7 reasons to enrol your child in sports

Sometimes organized sports for kids get a bad rap because of a perceived emphasis on winning and pressure to attend, but sports are geared towards your child’s development. Here are some reasons why you should consider signing your child up for sports.

Regular exercise improves kids’ flexibility, strength, endurance, cardiovascular and respiratory health and coordination.

• It helps them maintain a healthy weight and improve body composition. They are less likely to get tired during the day and more likely to participate in other activities, whether that's games, dancing or other sports.
• Regular exercise habits learned at a young age can also stave off diseases like breast cancer and osteoporosis.
• Research has shown that children involved in sports are less likely to smoke than couch potatoes.

As far as character development and confidence is concerned, sport teaches kids the value of participation, giving their best effort and working as a team.

• It’s not about winning, it’s about trying. They also learn that practice and hard work can lead to achievement — a useful lesson for school and life in general.

By playing sports, kids learn about balance, coordination and spatial relationships, and develop fine motor skills.

Exercise’s increased flow of endorphins — neurotransmitters that are released in the brain—can improve kids’ moods and release stress.

• Team sports are also a great way for children to develop new friendships, which helps with their state of mind.

Research shows that kids involved in sports do better in school than those who don't play.

• Regular exercise gets blood flowing to the brain, boosting memory and concentration, improving essential skills for classroom learning.
• On the playing field, kids must learn to remember and apply rules, plays and strategies, even when they are excited.

When your kid gets involved with sports, the parent can also participate in a number of ways.

• In the early stages, you can jump, kick and pass with them, helping them to develop their skills and confidence.
• You can also get involved with their teams by coaching.
• The very act of driving your kid to those early morning practices and sitting through their games can serve to form lifelong bonds.

Happiness is probably the most important benefit of participating a sport.

• Through sport, kids get to socialize, learn about themselves and others, develop physically and mentally, and realize that work itself can be play — something they'll remember their whole lives.

It doesn't matter which sport your child picks, but getting out every week to be a part of a team and get moving is good for them, and you!