Energy drinks such as Red Bull, Hype, or Guru are increasingly popular among young athletes. Children perceive these drinks as natural and good for health. Unfortunately, parents do also. Very often, I see parents buying these drinks to their kids. This is why this multi-billion dollars industry is targeting more and more young athletes. But what are those energy drinks exactly?

These drinks contain a lot of caffeine as well as guarana whose active ingredient is also caffeine. An acceptable daily dose for children is:
age 4-6: 45 mg
age 7-9: 62.5 mg
age 10-12: 85 mg
while doses of these energy drinks produce an average of 160 mg per serving (473 ml can) and a cup of coffee produces 179 mg per serving. Would you give a cup of coffee to your child before, during, or after a physical activity? Yet many parents encourage their child to take a can of Red Bull before a game to give them energy!

These drinks also have a high level of sugar which accelerates dehydration thus increasing the risk of fatigue... and a decline of performance. Which is exactly the opposite of the expected effect! Did you know that a loss of 2% of body weight in water (which triggers the feeling of thirst) leads to a decrease of 10% of the physical capacity?

During a physical activity, it is very important to hydrate before, during and after. If the activity lasts less than an hour, water remains the best choice for hydration. If the activity is more intense and lasts more than an hour, sports drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade are ideal for their dose of sugar (that serves as fuel) and salt (that compensates for losses due to perspiration) . The energy drinks contain too much sugar (it contains 15 grams per 100 ml unlike 4 to 8 g for a sports drink) so that the drink remains longer in the stomach which can cause bloating and nausea. According to a study by researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School, children have 60% more chances to become obese for each sugar drink consumed.

If you don't want to spend to much money on bottles of Gatorade, you can use a mixture of juice and water in equal portions with a pinch of salt added.

At first, let me make it clear: you should never force children to practice a sport or an activity that they don't like neither to force them to go beyond where they are willing to go.

Sounds obvious like that but it is scary how many parents I saw in my career that where seeing their son or daughter as the winner they never were or as the champion that they always wished to be. Do not forget: YOU ARE NOT DOING THE SPORT, YOUR KID IS!

Oh, we all know some success stories about a young gymnast who made it to the Olympics or a tennis player who turned pro early despite their tyrannical parents. But for 1 kid who made it, how many childhoods were broken? Thousands? Tens of thousands? Let kids be kids. If your kid is good and has the talent and the mind to go far, he will, with or without you. When I am talking to parents, I always say: "It is tough for a parent to help their kids to achieve success while it is so easy to make them fail!"

Now, you will ask me: "Ok, that is nice, do not push your children. Yeah, yeah! But I don't want my son or daughter to be a quitter, to always look for the easy way out when things are tough." Yep, you're right! You know the old saying: "When the going get tough, the tough get going!" As parents we all want our kids to be among the toughs. This is absolutely normal. But who said it is easy to be a parent? ;-)

First, it depends on the age of the children. Between 3 and 5 years old, we usually decide where we sign them up. Sometimes, if they have older brothers and sisters they might tell you: "I wanna play soccer" or "I wanna do cartwheels like my sister" but usually it is the parent's decision. We are usually influenced by neighbors, family, and local publicity. And of course, since it is our decision and not theirs, the chances to get it wrong are larger. You have to watch carefully your kid's attitude. Do not get too worried when they complain when you interrupt their playing time to go the swimming lesson or the soccer game. It is normal and usually has more to do with the fact that they have to stop their actual playing. As soon as they realize that they will be playing somewhere else they will be happy again. But if they are still complaining even when they are practicing their sport then you should start asking yourself questions. If it is a fight every time, do not hesitate and try something else. Do not wait too long. They will not become quitters at this time. They just want to have fun at this age. Most organizations have a refund policy, ask for it at the sign-up.

Older kids usually choose their activities. They are usually influenced by friends or by something that caught their attention on TV like in big events or professional sports finals. Olympics have a big influence in sports recruiting. Most sports represented in the Olympics know an increase in their recruiting in an Olympic year. Even more when a local athlete wins. For older kids that choose their own sport, make it clear right at the beginning: "If you sign up, you stay until the end of the season". This is called "keeping your engagements". It is important that they learn to make the proper choices and assume the responsibilities that go with it. Let's take a basketball team for example. The kid signs up in a team with a limited number of players. Maybe the organization even refused some inscriptions because the team was full. If a player decides to quit after 2 or 3 weeks because "he doesn't like it anymore" or because "they lost the first 3 games", it is the whole team that is affected by his decision. So think about your choice and keep your word. If you think you didn't make the right choice then do not reenter yourself at the next session.

Also, at the beginning, validate your child's ambition. Does he want just to have fun, spend time with his friend and practice the sport just for the fun of it? Does he want to be good at it and perform at the highest level he can go? Or maybe he really wants to make it to the Olympics? Wow! I just got an idea for another article: My kid wants to go to the Olympics. What should I do? Well, this will be for issue #3. You will have to stay tuned, folks ;-)

Ok, back to our actual subject. Whatever the ambition is will guide you in the perseverance matter. If he is serious about being good and competing at the highest level then he has to be willing to make some sacrifices and you will have to be a little more "pushy" and insist a little more because sometimes it will be tougher than other times and sometimes he will loose and get discouraged. These are not good reasons to quit. "Au contraire", these should be times to increase the athlete's efforts. This is where the line between teaching perseverance and pushing too much is getting thinner and thinner. But good communication is always the best way to know where is this line. You know, there ARE good reasons to call it quit and you should always aim for your children's happiness first. Do not forget, your son is not a basketball player, he's your son. Your daughter is not a gymnast, she's your daughter. And do not forget that you might have other kids in your family, that are not doing sports and who also need your love. You might laugh but I saw it quite often. All the family focus is around the youngest daughter who wins tennis tournaments and the brothers and sisters do not exist. Sad.

Finally, to make it short (because I can talk about it for hours), always verify where you sign up your children. Is it a serious organization with a clean history? Who are the coaches, the volunteers? What are there background? Do they have criminal records? Yes, I'm serious, criminal records! As a parent, you are allowed, and you HAVE to verify this because you are going to entrust the most precious thing in your life to this person and sometimes for more than 20 hours a week for high level athletes. Be twice as careful with male coaches and volunteers. This might sounds like a prejudice but it's a fact; when we hear about horror stories, 80% of the time it is a man.

Well, on this bright note ;-)) I say that's it for now. And don't let the last paragraph scares you. 99.9% of the organizations and volunteers are great with kids and you should encourage your kids to do some activities. With all those bad news about overweight kids in North America, we owe it to them to make sure to will live long and healthy.

Good bye and take care of your kids!

Here's a fun article I read a couple of years ago in Sports Illustrated for Kids. I found it very amusing and yet so true. So here goes:

TEN THINGS PARENTS DON'T GET ABOUT KIDS AND SPORTS
You may not want to hear this but...most kids have a lot to say about their parents ' involvement in their sports lives, especially what they don't like about it. Here is our Top 10 list of kids' advice for parents , gleaned from comments by S.I. FOR KIDS readers.

1- During car rides to games or practice, kids don't want you to tell them how to do this or that. "I am not stupid," said one 12-year-old. "I know how to play the sport I play."

2- Kids can get psyched for a game without your help. "I hate when parents say, 'Are you ready? We're going to win,' like they're playing," said one kid.

3- It's your duty as a parent to sit quietly and watch your kids do wonderful things. Kids get bummed out when you miss games or yak it up too much with friends in the stands. "We're sweating and playing the game, and they're busy socializing," complained one girl.

4- If you don't know what you're talking about, kids don't want you to talk. Typical comments: " Parents think they know the rules, but they don't." "My mom asks annoying questions." And "I hate when my mom tells me to do things even when she doesn't know the first thing about sports ."

5- Even if you do know what you're talking about, kids don't want you to talk (unless you're the coach). "I hate when parents tell us to do the exact opposite of what the coaches say," said one child. Added another: "If your parent isn't the coach, he or she shouldn't try to be one."

6- Kids wish you would practice what you preach about sportsmanship. "My mom always wants me to be a 'good sport,' but a lot of the time she blames the loss on the ref," claimed one kid.
"Arguing with the refs is not only embarrassing, but it takes up time," said another.

7- Kids often can't hear you yelling when they're concentrating on the game. Sometimes, they can. Either way, they don't like it. " Parents yell advice you don't hear because you're so into playing the game. Afterward they say, 'Why didn't you listen to me?' " complained one child.
Said others: "I feel embarrassed when my parents yell so loud that the whole town can hear," and "They yell and scream and look like dorks."

8- After they lose, kids don't want to be told it doesn't matter. Typical reactions: "I hate when we get knocked out of the playoffs and my parents say, 'You'll get them next time!' " and "When parents try to cheer you up after a loss, all they do is remind you of the score."

9- After they lose, kids don't want to be told that it does matter. " Parents take losses harder than we do," wrote one boy. Advised one girl: "You win some, you lose some, no big deal! Get over it!"

10- Kids just want to have fun. Parents just don't get this, kids say. Many kids say they would rather play on a losing team than sit on the bench on a winning one. Some would like to skip practice once in a while. "The thing that bugs me the most is that my parents take it too seriously," summed up one child. "They act like it's school."