Every parent knows that physical activity is one of the crucial elements of their child’s health. However, not many a parent is able to find the right way to motivate their kids and help them love the sport they train. In most cases, parents simply do nothing about their kids’ lack of motivation to practice any sport. More rarely, but equally harmfully, parents force their kids into playing sports, which almost always has a detrimental effect.
We are aware that the more you love some activity, the better the result will be. So, how do we prevent our kids from burning out or how do we make them interested or keep their motivation? Here are some tips and tricks that should help you with this process.
Get them hooked
If your kid hasn’t already found a sport they really like, you’ll need to give them a gentle push. This can be done in several ways, such as showing them how much fun sports are, playing a sport together and encouraging them to play, instead of forcing them.
Walk the walk
Kids watch their parents and replicate their behavior. This can either turn out to be great or disastrous. The point is, your kid will hardly be interested in taking up a sport if they see you watching TV all the time you spend at home. Similarly, they’ll be much more intrigued if they see you being active and enjoying it. So, the solution is quite simple.
It doesn’t necessarily have to be some kind of an organized sporting activity. A simple run, regular visit to the local gym or occasional game of basketball with friends should suffice. The most important thing is that your child sees you enjoying sports.
Do it together
Since kids love to play, they are bound to remember the time when they had fun playing with their parent(s). Teaching them to ride a bike or swim doesn’t only help your kid’s physical health, but also their mental well-being. Once they can ride a bike, they can join you on some simpler rides and they will be motivated to become better and more enduring cyclists in order to be able to spend more time with you.
If you’re good at some other sport, don’t be too shy to teach your kid some skills. The more time you spend together, the stronger the bond between the two of you will be and it will beneficial to your fitness and their motivation.
Show them the fun side
Sports do contain an element of competitiveness, but make sure that your kid understands there is a lot of fun to be had. If you have a sense of humour about everything and keep it light, your child won’t be under pressure to perform flawlessly.
You can even spice the things up by customising their clothes. If you choose something neat, like these TWP dresses for girls, they will be proud and feel more positive about the whole experience. Also, you can even invent a game so that your kid doesn’t feel inferior. This will do wonders when it comes to morale.
Foster positive spirit
No kid wants to disappoint their parents, so make sure to stay upbeat and encourage your kid. You don’t want them to associate sport with disappointment to their parents or their coach. Also, if your kid is involved in some competition, don’t despair if they underachieve. Remember that the most important thing for them is to have fun while at the same time improving their health, social skills and teamwork.
As you can see, whether your kid will be interested in sport and whether they will continue playing depends largely on you, your attitude and behaviour. Being a parent, you’re responsible for your kid’s wellbeing, and physical activities are a major part of it. That means we have no excuse to neglect this obligation. Instead, we should see it as an opportunity to do something great for our kids.