Best Summer Sports

Summer is just around the corner. Many of us are already experiencing warmer temperatures and thinking about summer sports. Sports are a great way to keep fit. If you are looking for ideas on some of the best summer sports, here is a list for you. Try your hand at volleyball. The great thing about volleyball is when it’s played on a beach. Not only do you get to play but you get to lie out on the beach when you are resting. Volleyball really works your arms and legs. Biking is another fun sport that allows you the opportunity … Continue reading →

Potentially Dangerous Fitness Choices

Watching the Olympic high divers execute their near flawless routines you have to wonder what their parents are thinking when they see their flesh and blood hurl their bodies off a 33-foot high block of cement into a pool of water. And when the divers heads come so close to the platform… yikes! I get chills just thinking about it. You can’t put a price tag on the pride that comes when your child is passionate about a physical activity, but every parent knows that some forms of exercise are more dangerous than others. Take the sport of cheerleading for … Continue reading →

Tennis For Two? Or Four?

Sound like fun? Tennis can be a great way to dive into springtime fitness because you can do it with a friend, with a spouse, with a friend and a spouse or with the whole family. Tennis courts are pretty accessible, I know a lot of places in my local area that have free tennis courts so all you need to show up with is your racket and some tennis balls. Not Steffi Graf I’m not Steffi Graf either, but you don’t have to be to enjoy a solid game of tennis. In fact, I think it’s more fun when … Continue reading →

Baseball Tips for Kids (and Parents too!)

“Mom, can we go play some baseball together?” This question was posed to me recently by my six year-old daughter. My initial response was, well, no because two people do not make a team and it’s hard to play ball with just two people. But that’s not necessarily true. If you both have gloves, you can play catch. If you have gloves and a bat you can practice hitting. So it’s doable – but unfortunately for my daughter, I’m terrible at throwing. But what the heck, let’s give it a shot anyway. In the meanwhile, if you’re looking to organize … Continue reading →

Heelys – Good or Bad For Kids?

Do you know what a heely is? I see them all the time now. When I was substitute teaching at the school, I was constantly reminding the kids they needed to take the wheels out of their heels while they were in the school. Heeling is growing more popular by the day and kids as young as four and five are getting in on the heeling action. So what’s the problem? Fractures & Sprains A study was released yesterday in a pediatrics journal that detailed how 67 children had been treated for injuries directly related to their Heelys. The study … Continue reading →

Cheerleading – America’s Dangerous Sport

Let me preface this article with the fact that my daughter takes cheerleading classes, not cheerleading like you see at high school events or even in the movie: Bring It On. Her cheerleading is more of the cute variety where she swings her arms, stomps her feet, says a quick cheer and maybe does a cartwheel or two. Yet, a couple of months ago there was an article in the New York Times that stated cheerleading had become the most perilous of high school and collegiate sports. According to the article, female high school and collegiate athletes sustained 104 catastrophic … Continue reading →

Dusty Bottom Awards & Young Riders

My daughter takes horseback riding lessons and yesterday, she earned a prestigious Dusty Bottom Award. So what is a Dusty Bottom award you may be wondering? These are certificates given to young riders at the stables where she takes her lessons when they fall or are tossed from their horse’s back and hit the sand in the arena – thus creating the dusty bottom. Falling off the Horse Falling off the horse is as important to a young rider’s education as riding a horse is. In fact, it may be one of the most important lessons a rider can learn. … Continue reading →

What is it about Sports that Brings Out the Worst in Parents?

Did you see the footage of the Ukrainian father and coach who started beating his daughter when she didn’t make it in a qualifying swim meet in Australia? Those of us who did see the actions were appalled and it’s very likely that the father didn’t realize that the camera was indeed focused on him as he started slapping and hitting his daughter. According to some viewers, he might have even realized that he went too far as he tried to hug her and she pushed him away. In one small glimmer of good fortune, the father has now been … Continue reading →

Blog 2000 & Roller Skating: Check It Out!

This is my 2000th article posted here at Families.com. I started with the first batch of bloggers back in 2005. Fitness was my primary blog and I’ve since taken on Marriage and Baby, but my first love – fitness, remains. I thought about doing a retrospective here for my 2000th blog, but instead, I wanted to talk about a new passion that I’ve got and spend some more time exploring it. So I hope you’ll join me here for my 2000th blog and Roller Skating. The Fun Way To Get Exercise As many of my regular readers may know, I’ve … Continue reading →

Stroller Skating – Do you Stroller Skate?

This is actually pretty neat – and I was debating putting this in the baby blog, but it actually fits really well here in the fitness blog. Do you remember a few months ago that I talked about Stroller Moms? When my daughter and I went to the skating birthday party yesterday, it was the first time that I’d been in a skating rink in more than 20 years (and now don’t I feel exceptionally old?) Anyway, when we were at the skating rink, I saw a sign for stroller skating hours and I headed over to talk to the … Continue reading →