try to convince the coach that your child is a better player than he/she thinks (even if you’re right).
- Do not insult the coach’s effort or ability to be your child’s coach. They are dedicating the time away from their families to be with your family.
1. Communicate with players about your vision for their role on the team and what they can do to get more time in the game.
2. Write a letter to the parents and invite them to a pre-season meeting. Describe your coaching philosophy in the letter and how you plan to distribute playing time throughout the year.
3. Host a parent meeting at the beginning of the season and describe your playing time philosophy. Communicate with parents about your philosophy throughout the year.
3. If you are going to bench a player, make sure you communicate the reasoning behind this decision to both the player and the parents ahead of time.
4. Develop positive ongoing relationships with parents throughout the entire year. Get to know your players’ parents at school functions, social events, etc. The more positive your relationships are with parents, the more supportive they will be of you.
5. When a parent asks to talk about playing time, set up a meeting that fits into both of your schedules. If the parent is angry, assure them that you would like to discuss this with them at a better time. Let them cool off.
6. During the conversation, keep the following in mind:
- Listen rather than tell. They are likely to have a lot to say. Let them share their feeling and assure them that you hear and understand where they are coming from.
- First, point out their son or daughter’s strengths.
- Focus on what the child can do to get better not what they have done in the past.
- Refer back to your original communication with them about playing time.
- If the discussion becomes irrational, heated, and insulting to you, end the meeting and ask to schedule another appointment with your school administrator/third-party.
- Do not compare their child to another player on the team.
- Do not let your emotions get in the way of a rational discussion.
Coaches: What can you do to get more kids in the game? Read, “5 Strategies to Give Equal Playing Time in Sports.”
Is this a common problem at your school? Play Like A Champion Today™ offers workshops for coaches and parents that have a special focus on developing a positive relationship between parents and coaches. For more information check out our various programs or contact PLC at 574-631-9981 or by email plc@nd.edu.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Announcing PLC’s newest partner: The Diocese of Pittsburgh Catholic Sports Program
Athletics directors and coaches enjoyed a lively clinic experience with positive conversation around the value of play, developing champion virtues and understanding coaching as a ministry. Coaches were energized by the exchange of information and sharing of tangible ideas to make a difference in the lives of young athletes through Catholic sports. After the coach workshop, new local trainers were prepared to present the PLC coach clinic in their own Pittsburgh parishes and schools.
Welcome Pittsburgh to our national network of Catholic Coach Ministers! We are thrilled to have you as part of the Play Like A Champion Today™ family.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
5 Strategies to Give Equal Playing Time in Sports
So how do you do that? Here are 5 strategies taken from the Play Like A Champion Today™ youth sport coaches manual:
- Communicate with your players and their parents. Let your players and parents know your commitment to fair playing time and what they can expect throughout the season. Make sure your playing time commitments are explained to the parents at a pre-season meeting. The better you communicate up front, the less push back you will receive during the season.
- Plan ahead. Prepare a detailed substitution pattern before each game. Set your line-ups to have the best chance to be competitive in each quarter, half, or inning. Don’t “stack” certain line-ups to try to win – players pick up on this and might think of themselves as the “B Team.” Make everyone feel like they are on the “A Team” and you will get the most out of every player.
- Stick to your playing time commitments, regardless of the game situation. Is sacrificing a player’s opportunity to have fun and feel accepted by his/her coach and team worth improving your record? You decide.
- If possible, have an assistant keep track of playing time; this could be an assistant coach or a trusted parent. Recruiting some help will allow you to focus on game strategy and instruction of your players during the game.
- Take advantage of lopsided opportunities and give more time to your less-used players (especially when equal playing time is not guaranteed). Don’t wait for the other coach to do this. If he/she wants to play their stars the whole game then that is their problem. Also, make sure this isn’t your only playing time strategy.
Feel free to comment on this post to share any of your strategies in distributing playing time fairly. We want your feedback!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Motivating Young Athletes: Punish or Perish?
Nothing pains a coach more to see a lack of effort in practice or on the playing field. How can coaches motivate athletes to put forth their best effort? A common answer is to teach them a lesson they’ll never forget, and a common form of teaching that lesson is to make them run and run and run some more. Last January, a Kentucky high school football coach was charged with reckless homicide when he had his player run some extra “gassers.” The “gassers” were ordered as a punishment for the lack of effort shown in practice on a day when the temperature hit 94 degrees. A fifteen year-old player died when his temperature reached 107 degrees. As it turned out, the gassers weren’t the only contributing factor. The young man who died hadn’t been feeling well that day. He was also taking a supplement, Creatine, and Adderall for ADD. The coach was acquitted by a jury on September 17.
Should coaches “punish” a lack of effort? There are two ways to look at this. From a backwards-looking perspective, one might ask whether the players deserved retribution for their lack of effort? Did the players do something wrong that merited the infliction of physical discomfort? When did a lack of effort in a game become a crime?
From a forward-looking perspective, the point of the punishment is not retribution but correction. Coaches make players run or engage in distasteful drills to teach them a lesson. The sprints and drills serve as a deterrent to discourage a future lack of effort. The problem with this kind of justification is that punishment avoidance has been repeatedly been shown to be the least effective form of discipline. Punishment motivates through fear, but what place should fear have in motivating athletes to play a sport?
The Associated Press reported that the county in which the player died now requires coaches to attend a seminar on using “positive reinforcement” with students. This is a step in the right direction, but perhaps not such a big step. Positive reinforcement is a more effective way of motivating behavior than negative reinforcement. But both positive and negative reinforcement are extrinsic forms of motivation. The use of extrinsic motivators implies that the play of the game is not intrinsically motivating.
Aren’t sports inherently fun? Shouldn’t the motivation to play a sport come from within? Everything we know about sports psychology and educational psychology tells us that athletes at all ages will be better off if coaches appeal to their inherent desire for mastery. The unmotivated athlete is a product of organized sports gone awry. The athlete doesn’t need “fixing,” the organization does.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Loyal Sons Author Donates Portion of Profits to PLC
Thank you Jim!
Thursday, September 17, 2009
A Punishment for Losing a Game?
Do you think these were the words of a collegiate level soccer coach? They were, in fact, words of a coach, but not at the collegiate level, not even a high school level coach. These were spoken by the coach of a third grade Catholic school soccer team.
Should a team be “punished” for losing a game?
Consider the added example of a freshman football coach whose team lost their game. In response, when the team returned to their school, the coach immediately sent the team to the practice field and had them engage in a full force tackle drill which had some of the players crying out in pain.
Play Like A Champion Today™ asserts that sports are games that are meant to be played by kids to have fun, to learn new skills and to grow – physically, emotionally, morally and spiritually. Do kids grow in sport when they are punished when they don’t have an optimal performance? Athletes may get stronger physically from punishment drills, but they will not grow emotionally, morally or spiritually through this type of punitive activity.
We all know that running is an important activity for the overall development of an athlete. It helps kids build endurance, grow in coordination and get faster and stronger. However, when a coach makes running a punishment, does this encourage the young person to engage in this activity that is healthful and helpful for him/her as an athlete? In most cases, it does not. In fact, for many people, this will have the exact opposite effect and make them hate the activity that was assigned as punishment. Goals of Play Like A Champion Today™ coaches are to help their athletes love the game, to become better players and to grow as fuller Christian persons. Critical coaches who punish their athletes will not accomplish these ultimate goals in their totality. This is true not only for younger athletes, but also for high school age athletes and beyond.
Some may say, “Punishment is good for kids to toughen them up.” Play Like A Champion says, “Coaches should wisen-up.” No good will come out of punishing athletes when adults do not feel they have performed their best. In fact, it is often harmful. The Play Like A Champion approach is filled with effective techniques to be an “Life Coach” making a positive impact on young athlete’s lives.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Fall PLC Newsletter Released
In this issue:
- 4th Annual PLC Leadership Conference
- Letter from the Director: Renewing the Vision of Bishop Sheil and the CYO
- Partner Profile: Fort Worth Christian Football League
- PLC Consultant's Book Loyal Sons Wins National Award
- Hot Issues in Sports: Preventing Post-Summer Vacation Injuries
- Upcoming Events: Cruise on the Chicago River
Preventing Post-Summer Vacation Injuries
As we enter another school year, thousands of young athletes from grade school to high school are preparing for fall sports by participating in preseason workouts, and family doctors nationwide are swamped with filling out preparticipation sports physicals. This is a fun and exciting time of year for parents, coaches and students alike – but also a high time of year for sports related injuries. In this article, I wanted to touch on a few issues that invariably come up when kids go from vacation time fun to early school year training schedules, and how to best evaluate and treat them.
1) Strains, sprains & aches: It’s a safe bet that all sports doctors are going to see young athletes marching into their offices within the first three weeks of preseason camps from one of these. Most muscle strains and joint aches are a result of a rapid increase in demands on the musculoskeletal system – going from summer fun of getting a tan and throwing a frisbee around to two-a-day strength, speed and conditioning drills is going to produce some aches – so some of these pains are unavoidable. Teaching kids to keep with a summer conditioning program will usually lessen these issues. In children undergoing a growth spurt, keep in mind that that bones are growing faster than muscles, and this can lead to relative muscle weakness and inflexibility, as well as pain from traction of the muscle tendons at their insertion points on the bone, called an apophysitis. The 15 year old female track runner who had no problems last fall, for example, who now (one year later and 3 inches taller) is complaining of a sharp or achy pain in her anterior hips when running, may be suffering from this. Year round muscle conditioning (keep in mind that most active playtime activities are great conditioning) and stretching in growing kids can help to diminish these problems; if you have any questions or concerns, be sure and ask your physician.
2) Heat and overexposure: not long ago, the dangers of hyperthermia, or overheating, made national headlines when a college football player at a Division I school passed away in training camp from this condition. In humid areas of the country, the risk of hyperthermia is even greater, as humid air lessens the body’s ability to dissipate heat from the skin. Always keep in mind that children have a decreased tolerance to excessive heat and a diminished ability to cool off when compared to adults. If an athlete shows signs of listlessness, walking with a staggered gait, not focusing or not speaking intelligently, get them into shade/cool area, lay them down and elevate their legs and seek medical attention. Advise your athletes to drink well before and after practice (drinking until you’re no longer thirsty is a good rule of thumb), and to cool down afterwards. Drinking excessive amounts of water when exercising can be dangerous as well, and can lead to dilutional hyponatremia, an electrolyte imbalance where the sodium level in the blood gets “watered down” from too much water intake, and can present with symptoms similar to dehydration and hyperthermia. Kids should avoid caffeine (which causes dehydration), and most especially energy drinks – these beverages (e.g. Monster, Amp, Spike Shooter, etc.) not only carry much more caffeine than a 12 oz can of Coca Cola (up to 11 – 12.5 times more!), but have other substances in them that act as stimulants, which your kids don’t need in 90 degree heat when they’re running a 5K, doing push-ups and crunches or doing tackling drills.
3) Stress Fractures: another potential problem of ramping up activity level beyond what the bones can handle. Stress fractures (also called insufficiency fractures) are micro fractures, or “cracks” in the architecture of bones that happen when the forces exceed the shock absorbing ability of the bone and surrounding tissues, and overcome the bone’s ability to heal. Stress fractures tend to occur most commonly in the shins (“shin splints” are an early stage stress fracture) and in the midfoot (just past the ankle), and are more common in girls than boys. Typically they present as a achy pain that occurs with impact activity at a bony weight bearing area (foot, shin, hip, etc.), that is worse with impact and gets better with rest, and may progress to hurting with every day activities such as walking. These are most common when young athletes go to ‘the next level’ – i.e. 8th grade to high school, high school to a competitive college program. They usually require an xray and possibly further imaging, such as a CT or MRI, if the clinical suspicion is high, because many stress fractures do not show up on plain xrays. If your young athlete has a pain that will not go away when doing their sport, even with rest, and especially if it is present even when not in sport, you should seek medical attention.
Sports are an important and enjoyable aspect of returning to school, but as with every activity, as responsible adults who love and care for the children we are responsible for, we need to be vigilant for conditions that can adversely affect them. May all your young athletes have a healthy, successful season!
Friday, September 4, 2009
What Outliers Can Teach about Developing All-Stars
1. Coaches choose all-stars. In Chapter 1 of his book, Outliers: The Story of Success, Malcolm Gladwell points out that on elite 16-18 year old hockey teams the majority of players were born in the months of January, February or March. How could such a strange phenomenon occur? The cut-off date for Canadian hockey leagues is January 1st. When children try-out for hockey teams at early ages, a December-born player and a January-born player are compared to one another even though one is nearly a year older than the other. Coaches select the January – March players thinking they are more “gifted,” “skilled,” or “talented” when at this age they just happen to be older and more physically developed. These “talented” older players end up on select teams, practice more often, and play at a higher competitive level and are made into all-stars.
2. All-stars have to want to play and work hard. Teams win championships by working hard in practice. How do you get players to want to work hard in practice? Some coaches try to force it upon their players with fear and punishments. However, research does not show that this is effective. Players get better when they like practicing and when they love the sport. They would spend hours in the driveway shooting hoops. This is the edge they have over other players of similar gifts and talent.
3. All-stars are given opportunity to work hard. Not only are all-stars willing to work hard, but they are given the opportunity to learn and work hard in their sports. Children and adolescents, especially those living in cities with few fields and gyms, need the opportunity to play. It is the only way they can get better.
4. Effort is connected to reward. All-stars, like the outliers in Gladwell’s book, feel that there is a connection between their effort and a reward. For some all-stars this means winning, but winning is not directly connected to effort. No matter how hard you work are, the other team may be better, there may be some missed calls, the weather may not cooperate, etc. If winning is the only reward for effort, then players will not be as motivated to succeed nor will they want to work as hard as if they were intrinsically motivated (see lesson #2). This is connected to setting goals in PLC’s GROW Approach.
5. All-stars feel Autonomy. All-stars, like Outliers, become successful when they feel that they have some say in the direction of their lives. This is the third component of the GROW Approach: Ownership. Give athletes ownership over their play and they will take up the responsibility to succeed on their own. If coaches take away that autonomy, then athletes will feel that pleasing the coach is more important than playing the game well.
Malcom Gladwell hopes to convince his readers that Outliers aren’t really outliers at all. Coaches should be convinced that all-stars aren’t really all-stars at all. Or better yet, as a coach you determine who will become an all-star. Give everyone a chance.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
The Passing of Senator Ted Kennedy
Little League World Series on ESPN
ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2 are currently airing the Little League World Series. Broadcasts began in 1963 with the final championship game, but this year 32 games will be aired showcasing teams from Staten Island, NY, Mercer Island, WA, Latin America, Mexico Asia-Pacific, Germany, and Japan just to name a few.
- Is this good or bad news for youth sports?
- What do children think about seeing their peers (11 to 13 years old) on television?
- If you have been watching, do the children look like they are having fun or feeling the pressure?
- How are the coaches behaving?
- Do they look like they are coaching kids or major leaguers?
Play Like A Champion Today wants to know what you think! Post your comments below and we will offer our own thoughts in response.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Celebrating Women's Equality: What About Sports?
August 26 is Women's Equality Day. On that day in 1920 the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was passed giving women the right to vote. Suffrage was a giant step toward equality in the United States, but just a step. The struggle for women’s equality continues today.
We can learn a great deal about gender equity and inequity in our society by taking a careful look at women’s sports. My Dad helped to start a C.Y.O. basketball program for girls as well as boys in our parish grade school in the late 1950s. We both played by the boys’ rules -- full-court. Yet the women’s game did not officially change to full-court until 1971. Women were competing in marathons all over the world, but the women’s marathon only became an Olympic sport in 1984.
The feminist movement and Title IX changed broke many of the barriers to women’s participation in sports. In 1972, at the time Title IX was passed, girls accounted for only seven percent of high school athletes. Today girls account for over 40%. In youth sport, the numbers are even more impressive. Today girls and boys between the ages of six and nine say that they are equally interested in sports. In the early elementary school years seventy-five percent of boys and sixty-nine percent of girls are actively involved in at least one sport. Yet as girls get older, their opportunities to participate decline more precipitously than boys’. The problem is worse in the cities with only 59% of the girls reporting they are involved in a sport compared to 80% of the boys. Some of barriers to girls’ participation are financial; others are structural and cultural. Urban programs’ typically run on scarce resources. Fears about safety as well as outmoded gender stereotypes contribute to an environment that prevents girls from experiencing same the physical and psychological benefits of sports participation as boys.
Shockingly, higher participation rates for female athletes have not translated into greater numbers of women in coaching. Before Title IX , over 90% of the coaches of collegiate women’s teams were women. Now that percentage is 42%, and it is still declining. In 1997 when the WNBA started, seven of its eight head coaches were women. The WNBA added five more teams but now only four headed coaches are women.
Girls deserve the best coaching that we can give them. Qualified males should not be discouraged from coaching women’s sports. Yet qualified women should not be discouraged from coaching men’s sports. Why aren’t we seeing more women coaching men’s sports? Why has the percentage (below two percent) remained constant when the percentage of women has been rising in other professions? The reasons aren’t too hard to find. Athletic Departments have been and continue to be largely made up of men and influenced by “old boy” attitudes, networks, and work structures. Moreover, too many of us view sports as an arena where “masculine” qualities are needed for competitive success.
Among Play Like A Champion Today’s ™ youth sport partners, male coaches outnumber females over three to one. In a revealing study of gender and youth sport coaching, Mike Messner reports an even smaller percentage of female coaches in the Pasedena area. That percentage declines as children get older youth sports programs are viewed as more competitive. Using interview and observational data, Messner argues persuasively that youth sport coaching “remains a highly sex-segregated activity” with little or no change in sight.
As we commemorate the progress we have made toward women’s equality in our country, we need to take a more critical look at sport organizations at all levels. Let’s invite qualified women to coach boys’ as well as girls’ sports at all competitive levels, and let’s make sure that we create and sustain a welcoming atmosphere for them. Let’s get more women involved in athletic administration and in high school and college coaching. Let’s reach out to girls and young women who are denied the opportunity to play sports because of where they are growing up or because their families are poor. Finally let’s set goals for the equality we would like to see in sports and begin to address the barriers we have all too long ignored. As a first step, I strongly recommend that sports leaders at all levels read the 2007 Tucker Center Research Report: Developing Physically Active Girls, which was co-edited by Nicole LaVoi, the Associate Director of the University of Minnesota’s Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in sport and a former research associate at Play Like a Champion Today™.
Clark Power Appears on Local NBC Broadcast
Focus on Faith: ND's Play Like A Champion Today program
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Thank You Wives and Husbands
So what are some words to describe these wives? "Great Multi-taskers," "supportive crutch," or as Brad Taylor so nicely put it, "My wife is Superwoman." Thanks to these women, the football coaches all across Tennessee and the United States are able to make a difference in the lives of young people. Don't forget this fall when your under the friday night lights that behind those coaches sit women who have made great sacrifices for those men to be there.
Wives and husbands of coaches in all sports...thank you for your dedication, sacrifice, and love!
Monday, August 17, 2009
Building Team Relationships Overnight
Recently, I had the opportunity as a sport parent to aid my daughter’s athletic team in building relationships. We hosted the high school cheerleading team at our home for an overnight team bonding experience. The evening was characterized by a shared experience which began with every team member contributing to the menu for the evening (from subs to cookies to lemonade). The captains set the tone by opening the evening’s activities with a team bonding round robin question and answer session of “What are your favorites?” (such as “What is your favorite stunt? What is your least favorite subject in school? What is the scariest movie you have seen? What do you want to do for a career?) Team mates became more acquainted with each other as individuals with likes and dislikes. Amidst the giggles, many found that they shared similar feelings and beliefs, beyond their common love for the sport of cheerleading. The evening went on to include swimming, a bonfire with s’mores, competitive games with girls rooting for each other and a late night movie ending with athletes all in sleeping bags throughout the family room floor with their coach in the middle (maintaining a watchful eye). The sleepy team reluctantly was roused the next morning to pile into cars and head to an 8am practice. Although tired, the practice felt different to the young women who had shared a common team-bonding experience and who knew each other at a deeper, more personal level. Team cohesiveness was built and team stability was cemented.
I encourage all coaches to create such a team bonding opportunity for their athletes to build their team’s cohesion and develop Relationships on their team. I encourage parents who are in a position to support and enable this process to become a resource to their child’s coach in this regard. I encourage athletes to open their hearts to this opportunity to become a stronger, more cohesive team. The result: a forever memory of a shared team experience.
- Kristin Sheehan, PLC Associate Director
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
PLC Recertification Course Opens Early
The course is being offered in partnership with the Satellite Theological Education Program (STEP). STEP is an outreach program at the University of Note Dame that offers quality theological education to pastoral ministers and adults Catholics through online courses.
1. Go the PLC Recertification page: www.playlikeachampion.org/recertification.html and click on the link “Click here to register for the course.”
2. Create your login information by clicking on the link in the red paragraph at the bottom of the page. Complete the necessary information and press submit.
3. Return to the registration page to register for the course. Choose the course section dates (August 31 - October 9, 2009) in which you would like to participate and press submit.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Pro Football Hall of Fame Speeches
Rod Woodson, a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, credited his coaches Dave Brodie, Jim Russo, Mike Holly and Jim Vernel who worked with him as a youth and in high school.
He gave a great description of the Body of Christ:
“You know, I stand up here in front of you as an individual. But nothing alone has ever been done good. Or excuse me, nothing great has ever been done alone. An English clergyman once said, no man is an island entire of itself. Every man is a piece of a continent. A part of the main. What he's talking about, he's talking about the body of Christ working together. But also what he's talking about is that we're all a part of a team in some capacity throughout our lives. We are all a piece of the puzzle. We are not the puzzle itself. When we realize that, we're better people.”
Highlights to Rod Woodson’s Enshrinement Speech
Randall McDaniel, who is now in his second career as an elementary school teacher looked to Mr. O. K. Fulton, his high school coach, to thank him for his inspiration. But most importantly, he credits his parents as his “real heroes.”
Highlights to Randall McDaniel’s Speech
Bruce Smith pointed to the lessons he learned from his parents, whose commitment and strong work ethic inspired him to become the man that he is today.
Highlights to Bruce Smith’s Speech
As a coach or parent, do not underestimate the impact you can have on your kids. Hall of Fame athletes are never inducted on sheer skill or talent. They receive their recognition thanks to the great influence of the people who have taught them some of the hardest lessons and molded them into men and women of character.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
What is your coaching legacy?
Some may even be future coaches themselves. In an article in the Rockland Standard Tom Grady, Braintree High School softball coach, remembers the coaches who made an impact on his life:
“I guess the first was Bob Lee, he was my CYO coach at Sacred Heart parish in Roslindale,” said Grandy.
Another coach who he admired was his high school basketball coach at Catholic Memorial High School in West Roxbury, Ronnie Perry. “He was inspiring and he taught us how to win,” remembers Grandy, who went on to a business career instead of one in education.
Sean Kiely, who retired after 23 years of coaching soccer at Hamilton Catholic high school left a long-lasting legacy according to the TheSpec.com. Co-coach John Ivanic said:
"I was crushed," said Crusaders' co-coach John Ivanic. "I've worked with him for eight years. He has been an inspiration to me. He's taught me a lot about being a good human being and a coach."
Take some time, today, to reflect on the coach or coaches that have made an impact on your life. What was thier legacy? How can you do the same for others?
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Probability of Competing in Athletics After High School
The links provided to the NCAA statistics in our coach and parent manuals has changed. Check out the new links at:
http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?key=/ncaa/ncaa/academics+and+athletes/education+and+research/probability+of+competing
http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?key=/ncaa/ncaa/academics+and+athletes/education+and+research/probability+of+competing/methodology+-+prob+of+competing
Saturday, July 25, 2009
ESPN Fan Feast: Notre Dame
Unfortunately, Greeny, you missed one key link that pops up when you google Play Like A Champion Today: the Play Like A Champion Today Educational Series. How can that phrase be so special? Want to find out what its like to Play Like A Champion? You could attend our annual PLC Leadership Conference and touch the sign for yourself or just ask the thousands of athletes coached by our Play Like A Champion Today trained coaches and you'll find that young people all across the country play like champions every day!
ESPN Fan Feast: Youth Games
"The best entertainment, the true spirit of any sport can be found in any children's game. Disregard the handful of pushy parents or the coaches who think they're the second coming of Vince Lombardi"
Well said Kenny Mayne!
Friday, July 24, 2009
PACT Trainer Inverviewed About Motivating Scholarship Athlete
Trenerry effectively sums up the three C's of the PACT progam: "student athletes need three essential things to be happy in their sports: a choice in which activities in which they participate, a sense of accomplishment [competence], and a sense of being cared about. That means screaming parents on the sidelines or a focus on performance above all else, can lead to burnout."
For the video of the interview click on the link below:
http://www.wcco.com/video/?id=63909@wcco.dayport.com