In today's culture it seems rare to find children who are not involved in athletics. Why wouldn't parents want to get their child involved in fun, physical activity with teammates to learn some basic social skills? It is those parents who take these initial desires for their children a step too far where the tables turn and the activities become more of an occupation. Peer pressure is one thing, parent pressure is another thing. Children are being entered into athletic programs at earlier and earlier ages. I have seen and experienced this sort of involvement through club gymnastics growing up.
I began gymnastics when I was 6 in a recreational program near my house at a community center and fully enjoyed it. After a couple years in this low-intensity program my mom decided to bring me to Hamline to join their recreational classes leveled beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Upon quickly moving through each level I was soon asked to join the Spirit Gymnastics club team that also was at Hamline. I remember this being my decision and I don't regret saying yes to it. During my 6 years of club training I gained an incredibly fit body, friendships, and lessons of discipline and time management. My coach Doug Burns had told my mom that it would be a long and intense journey but that in the end I would walk away with life skills that no other sport or conditioning training could leave me with. There were many times that I wanted to quit but was quickly reminded of "all the work you've put in this far," or "think of all the money we've spent for you to just give up," so I pushed through the insane schedule, stress of competitions, and strength conditioning until I had reached my limit. As I got older and into middle school and high school club gymnastics became more and more of a chore for me rather than an enjoyable hobby. This switch in attitude towards the sport is what drove me to quit and also what separated me from most other of my team mates. I quit club with my parents support at age 16. Almost all my fellow teammates remained on the Spirit gymnastics team until college even after expressing to me their desire to quit. I feel I had the perfect middle ground of club sports involvement. For I walked away with positive skills that some may never acquire and I do not look back on those days of training/competitions with negative connotations towards my coaches and or the intensity of the sport itself. It is that line that many parents cross with their children. When children are pushed to the point of exhaustion and fatigue, it is their responsibility to respect that for it is the child's future.
On page 477 of the textbook, Newman explains that, "[parents] defend their actions by citing studies that show that adolescents involved in sports are less likely to use drugs and are more likely to get good grades in school." From personal experience I find this to be true, however, there is another crucial part to the story that seems to be missing: Whether or not the sport is enjoyable for the child. This aspect of children's involvement in sports seems to be overlooked quite often. I feel it is equally important for children to gain both the skills/discipline from sports as it is to gain the friendships/joy.
At a gym in which I would train at during the summers called Twin City Twisters (TCT) I noticed a lot of young girls (6-8) being trained at the level of intensity that I was training at when I was ages 14-16. The feel and energy in that gym is different. There is a sense of seriousness and determination not only in the gymnasts but also even more so in the parents. TCT has "produced" some elite level gymnasts, both male and female. Upon registering young gymnasts in such an intense program the parents wouldn't have any other goal in mind than just that. The tears and quite often unhappy faces that I noticed during their 4 hour saturday morning trainings reminded me of the hit reality TV show "Dance Moms." The TV show is now in its second season and yes, the dancers are quite amazing, however the drama and strictness of the mothers is what gives this show poor ratings in my book. The dance coach at Abby Lee Dance Academy stands for nothing less than perfect. This pressure, although it may be temporarily blinded by the makeup and gorgeous outfits, will soon in turn, put these young girls over the edge.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRGpeui4-hU
The link above gives you a snippet of the intense and dramatic TV series "Dance Moms"
What can be done, if anything, to help relieve families who may be tied up in such demanding schedules? According to Newman, there are organizations that work to help families cut out time in their days for relaxation and or quality family time. With the rising popularity of these organizations, one can only hope that this is the help needed to neutralize such extreme demands of athletics and the pressure they experience from their parents.
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