August 26, 2018 – 

Kids in today’s world who have a desire to be athletic or in sports sometimes feel like it is a daunting task.  Even at very young ages, kids know the bar is set high due to the performance of athletes before them.  Our youngest athlete’s are already programmed to know that excellence requires size, strength, and speed.  Coaches scream and demand it, parents push it, and teams base the outcome on it.  We are so driven to excel we must dedicate, magnify, sacrifice and devote our focus no matter the price.  Albeit healthy, or safe, or wise? Goals are sometimes blind.  We push our bodies to the brink of pain or injury for success! How far will we go?

I listened to a TED talk recently about todays athletes versus the best athletes of the past. There is no way to better explain his point of view about sports so I will not even try, but for those of you interested I have attached the link. It is very interesting.

We are only human and our bodies can only do so much.  Machines even break down and many are engineered for duration and abuse, yet they still break down.  Our bodies are engineered for a multitude of stressors but overuse and fatigue will certainly deteriorate our parts; joints, muscles, and even recovery organs. I ran across an article today about school sports programs and the variety of sad stories where kids dehydrate. Many due to ego and refusing to get off the field or properly hydrate before sporting events.  We are only human!

Summer almost over and school sports will start up again soon and you all know how pushy I am about the importance of “drinking water” every day and staying hydrated!  Just in case you have forgotten, check the link again to find out how much water you really DO need to consume daily to protect your body.

IF you are an athlete or know of one (especially if they are in school sports) do them a favor this summer/almost school year and stronglyencourage them to be the best they can be … to do that definitely requires hydration.  Not just pre-hydration but post hydration sport as well. Are you hydrated in this brutal hot Texas weather?  It is easy to do, just drink it!!

In good health,

Bob

“Dear stomach, you’re thirsty, not hungry.  So shut-up!”  – Bob Geib