5 Reasons Why Sports are Good for Your Kids’ Mental Health
With the onset of COVID, and the craziness that was 2020, have you noticed your kids’ mental and emotional well-being just a little bit…off?
If you have, you’re not alone. 2020 was a year that no one could predict, or even begin to understand until it happened. And when social distancing became a thing, so did emotional isolation and mental instability. How could it not?
Socialization with their peers was a no-no and sports disappeared almost completely.
Now, while all of this is slowly trickling back to normal, there is one thing your kid can do right NOW that can get their minds and emotions BACK on track to being healthy again until things are normal once more: Sports!
It can be as simple as riding a bike or playing a little ball on the cul-de-sac. But, what it DOES mean is that your kid can start to feel like themselves again all with a little bit of movement. Here’s why.
Sports is Community: When your kid is out playing ball, or even riding a bike, it’s easy to find other kids that are doing the same thing. All it takes is one kid to play with one other kid and suddenly things feel normal again! The void of socialization disappears and the activity of sports and movement becomes the connecting bridge that brings normalcy back into your child’s life. Community is connection. And with connection comes a better state of mind.
Sports Creates Socialization: Along the same train of thought, sports teams and playing sports with others creates a social atmosphere. Your child learns how to communicate, how to tell their teammates what they need, and how to give and take. They also will learn how to deal with the variety of personalities that will come upon the court just as much as off the court. Socialization feels good. It feels connective. The bonus is socialization doesn’t even require social media or television! In my book, that’s a huge win.
Sports Boosts Confidence: Where competitiveness and the desire to work on and show off skill comes together, one naturally gains confidence! While skills do take time to develop, being around others and working on those skills helps to bring a sense of accomplishment. Nothing can replace the feeling of dedication and hard work paying off into becoming a better athlete!
Sports Creates a Good Self-Image: While the media surrounds kids today about WHAT they should look like, when it comes to sports and working on a skill, the focus becomes more on HOW to improve a skill and has nothing to do with trends. When your child is confident about being a good athlete, that alone creates a fantastic self-image for them. It’s one they worked on themselves and it’s one that focuses on working hard for a positive self-image that isn’t based on peer pressure.
Sports Creates Grit: Grit is the one thing that will propel any kid into a mature adult; someone who can hang in there when times get tough. Sports require energy, endurance, and hard work, day after day. This creates grit; this creates a tenacity to keep improving and to keep becoming as good as they can be! This resilience stays with them for a lifetime, transcending into work and family and friends life once they’re adults.
The positive effects of what sports can do for the mind are overwhelmingly positive. My job is to get your kid into a mental state of mind that is healthy and long-lasting; a mind that can take them right into adulthood and help others along the way.
AT EAT Sports, I’m here to give your child the best basketball training possible. With a healthy body AND mind, there’s no doubt that your child can -- and will-- change the world with the right mental health.
-T