Coaching Junior Triathletes - Gadgets vs Bike....

Considering the positive effects of investing in your kid's health from an early age

Coaching Junior Triathletes - Gadgets vs Bike....

An iPad cost around $400 to $500 and we know most of the kids of the new generation have one! As you can see here, a nice entry level bike (I just Googled cheap bikes and I swear it's better than the first bike I rode back in the late 80's) cost same price, yet its funny that I often hear from parents:

"Well a bike is a big investment so I don't know..."

Funny how the same parents do not think twice about an iPad, something that will:

* Keep your kid inside the house with no social interaction (not even with parents!!)
* Help to limit exercise and activity
* Miss out on discovering things in life that only being outside give us all !
* and much more !!!

Whereas a bike will:

* Improve health and develop a new skill
* Maybe develop into a new passion in sport (cycling or triathlon)
* Develop social skills, when riding with friends, coach or even parents
* Keep them AWAY from gadgets that we all know they already spend way too much time on
* and much more !!!

And even if the kid decides later that he/she does not want to ride a bike and wants to pursue a different sport, you can sell or give it to another kid, helping them to be healthy; something you cannot do with an old iPad that nobody wants (because they already have new ones!)

As we all know it's clear that the new generation is going to have a shorter lifespan: not only live less but with less quality ! First time in history that this is being predicted!! Yes, we are going backwards !

Most of that is credited to poor nutrition, either from poor food choices or bad food quality but also due to an increase of inactivity compared to older generations.

I remember when I was at the age of the kids I coach on my Junior program (12 to 17) my parents had the HARDEST time making me come inside the house for dinner because all I wanted was to be outside playing, either soccer (football), running around, riding bike, jumping walls, etc. Right now it's unfortunately the opposite ! Kids want to play video games or be on computers which it is not only bad for physical development but also social skills! Most of their communication with friends is made through a phone or computer....

I can clearly see the difference with the kids I coach now compared to late 90's when I first started to coach this age... More and more they have a hard time communicating with me (or other coaches I have spoken with) and that I see it's a big problem for their own athletic development.

Solution ? Not sure... I know people are tired of listening to me saying that we need to go back to basics, not only how we lived our lives with more outside activities but also how we used to eat... It's a different time and era now and as a coach I have to adapt and try to get the best out of my athletes with what I have NOW.

It's for sure a new challenge and I'm worried about the direction of our teenage kids nowadays...

Let's get the kids outside ! Away a bit from the gadgets: and for most, it needs to come from parents; who will also likely benefit from more activities themselves and have memorable, invaluable time with their children