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There has been much controversy since a Connecticut judge ruled that cheerleading was not a sport. I insure several cheerleading organizations and almost everyone I have spoken to disagrees with the ruling.

A sport by definition is “a physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively”. That would hold true for competitive cheerleading, but the majority of cheerleading squads do not participate in any competitions.  Their sole purpose is to motivate the team they are cheering for and also to entertain the fans.

The Women’s Sports Foundation has 4 specific criteria that need to be met in order to consider the activity a sport.

1. A physical activity which involves propelling a mass through space or overcoming the resistance of a mass
2. A contest or competition against or with an opponent
3. Is governed by rules which explicitly define the time, space and purpose of the contest and the conditions under which a winner is determined.
4. The acknowledged primary purpose of the competition is a comparison of the relative skills of the participants.

Although there are many cheerleading squads that are competitive and that would fall under the guidelines of a sport, there are still more cheerleading squads that do not compete and that would not fall under the sports category.  Many people have speculated that until competitive cheer out numbers non-competitive cheer, cheerleading will not be considered a sport.

There is no debate that cheerleaders are outstanding athletes.  Just like any other athlete cheerleaders must condition, train and practice.  The activities that cheerleaders perform require strength, poise and flexibility.

Maybe they should define cheerleading into two categories: Competitive cheerleading (which would fall under a sport) and then just cheerleading.

What are your thoughts?

Millions of children participate in youth sports every year. Youth sports are a great way for children to exercise, build self confidence and learn team work. Although there are many benefits associated with youth sports, there is also some risk.

As parents, our main concern is the safety of our children. Although we want our children to play youth sports we also want them to be safe.

I found many articles online regarding tips to keep your children safe while participating in youth sports. Northwestern Health Science had many informative articles on this subject.

I found 4 tips that were mentioned in all of the articles that I read:

Tip 1 – Warm-up and cool down before and after all practices or games.

This is extremely important and often overlooked due to time. Warm up and cool down stretches prevent many muscle strains. They also help promote good body mechanics.

Tip 2 – Wear Protective gear. This is a very important tip, and it encompasses several areas.

1.    Make sure that the gear fits you properly

2.    Only use protective gear specific to each sport.

3.    Make sure that any gear that is shared by others is wiped down and cleaned properly prior to wearing it.

Tip 3 – Kids should play by the rules.

When kids do not follow the rules, they are more likely to get penalties or fouls, which increases the risk of someone getting hurt.

Tip 4 – Never play through pain

I found this to be a very important tip, and since I have seen it happen first hand I realize how important it is. When you child gets injured, they need to stop playing. The worst thing you can do is tell you child to “tough it out”. Even if you do not think the injury is serious, it is better to be safe the sorry. Even a minor injury needs time to heal, and as parents and coaches we need to respect the healing process and realize we can cause more damage if we let the child play to soon after an injury.

I hope you find these tips helpful, please feel free to comment on any tips you know of.

I read an article by Nancy Clark, an author for Moms Team, which is a website with tons of sports information.  Nancy is a board certified specialist in sports dietetics.

At first I thought this is too good to be true. Chocolate and sports diet do not seem to go together.  As I read on I learned that chocolate, especially dark chocolate is a great source of phytonutrients.  Phytonutrients are certain organic components of plants, and these components are thought to promote better health.  Dark chocolate is a better choice than milk chocolate because it contains more phytonutrients.

Since chocolate comes from cocoa, it is a rich source of health protective phytochemicals.  The same phytochemicals that you would get from vegetables, fruits and grains.  Two tablespoons of natural cocoa powder has the same antioxidant power as ¾ cup of blueberries.  That was amazing to me.

Some other interesting facts about cocoa:

Now for the bad news…….An average Hershey’s bar consists of 230 calories, 24 grams of sugar and 13 g total fat.  If you need to rationalize eating that Hershey Bar, keep in mind that the fat in chocolate does not raise bad cholesterol ( that is great news).

Moderation is the key to benefiting from chocolate.  The author suggests enjoying dark chocolate as part of the 100-150 “discretionary”  calories that can be part of a daily sports diet.

I just read an interesting article in MayoClinic.com, that I wanted to share with you.   We all know that there is some risk when we let our children play youth sports. What most of us think of is a broken arm or sprained leg, but what we really need to concern ourselves with is dehydration.  Dehydration is very serious and can cause several health problems such as heat exhaustion, heat cramps, heat stroke and even death.

Any child who practices or plays in the heat is at risk of dehydration.  The risk is greater in younger children who play such sports as soccer, football, cross country and any other sports that starts in the late summer months.  Football players are at greater risk when they are practicing or playing with full protective gear on.  Children may be at greater risk if they are overweight, have been sick recently, or are not use to exercising.

Unfortunately children do not adapt as well as adults due to playing or practicing in the heat.  There are several reasons for this, children sweat less than adults, they produce more heat than adults and are less likely to drink as much water as an adult would.

What parents and coaches can do to help prevent dehydration:

1. Dehydration usually occurs within the first few days of practice. – coaches should start out slow and parents should tell their children to let them know if they start to feel weak or tired.
2. Have your child drink plenty of water before and during practice, even if they are not thirsty.
3. Reduce the intensity of any activity that lasts more than 15 minutes.
4. Try to dress your child in light colored, light weight clothing.

I came across a very interesting article in The Christian Science Monitor about teaching parent how to be better sports.  The article addressed how parents today view youth sports differently than before.  Some parents have such a desire for the kids to excel in sports that they lose sight of what youth sports are all about.  Youth sports have so many benefits such as teaching your child about team work, social interaction, physical exercise, discipline, etc., even if your child doesn’t excel at a certain sports they still will benefit just by participating.

Did you know childhood obesity has more than tripled in the last 30 years?  One out of three children in America is obese. This is the result of a caloric imbalance ( too few calories expended for the amount of calories consumed). Children are not getting the exercise they need.  Children today could benefit greatly by getting involved in youth sports, and spending less time in front of the television or playing on the computer.

Professional sports organizations are trying to help rectify this problem, and several professional athletes have started an organization called ‘nPlay. This is a government tax exempt  501(c)3 organization that focuses on financially supporting physical education and sports activities in low income areas. These areas statistically have the highest rates of childhood obesity.  Some of the athletes involved with this organization include Paul Pierce, Jennie Finch, Grant Hill, Evander Holyfield, Summer Sanders and Jay Fielder.

We’re happy to introduce our new blog!!  Have questions? Want to know more about sports insurance and how it affects you? Come back often for posts about sports, insurance and all things in between.

Have something specific you want to discuss or know about? Leave us a comment!

More than 45 plus United States Athletic or Boxing Commissions have agreed to regulate and allow Mixed Martial Arts in their states. While the sport continues to explode and the enthusiasm seems to know no limits, regulation has added much needed rules and guidelines to ensure the safety of the participants and spectators. Each state has specific rules when it comes to fighter safety, typically including all combatants must participate in a pre-fight medical screening by a commission-approved doctor, and that insurance is required for all fighters and referees in the events. Other rules, such as cage or ring size, are standard within most athletic commissions regulating the sport. Most states govern under the standard rules of mixed martial arts used in states such as Nevada and New Jersey.

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