I didn't run but one race in all of 2013 (Mattapoisett Road Race played host to some BRUTAL weather conditions this year!). While road races and "Warrior/Mud Dashes" have become the rage, I've found their popularity somewhat souring. While I appreciate anything that motivates people to move their bodies, I've never been much of a "people person", preferring the comfort of my home-gym to the showcase forums of the "cross-fit"/membership gyms. Despite my personal rebuke of the current fitness trends, I'm probably more physically active now than I have been in years!
I've discovered the unusual world of adult ice hockey! On late nights while many New Englanders are already asleep, and early mornings before heading to school, I'm out on the ice. I'm playing competitively 3-5 times weekly and have been doing so for more than two years now. This is in addition to my youth hockey coaching commitments, which have had me at a rink at least two additional times weekly for the last 5 months! The world of adult ice hockey spans an interesting continuum...from a 70+ year-old gentleman that I play competitively with in the local Monarch's Adult League, to recently graduated and former high school "superstars". I even skated several sessions with former Boston Bruin, Nevin Marquart down at Gallo in Bourne (apparently he has a house on the Cape).
Interestingly, I played youth and high school hockey as a child/tween/teen, but had almost forgotten about the sport prior to my son's entry into skating/youth hockey. As he learned to skate, I accompanied him, rediscovering the joy of being on the ice. As a child/tween/teen, I remember a lot of pressure to be "better" when it came to my play of ice hockey. Whether it was my peers or coaches providing such negativity, it didn't really matter. As a kid, hockey was far less FUN for me than it is today, eventually leading to my abandonment of the game.
This brings me to my point...as adults, we must caution ourselves against overly-imposing our "grown-up" values onto our children when it comes to being physically active and engaged in youth sports and play. Statistics are staggering regarding the sport drop-out rate of kids prior to high school. Children cite poor coaching, increasing pressure, and a lack of FUN as major contributors to sport drop-out. With today's and our future generations of children being labeled as the "least active" in history, the shift to developing long-term or lifelong athletes seems urgent. I'm interested in hearing your story...why are or aren't you as active today as you were as a child and what do you think we should do about it?