Any advice for parents of a 7th grader to avoid my kid getting burnt out?
My kid is a football, hoops, and lax defender, but lax is his best sport. There's always pressure to do more lax to keep up with the other kids. I'm wondering if it would be a mistake for him to quit hoops to play more lax in the winter (which he was considering this year). Not sure if the multi-sport approach fights off the lax burn out, but I'm hoping so.
I appreciate all of you sharing your stories.
Personal opinion. Quitting basketball to play lacrosse in the winter would probably accelerate the burnout risk.
I am a huge advocate for playing multiple sports. For one reason, while it isn't "rest" you are using different muscles/movements in other sports so overuse in cut back a little bit. And there are skills that are picked up in other sports that can be applied back to lacrosse.
My advice is don't feel the pressure to keep up with anyone besides what your son is looking to do....especially during middle school years. It's OK to take a full offseason from a sport -- your son won't be as far behind everyone else as you'd think.
