Six Surprising Facts About Youth Sports

Regardless of how many of your kids are involved in youth sports, there is always something you can learn.

I have four kids now, so their involvement in youth sports is pretty much a given. I am not saying I would ever force any of my kids to take part in sports if they don’t want to, but I’ve been pretty lucky so far. I think its important to encourage your kids to take part in activities they find interesting; almost as important as it is to maintain some alone time as a mother of four. So youth sports allow me to be a good mom, both by getting my kids involved, and by taking some time for myself while they sweat out all that energy on the field.

READ MORE: How to Prevent Dehydration in Children’s Sports

Even as a youth sports veteran though, there is always more to learn. Here are six surprising facts about youth sports, because we should never stop educating ourselves, especially when it comes to our kids.

They don’t like to be watched: 37% of children say they wish their parents wouldn’t watch when they play sports. Do you know what I hear when I type that? Wine time!

Coaches can be bullies: 45% of kids report that their coaches have insulted them or called them names. We aren’t in Russia, people. Make sure you vet your kids’ coaches, or at the very least, pay attention to how they treat your kids. Tough love doesn’t always come from a place of love.

Kids sports injuries are mostly preventable: 3.5 million children 14 and under receive medical treatment for sports related injuries every year. The CDC says that more than half of these injuries are preventable. So educate your kids, and encourage them to stretch!

Kids don’t care about winning: 71% of kids said they wouldn’t care if nobody kept score when they engaged in youth sports.

Youth sports aren’t typically leading to professional careers: 1 in 6,000 High school football players are going pro. That number coincides with 1 in 4,000 high school baseball players, and 1 in 10,000 for basketball. Encourage your kids to study, or they won’t be able to understand those numbers when the time comes.

The kids are getting younger: 67% of boys, and 47% of girls are already joining sports teams by the age of 6. I blame The Internet. I don’t know why, but I just do.

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