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‘Keep it fun’ to help avoid burnout in youth sports

By John Sacco 5 min read
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Suzanne Antonucci was stressed as a track and field athlete at Robert Morris University.

She, and her husband, Joel, are determined to do everything possible to help their three young children – Julian, 9, Rory, 7, and Lainey, 5 – avoid a similar fate as they pursue their youth activities.

The Antonuccis, of Peters Township, want to keep it fun while maintaining a competitive component in whatever activity or sport they do.

“I think a couple things are important to having our kids enjoy what they are doing,” Suzanne Antonucci said. “We let them choose and try out a bunch of different sports. Julian has tried many sports. Some of the sports he left behind because he didn’t enjoy them. We want them to be involved in athletics, and they seem to be interested.

“We want them to be able to direct their paths in the small way they can at this point. We try not to focus too much on performance. If they hustle and give best effort, we are proud of them. I think that helps take a little pressure off. Even when they make mistakes or have a bad game, we emphasize the positives.”

Damarion Geter, staff counselor at Washington & Jefferson College, agrees it is the responsibility of coaches and parents to keep sports fun.

“It is important to keep it fun,” said Geter, who played basketball at Longwood University. “If you go in looking to be a Division I athlete or have an expectation of that put on you, it changes the way you view a sport. Every time you step on a playing field or court, the expectation exists in your mind.

“Little mistakes become big mistakes. Pressure and stress could become more intense. If you’re not careful, the athlete will fall out of love with the sport. Focusing on one sport can lead to many issues. Playing multiple sports helps and taking a break occasionally is important. Those things can help in dealing with mental health issues.”

Geter maintains that while some level of stress is essential in competition, it becomes “tricky” when the stress starts impacting attitude and performance.

“When seasons start, there is typically a lot of energy from everyone. As seasons and practices wear on, it is important to keep things light and find ways to maintain focus but also to free the mind of too much pressure. That wears on you.

“Sports is one of the few ‘jobs’ where there is an expectation of daily improvement and intense focus. Every practice and every game are a test. It can wear athletes down physically and mentally. With younger athletes, especially, we must be careful of burnout. The right approach is do something fun or that takes away from a daily grind.

“We are a result-driven society. Young athletes need help balancing learning a sport and maintaining a liking or love for the sport. They develop that by not having daily expectations on them and allowing them to enjoy the sports.”

Suzanne Antonucci can relate.

“I know what I experienced in college, a helpless feeling. Joel and I opened the door for our kids to talk about their concerns and we ask if they have any worries, anxiety or fears. I know it’s not healthy to keep it inside.

“We always remind our kids that no matter what they do or don’t do, they are loved unconditionally.”

That understood support goes a long way in pushing anxieties and worries to the side, experts and athletes agree.

“I think the development of love for the game should be the top priority for any children in sports before high school,” said Tyler Caterino, a graduate of Monessen High School and recently of Westminster College. Caterino played soccer nearly his entire life. “Ideally, you should want your children to love what they do and have fun doing it – even if that means doing something that you don’t enjoy.

“Often, parents try to live through their children and force their love of the game on their children, when really, their child doesn’t like it as much.

“In my opinion, the biggest mistake parents can make with children is forcing them to play sports that they do not want to play. I believe a big mistake parents can make is taking the fun out of the sport (by) expecting too much, demanding them to win and forcing a specific sport on them.”

Joe Dunn is the former boys basketball coach at Trinity High School. He currently is director of Extra-Pass Sports Training and Consulting, a coaching in-service and athletic development program for coaches of all levels.

He focuses on helping coaches be the best coach they can be and to understand that player safety is of utmost importance followed by fun, developing their players and then winning.

“Through the years mental health has been ignored,” Dunn said. “A lot of times coaches pay lip service. Coaches aren’t really prepared. They just don’t have the experience. Safety is not just physical but mental safety. Too many coaches rent it, but they don’t own it.

“Paying attention to the mental health of players is a part of their responsibility. It’s about caring.”

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