The role of parents in the sports development of their children
The importance of physical exercise is remarkable in all ages in which it is practiced: from the decrease in the effects of aging to the development of social skills in childhood. And it is at this stage that he emphasizes more strongly.
But, of course, in childhood you are not completely self-sufficient, so adult support is necessary. What is the role of fathers and mothers in the sports development of their children? Let's see it, reviewing those aspects of day-to-day training in those that intervene directly or indirectly.
- Related article: "My son is an athlete: what can I do to help him?"
The fathers and mothers before the sports development of their children
From a few decades ago to the present, the sport has been gaining more relevance in every home. The multitude of extracurricular activities offered by the different organizations have made sport an alternative leisure.
Gone is the lack of involvement of fathers and mothers in the sports practice of their sons and daughters who went out to play in the park without any danger and avoided "getting into trouble".
Nowadays the interest of the parents has been growing little by little, considering the sport as a beneficial practice for the corporal, social, health and leisure development of their sons and daughters s, thus taking the sporting practice of each member of the family a much greater importance and helping to create and strengthen family synergy.
This practice is in many cases the commitment and dedication of parents who they become the main means of transport to attend training and competitions , help physical and psychological recovery in injuries and encourage healthy lifestyle habits. The realization of one or several sports in each member of the family generates an economic expense and a family organization that goes beyond sports.
The benefits of sport
That fathers and mothers invest so much time and effort in the physical exercise of their sons and daughters is not nonsense, and is that It is proven that sports practice has innumerable benefits : takes care of our physical health (improves circulation, strengthens the heart, oxygenates the brain better ...) and mentally through the improvement of cognitive processes such as attention, memory or language and psychological well-being through variables such as self-esteem or self-concept, helps in academic performance thanks to its "de-stressing" and motivating power that serves as positive reinforcement, promotes values such as respect, cooperation, equality or tolerance and supposes a social learning base among others.
Ways to participate in your workouts
The role that fathers and mothers decide to take in sport of their sons and daughters will be fundamental for their later development in it, hence the importance of evaluating and assessing the involvement of young people with their sport . Depending on the needs that the child demands, parents should adapt their stimulation to a greater or lesser extent and to one or the other direction to avoid situations of risk such as Burnout (or "burned athlete"), injuries or paying the sport practice.
In the same way, the role of the father or mother should not be mixed with the role of coach or trainer, since this would cause an intercontextual conflict that would affect in different aspects to the sporting life of the boy or girl. Coherence and cooperation should be the cornerstone of the relationship between the two for the good of the athlete.
Enjoy the sport, learn from it and improve thanks to it, are the three premises based on basic sports that should not be mixed with those of high competition or performance. Terms that unfortunately, today are diffuse at very early ages.
The implication that fathers and mothers can dedicate their sons and daughters to sports It should promote the practice of the same and contribute to the good psychological and mental functioning of the athlete by making the sport a common bond that proposes new goals and joint hobbies, that respects the autonomy of the boy or girl and that progressively achieves the integral development of the athlete. through a paternal union to be stable and lasting.
