lmao, that's one to hold onto
My dad was a professional soccer player in Europe.
My uncles on my mother's side were both All-State football players.
She was a cheerleader.
My dad drove me hard hard hard from eighth grade on.
He bought me a weight set, books on nutrition and lifting, books on wrestling drills to do at home, protein bars, protein powder, gym memberships... you name it.
He still does these things actually, because he feels as if I haven't found my niche. I am going to try boxing next and see if something clicks. He would have been in the Olympics easily if he hadn't quit a few years before to go to college (he was and is a SICK defender, but his knees are shot), so I guess he's trying to live vicariously through me. It doesn't bother me, though; he doesn't push or yell - he's very encouraging.
Adam from Conn, Silesian Express
This is a good thread, as I am questioning myself about how to approach these same things when my daughter and (future)son grow up.--future son cause we have to make one first;)
My parents really had no role in my fitness, aside from not having lots of junk food around the house. I played all the normal kid sports--baseball, soccer, football--but never was really into any of them, quit them all before junior high. I started wrestling in high school and loved it, even though I sucked at it. That feeling you get after a good hard wrestling practice is awesome, I haven't found it anywhere else. Until I started sub wrestling, which is just mroe of the same. Being totally wiped after an NHB match, knowing you lost but there was no more to give, that is just indescribable.
I am lucky, in that my wife was a competitive swimmer, so she wants our kids to be active if not athletic as well. She is now into fitness, mainly for losing weight like most women, and we have had discussions on what sports for our kids to try. I hope our next is a boy so I can get him started wrestling early on. My luck, he won't like it:(
But whether I raise the next UFC champ and first Female UFC champ(lol) or not, I do plan on teaching them how to fight for self defense, something my parents neglected to teach ma, and something which could have made my earlier school days much better. My parents were very anti-violence, and I agree there is some validity to that view. Everything cannot be solved with a fist, but everything cannot be solved with words either. At some point you have to stand up and say, 'I'm not going to let you do that anymore. I'm not running to my mom, or to the teacher, or to Officer Brown down the street. I'm going to stand here and hurt you until you stop.'
Nice thread.
"How did your parents help you to get fit when you were young?"
Well my parents paid for swimming lessons and Football club fees and such so they contributed that way. My parents I can't remember activitly getting me to play Sports as being poor back then wasn't fun. I played in the park and I did a lot of sports.
I have always loved a variety of sports and did everything I could. I'm also very competitive so I would work and train hard at them.
But for the most part as soon as I was about 12yrs I did it all by myself. Of course my parents paid for fee's and such as I didn't have a job until I was 15 or 16. I stayed behind after school and did sports.
imo it is a big factor for the kid/child to get to sports or at least look in. The parent should pay fee's transport withtin reason! So no full set of Ping clubs or a boat to race! But most sports are not expensive. If the child can't be assed th en that is that. They can be encouraged but they probably won't last until they actually like it.
I was never encouraged as I am self motivated so that was that. Parents did worry about sports injury's and such...
Koing
Both my parents have kinesiology degrees, so they were always good sources of info.
I watched my dad lift in the garage since I was a wee one. After a while he taught me some lifts and such.
Mom made me help her train for a marathon, which is where I discovered my aversion to running.
They always had me in sports and at the beach surfing. They did it perfectly IMO, they didn't stress me, they just encouraged me and showed me the right way to go.
I'm noticing a trend that a few of us had very athletic parents. Nothing like having a good start in life.