The following post was provided by Alli Zezoney
Regarding your entrance into sports, how did it occur? Did you personally feel pressured to play sports from an outside influence? What was your drive to continue sports? How did you deal with outside pressures and how would you have changed your path if allocated? What other areas of sport were you interest in that you did not attempt and why? Have you seen or heard of athletes deeply affected by peer pressure and how can society change its influences on young athletes and help guide them to become successful? After reading the article, post a response regarding this issue.
http://kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/sports/sports_pressure.html
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I don't really remember why I began playing sports, but it probably had something to do with the fact that my dad play hockey in college and my mom grew up playing sports. I don't EVER remember feeling outside pressure to play sports. The only time I felt pressured was when I played youth softball and I absolutely hated it and was horrible. My dad made me finish out the season and he would bring me to the batting cages after every practice. I think he taught me to never quit or give up, although at the time I was mad at him.
ReplyDeleteOne sport that I always wanted to play but never did was hockey. I grew up in the state of Virginia where girls hockey was almost non-existent, and girls who did play hockey were viewed as 'lesbian'. My dad had played so competitevely and now my brother was, so it was something I always wanted to do, but never did. To this day the movie Miracle is still my favorite movie, because it hits a deep part in me that wishes I had played competitive hockey.
I had one friend growing up that felt pressured to play sports. Her name was Curstin and her dad coached me in basketball growing up (I have talked about him in other blogs.. Coach Bayse). He was obsessed with sports, and if he was not coaching them, he was watching them on TV or live, or playing outside. Curstin and her brother John always felt pressure from their dad and their day to day living was affected by their playing of a sport.
I am the youngest of four bothers the oldest being 11 years older than me. All of my brothers were heavily involved in sports and with me being the youngest I always wanted to try to keep up with my brothers. My oldest brother would always take us outside and we would practice football and play against other kids in our neighborhood. As I grew older my involvement in the friendly neighborhood competition grew to love for the game. As far as I can remember I have always wanted to be involved in sports and that decision was influenced by my brother and my memories as a kid.
ReplyDeleteI began my involvement in organized sport around 1st grade. I began by playing summer soccer and I believe I started because of my parents. My Dad was an avid athlete playing basketball, football and track. He continued to play football into his adult years until injuries plagued both knees. My mother also played sports, though not in the same capacity as my father. Thus, I believe they felt sports were an important aspect of life which I should be involved in. Both parents were active in my sports career as my Dad often coached and my mother always attended. I truly did love playing soccer and my parents were very supportive when I decided to quit playing for my high school because I was not having fun. In addition, I do not remember feeling pressured to attend camps or participate in something I did not want to. It was always an option to participate in what ever sport I would like, in the capicity I choose. I do, however, remember the added pressure put on other players whose fathers coached. I think the only thing I would have changed is that I would have played hockey. In sixth grade I was given the option to play basketball or hockey (with both the schedules would overlap too much) and I choose basketball.
ReplyDeleteI always knew growing up that my father was a good football player growing up, who had a chance to play college football. I never felt rushed to get involved because of that but instead had a genuine interest in participating in the sport. Once I started playing, around 3-4th grade consistantly, I was hooked. My enjoyment for playing grew expotentially though the success and fun I was having. Today I wish I would have engaged in more sports as a youth and into high school, but I was so into football I negelcted my participation in other sports to commit my self fully to football.
ReplyDeleteThere is deffinately strong peer pressure for youth to get involved into sport, but eventually, if that individual was not meant to play, those situations play themself out. It can become damaging when indivuals are pressued to continue to play, when truly, they are not motivated to do so. We saw how damaging this can be to individuals, down the road, when they are not allowed opportunities at a young age to grow and develop in other aspects of life.
I grew up playing baseball because of my father. Like most kids I did it because it made him happy. I played it year round until I got to middle school when I didnt make the middle school baseball team. From there I looked for other sports to help fill my void of playing baseball year round so I went to sports like football and wrestling. Once I was heavily involved with sports I had a lot of peer pressure not to participate in extra curricular activities like skating or roller blading because my mom was afraid I would get hurt. From then on my life revolved around athletics and I was never just a plain kid. Most kids in my hometown are raised the same way they do sports that they inherited by a father so there is peer pressure there to play and do well.
ReplyDeleteI was always involved in sports. I can't even remember who introduced me or how I got involved but I remember playing outside with the neighborhood kids at every opportunity. We would play a variety of sports, but I always loved playing basketball. As I got older, I began to realize that I was better than the majority of kids who played, including the boys. I think I became so good at the game because I was a gym rat. My parents never pressured me to become good; I just always loved to play. My parents gave me the opportunity to play any sport that I wanted so there was never a sport that I wanted to play but didn't. However, as I've gotten older, I wish I would have played golf when I was younger. I would appreciate being able to go out and golf a round with some friends and not get so incredibly frustrated.
ReplyDeleteI have not had any friends that were pressured to play sports. However, when I coach girls basketball camp throughout the summer, I see kids all the time that have clearly been pressured by their parents to play. They show no desire to be there at all and some of them even tell their coaches that they are there because their parents made them go. This is sad because there are so many other sports and fine arts that these children can do.
Your comments have shown that most of you were sports players partly because your parents grew up in that fashion. Family tradition is a strong bond and can be a form of pressure for athletes. Also, regarding some sports; do you see a difference in pressure? For example, as a gymnast I was forced to go to 4 hours of practice even if I felt sick because of the high level of competition and the insane cost of "tuition", however, my sister was a successful high school diver and was allowed to "skip" practice if she had too much homework. Does this fall under this category? What other examples can you share?
ReplyDeleteI was introduced to sport, like most everyone else, family members. It was my father that really got me started. I can't remember a day in my life where baseball has not been a part of my life. Summer was/is baseball. I grew up on the baseball diamond, watching my dad play "town ball," eventually playing "town ball" myself.
ReplyDeletePeer pressure happens in all sports. Peer pressure is the reason I left a sport that I loved as a young kid. I used to wrestle all year long. But as I got older and more and more of my friends were beginning to play basketball, I didn't want to be left out. Basketball was cool now and wrestling wasn't, as a child you want to be accepted by those you fell are closest to.
I don't think there are any sports that I didn't try because of peer pressure. It was more about accessibility and economics (which is another topic). But I tried most sports that I could and left them because for the most part I didn't enjoy them.
Pressure comes from a lot of different groups, but primarily from peers and family. Family members need to make sure that the child is doing the sport because THEY want to. Not because their friends or family are telling them to. There is a fine line between encouragement and pressure.
I got involved in sports because my dad and all of his brothers were involved in sports. Growing up I was involved in football, wrestling, hockey, basketball, baseball, and even softball. I was pressured by my dad and uncles to play certain sports (wrestling and football for sure) but at the same time I enjoyed those sports so I was really happy to be involved because most of my friends were too. My drive to continue sports was my friendships, winning, winning championships, and just being seen as one of the best at what I did. I have always dealt pretty well with outside pressures but I also think I had a good system of knowing when it was time to get away from that activity for a while and what it took to re-motivate myself in the season and out of the season. I was always very good at setting goals for myself and thus I kept myself really motivated for my activities. I have been around many athletes over the years (as an athlete, coach, and teacher) who were burnt out because their was too much pressure at home and were tired of having their peers always counting on them to be successful. Many students are not equipped to handle the pressures of home, students, and society so they just get burnt out and quit the activity all together or they aren't as successful as they should be because they don't care...they are just going through the emotions and just want to get done with the activity.
ReplyDeleteI started playing sports as a way of hanging out with my friends. When I was elementary school age, my friends played baseball and football, so I did too. As I got older, moved to a new town, and made new friends, my focus shifted to tennis because that's what my new friends played. I wound up playing tennis all the way through college. My peer group was definitely the biggest influence on my sports participation.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Alli's question about different levels of pressure in different sports, I definitely see a difference in intensity in the sports my kids play. Elite level youth hockey in Minnesota is different than other sports, at least in my opinion. The amount of time and money invested in it is unbelievable. The kids and parents have a vested stake in youth hockey in Minnesota that I believe is different than any other sport in the state. That has to impact the nature (social world) the kids function in.
One important challenge for sports kids today is topic called social approval. Young athletes often worry too much about what others may or may not be thinking about them. This stems from the pressure peers place on them.
ReplyDeleteWe think that young athletes rely too much on what they assume others think about them to boost their own self-worth. Athletes often associate self-worth with achievement in sports. They often think that if friends, coaches and family members respect or admire their athletic abilities, they’re better people.
I feel that everyone has experience this aspect within their athletic or coaching career. Even professionals experience some sort of pressure, this link describes how Tony Romo has felt and dealt with pressure from society and peers. Share your thoughts.
I became involved when my mom asked me if I wanted to join gymnastics and dance. I said yes, and that was how I got started. Then some of my friends were playing t-ball so I joined t-ball. As I got older I joined basketball because I liked in P.E. class as well as volleyball. I joined fastpitch because my basketball coach asked me to play and I fell in love. I never felt pressured to stay in a certain sport, but my parents made me choose gymnastics or basketball after 9th grade because they were in the same season in high school. I chose basketball because I felt as though I was better in basketball. I wished that I would have played hockey, but they did not have hockey until I was a senior.
ReplyDeleteI don't remember why I started playing sports but it was probably because my older brother did and my parents signed me up for it. I never felt pressue to play any sports by anything/anyone. My drive to continue in sport was because I enjoyed it, not that I was great at it. I stopped playing "organized sports" by the time I got to high school, but in high school I started to participate in rec sports like softball and have been doing that ever since.
ReplyDeleteI grew up on a farm and didn't have any organized youth sports until I was 14-15 years old. We went into town and played with other kids. Those are still some of the funniest games I ever played in...no parents, no coaches, no refs...just playing basketball, baseball and football with my friends. I think it made me understand that I liked playing sports because I like playing, there was no peer pressure from anyone. I see to many kids who feel peer pressure to participate in athletics from their parents.
ReplyDeleteGreat comments. Everyone has had different experiences and it shows that many of you enjoyed your athletic career. Pressure is playing a larger role in athletics, and it seems to be starting when the kids are very young. Do you think there is a way as a coach that we can help athletes struggling from parental pressure?
ReplyDeleteI think we can inform athletes that we as coaches are not putting the pressure on them and that they can use practice as an outlet, a time to forget about the pressures that are outside of this little world. We can also offer to have a meeting with both the athlete and the parent if the athlete is feeling overwhelmed, led by the athlete.
ReplyDeleteI believe when coaching young children it's necessary to emplasize the fun in the sport, while building basic skills and minimizing the pressure. I agree with stacey about using practice as an outlet for children, not an added pressure.
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