Sports can push your child to strive for their own personal perfection.

Out of all the sports I tried growing up (tumbling, soccer, swimming, baseball, basketball, track) I have never met more perfectionist until I experienced gymnasts, cheerleaders and dancers. These athletes DO NOT accept any standard short of perfection; ie. They tend to practice their skills until they beyond exhausted and frustrated. Perfectionism has many redeeming qualities but it can also lead to challenges. While these athletes do strive to be the best; many end up only breaking themselves down and the others around them. The title of this week’s post, “Pobody’s Nerfect”, without fault describes the point I am trying to get across; nobody’s perfect but we should strive to be our personal best.

In sports,  athletes train in an environment where they are persistently told to adjust, adapt and overcome their skills. These athletes learn to never settle and continue to push for more. For most athletes, this is a good, healthy thing because not only do they strive to be the best in their field, but also at life. Constructive critique can teach children to work hard for things they want not only in sports but in school as well.  Learning at a young age how to to be your best can be a good thing, but at times, it can cause stress as well.

Stress is a very natural thing that we all experience from time to time, and that stress can help us better ourselves but it also can put a multitude of mental strain from our adverse situations. In my eyes, stress is what keeps us in check and helps prevent us from being lackadaisical. Stress is that little reminder in the back of our mind that tells us we need to worry about upcoming deadlines or events in our lives for which we need to prepare. Positive stress can push us to challenge ourselves, overcome obstacles and meet our goals.

Passion, pride, self-perfection are what I think about when I look at the athletes that come through Twister Sports.  Our athletes work day in and day out to achieve what few only dream of;  unfortunately sometimes that perfectionism comes with a price. For some, self-induced stress with the ability to achieve makes them strong, independent, and successful in all aspects of life and their sport. Dream, believe, achieve are how these athletes live their lives and that is something worth envying I dare say. No one is perfect, but that doesn’t mean we cannot strive for our own personal version of perfection!

This blog was written by Twister Sports Tumbling Director, Patrick Davison.