Mad Dawg Wiccan
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Post by Mad Dawg Wiccan on Feb 8, 2011 0:42:26 GMT -5
<<Easier on the body maybe, but it sure as hell isn't natural. Nobody naturally tries to throw really hard underhanded. It feels all kinds of weird.>>
It feels weird to those who haven't really tried it. I didn't realize it before my aforementioned cousin cousin challenged my older brother to a distance throwing contest. My brother was, at this time, 20 years old and a seasoned baseball player. The cuz beat my brother by many yards.
While it may go against the mind, just make the motions yourself; the overhand motion of a baseball pitch, or the underhand softball pitch. Which one feels more "natural" to you? My cousin was only a semi-pro, and he could deliver a ball accurately at a consistent 95 mph. How many pro MLB players can do that?
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Mad Dawg Wiccan
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Post by Mad Dawg Wiccan on Feb 8, 2011 0:44:40 GMT -5
<<ETA: please ignore all the typos. I'm on my phone and don't feel like checking and correcting errors.>>
Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're even more crocked than I am, and that's saying something!
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Feb 8, 2011 9:11:39 GMT -5
We put DS in everything and he didn't like or excel at anything. Fine, he's a nerd and I'm okay with that. Then in HS, a wrestling coach walked by him and snagged him for the team. He loved it and excelled at it and that led to cross country where he also excelled. Kids will find their niche, I think, without our help. DD is a natural athlete and excels at any sport she tries and while smart enough, is no brainiac like DS. I think your kids will do just fine and will find what appeals to them.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Feb 8, 2011 10:29:47 GMT -5
This thread is interesting to me because we are part of the kid-sports world and I am flabbergasted at how some parents act. I'm flabbergasted at how I feel some games, and I watch my husband struggle between his competitive side and the realization that these kids are SIX years old.
I have no answers for you - but I sure understand how you feel. You want your child to do well, so they enjoy themselves. You want them to have fun and be healthy, and make friends. You don't want to see them lose. You don't want to see their feelings hurt. You want to make sure they learn the valuable lessons of sports - hardwork, teamwork, sportmanship, etc. But how, exactly, is the best way to do that?
I'm with ya.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2011 10:47:45 GMT -5
To me there are two really good things that kids benefit from sports that they may not learn anywhere else. 1 is teamwork. The only 2 methods for learning teamwork that I think are really good are sports & the military. 2. The other is that playing team sports can bring them out of their shyness. Yes other things can do that but sports is much better than most things for my money. Oh & I never pushed them into sports. I did kind of "make" my oldest stay on a baseball team once though. He broke his thumb the first day of practice & wanted to drop the team. I (more or less) made him finish out the season because I knew that if he didn't he would never play baseball again. When he finally got his cast off he did pretty well at it (but didn't fall in love with the game). He actually ended the season with more stolen bases than the rest of the team combined. (Not a great hitter but he was really fast).
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Feb 8, 2011 11:21:45 GMT -5
Those are 2 great points tex.
I also like to encourage any physical exercise activities that my kids are interested in. There are lots of issues with health and exercise and weight control with kids these days, so I like to encourage just about anything that involves cardio. My son is into team sports, my daughter does gymnastics. They also do a bunch of other unorganized "exercise." But when they are involved in organized sports, I know we had a least a minimum amount of exercise that week.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Feb 8, 2011 11:54:40 GMT -5
Run out and kick that soccer ball with your kids as well. It's fun and doesn't seem like exercise.
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tractor
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Post by tractor on Feb 8, 2011 17:00:44 GMT -5
I don't push my boys into anything. I want them to have fun and enjoy themselves. However, the one thing I won't tolerate is poor sportsmanship. I want them to have fun whether they win or loose. I don't reward them for loosing, or praise them (too much) for winning, but if they have fun, treat others with respect, and work to build the team spirit, they get nothing but encouragement and praise from me. If they become snotty little jerks and start to mouth off, I make sure they know that their actions will not be tolerated.
My kids like to try many things, but excel at few sports. However. they have learned to have fun with whatever they try.
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Peace Of Mind
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Post by Peace Of Mind on Feb 8, 2011 17:12:56 GMT -5
Teach her how to pitch and be available to play catch with her. That will keep her interested and she will get better at it and will have more confidence. She'll take it from there.
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Mad Dawg Wiccan
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Post by Mad Dawg Wiccan on Feb 8, 2011 18:43:14 GMT -5
When I was a kid I had a neighbor who would get a spanking if he didn't play well in Little League.
Yeah, I'm sure it taught him to love the game.......
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flopsy
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Post by flopsy on Feb 8, 2011 19:03:52 GMT -5
how did her practice go?!
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Peace Of Mind
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Post by Peace Of Mind on Feb 8, 2011 19:09:08 GMT -5
Flopsy, it's going on now. They are in the West so they are 3 hours earlier than most of us.
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TD2K
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Post by TD2K on Feb 8, 2011 22:00:43 GMT -5
There was an interesting article in Time recently on "Tiger Moms". www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2043313,00.html Like many things, striking a balance is what's important I think.
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Loopdilou
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Post by Loopdilou on Feb 8, 2011 23:07:15 GMT -5
That chick is hardcore. I want a t-shirt that says "I am a Tiger Mom" or "Tiger Moms Rawk" "Go Tigers" or something
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Feb 8, 2011 23:10:58 GMT -5
Her practice went pretty well, or so she and my wife tell me. She had fun, she likes her coach, the team, etc. I couldn't make it due to this damn visit. I've got my boss, his boss, the cofounder of the company, and some muckity mucks for the agency we work for out here for the week.
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Bob Ross
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Post by Bob Ross on Feb 9, 2011 12:09:16 GMT -5
Girls softball is lame because the farthest they can go with it is college. I guess if they're one of the best of the best, they can go to the Olympics but those girls (along with most of the college ones) look like they could bench press a Mack truck and have to shave like a dude, and do you really want your daughter turning into that? Didn't think so. I'd recommend cooking and hotness lessons instead, so she can land a rich husband. If it were your son on the other hand, that's different, because every parent knows their boy is going to grow up to be the next Major Leaguer, so no expense is too much.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Feb 9, 2011 12:10:07 GMT -5
Girls softball is lame because the farthest they can go with it is college. I guess if they're one of the best of the best, they can go to the Olympics but those girls (along with most of the college ones) look like they could bench press a Mack truck and have to shave like a dude, and do you really want your daughter turning into that? Didn't think so. I'd recommend cooking and hotness lessons instead, so she can land a rich husband. If it were your son on the other hand, that's different, because every parent knows their boy is going to grow up to be the next Major Leaguer, so no expense is too much. Have you ever seen Jenny Finch?
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Bob Ross
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Post by Bob Ross on Feb 9, 2011 12:12:29 GMT -5
Have you ever seen Jenny Finch? Meh. With every large group, there's always a mutant. TBH, I hadn't so I googled her and I see she's pretty much modelling bikinis now. Guess she found her true calling.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Feb 9, 2011 12:26:39 GMT -5
Although I disagree with Bob's general message, we did watch part of the college world series for women's softball - and so many of those girls didn't look very healthy. I suspect there was a lot of overeating and not enough emphasis on overall fitness for the team in general.
I guess if I'm going to have my kid do sports, I would like it to benefit their health. So many of those gals were already obese, and they hadn't even hit the dreaded desk-job portion of their lives. Sad.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Feb 9, 2011 12:28:53 GMT -5
Although I disagree with Bob's general message, we did watch part of the college world series for women's softball - and so many of those girls didn't look very healthy. I suspect there was a lot of overeating and not enough emphasis on overall fitness for the team in general. I guess if I'm going to have my kid do sports, I would like it to benefit their health. So many of those gals were already obese, and they hadn't even hit the dreaded desk-job portion of their lives. Sad. About 1/3 of the team looked like poster children for sufferers of Polycystic Ovarian Disease.
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Bob Ross
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Post by Bob Ross on Feb 9, 2011 12:34:37 GMT -5
I suspect there was a lot of overeating and not enough emphasis on overall fitness for the team in general. Pfft. Everyone knows that softball's not about fitness. Softball is about putting a keg of beer next to each base, and the last team standing is the winner.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Feb 9, 2011 12:35:58 GMT -5
I suspect there was a lot of overeating and not enough emphasis on overall fitness for the team in general. Pfft. Everyone knows that softball's not about fitness. Softball is about putting a keg of beer next to each base, and the last team standing is the winner. Now that's the way softball is meant to be played!!! I personally like volleyball, a sport you can play with a beer in your hand. I've even mastered diving for the ball and not spilling my beer.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Feb 9, 2011 12:37:29 GMT -5
swamp - now that I have looked it up, that's funny.
That is weird. I guess sports at a young age can't be counted on for a total exercise package - but by the college level, you would think coaches and teams would have some discussions on nutrition, etc.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Feb 9, 2011 12:41:53 GMT -5
swamp - now that I have looked it up, that's funny. That is weird. I guess sports at a young age can't be counted on for a total exercise package - but by the college level, you would think coaches and teams would have some discussions on nutrition, etc. I swam in college and there was no discussion about nutrition. But that was in the dark ages of the late 80's early 90's, so things probably have changed.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Feb 9, 2011 12:44:49 GMT -5
I will say that several of my daughter's gymnastics coaches are not exactly petite. My husband said he was glad for it because if everyone there was stick-skinny he would worry about their influence, particularly a propensity for anorexia. They say the seeds are sown as young as 8-9 years old. My daughter might get the idea somewhere - but it isn't from those coaches!
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Feb 9, 2011 12:46:41 GMT -5
By college they probably do, but most kids don't play sports all the way through college. Honestly, most kids don't even play in high school. It would be nice to see coaches emphasize exercise a little more from pee-wee through junior high. considering a bunch of the little league coaches around here subsist on potato chips and beer, I'm thinking they aren't the people I want giving nutrition advice to my kids............
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Feb 9, 2011 12:52:44 GMT -5
No physical education teacher I ever had in public school looked liked they ever worked out either. Nor did I want nutrition advice from them.
I know people are lacking fitness - but I was just disappointed to see that collegiate athletes were in such bad shape. If we can't count on athletes at the perfect age to be in great shape, then it feels like nobody stands a chance.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Feb 9, 2011 12:53:22 GMT -5
Dark, you're back! I haven't seen any of your postings yet. Yay.
Not having read the other responses, I am of two minds. Being pushed into a sport by a parent is very bad. Being pushed to do well at a sport a child has chosen and loves for its own sake by a parent can be good.
Kids aren't born with discipline. They don't automatically, naturally, know how to excel at things-- even if they have natural talent. They need guidance, and ideally they would get that from a coach AND a parent. Now, if the kid really doesn't WANT to work that hard, I wouldn't force them-- but I would make sure they understood that they weren't just passing on hard work, they were also passing on the eventual rewards that hard work could have brought them.
I don't have kids, however. So this is all theory for me.
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Mad Dawg Wiccan
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Post by Mad Dawg Wiccan on Feb 9, 2011 13:12:59 GMT -5
<<Being pushed into a sport by a parent is very bad. Being pushed to do well at a sport a child has chosen and loves for its own sake by a parent can be good.>>
Being encouraged and supported is good. Being pushed (forced) is bad. IMHO.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Feb 9, 2011 13:46:12 GMT -5
Being encouraged and supported is good. Being pushed (forced) is bad. IMHO.
Agreed, you shouldn't force a kid to do something if they truly don't want to do it anymore.
If they still WANT to pursue the sport, however, and are just feeling lazy one day-- I think a good parent would push a little. How else will they acquire the discipline to do things they don't feel like doing for a greater long-term gain that they want very much?
I don't equate the words push and force.
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