How to protect your kids while playing sports

Getting your kids involved in sports is a great way to teach them social skills and to teach them a sense of responsibility and independence. Plus, sports are a lot of fun for kids as they get to let their competitive sides shine and showcase their skills in the athletic world. Unfortunately, sometimes in sports, injuries happen and kids get hurt more than some parents would care to admit while they are playing their sports of choice. You as a parent can help to prevent these injuries and can protect your child while playing sports by following the five tips below.

1. Wear the right equipment

When your kids are playing sports, they will likely have to purchase different safety equipment for each sport that they choose to engage in to help to prevent injury. For football, for instance, make sure your child has a good pair of football gloves, a good quality helmet, and good fitting shoulder pads. For soccer, your child will want a pair of shin covers so they do not get kicked accidentally by another player on the field. For baseball, your child will need a protective cup and a good helmet to keep them safe if the ball were to hit them in the head.

2. Stretch with your kids

Sometimes, injuries happen to your kids on the sports field with no fault to another player. It may be a muscle cramp or a pulled muscle that causes your child to get injured due to excessive movement of the muscle. Teach your children different stretches that they can do before each of their games, even engaging in them with them so that they become motivated to do the stretches. This helps to loosen up your child’s muscles so that they do not become easily injured or easily hurt during the game.

3. Teach the rules

Sometimes, injuries occur during sports just because your child does not fully understand the rules of the game that they are playing. When playing basketball, for instance, you can teach your child that they cannot wrap their arms completing around another player and cannot hold another player down. In soccer, your child can learn that it is illegal to steal the ball from behind, and you can win more easily by focusing on the ball. Make sure that your child knows exactly what his job is in the position that he plays in for a certain sport as well.

4. Communicate

Though you should not embarrass your child during a game, you can still communicate with them about being aware of their surroundings. Your child should be able to notice when other players are on the field so that he or she can avoid them and potential injury. They should know also that when the ball is hit in baseball, they cannot just throw the bat and potentially hit another player. Even in swimming, for instance, your child cannot just jump in the water until the lane is clear from another swimmer.

5. Take a break for injuries

If your child does happen to get injured, he or she should not play until they are cleared by a medical professional. Playing a game prematurely can cause the injury to become worse to where maybe even your child will never be able to play again. Let the coach know as soon as your doctor has confirmed an injury that your child may be facing, and even take a doctor’s note with you. The coach will likely still let your child sit with the team so he or she feels as if he is still part of the sport.

Final thoughts

Unfortunately, injuries happen all too often in the sports world, with even professional players becoming injured from time to time. You can protect your child from these injuries though by getting them the right gear and ensuring they know how to play the game correctly. You can also be sure to teach your child how to stretch and the proper way to look out for others on the field or court to avoid injury. If injuries do occur, make sure that you take your child to a doctor and that you let him or her rest as necessary.

By McKenzie Jones