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Making Sure Youth Sports Families are Thriving, Not Just Surviving

  • Media

TrueSport Hosts Fourth Annual Mental Wellness Symposium

 

We’re all familiar with the stories of sport families spending every penny on travel teams, every night and weekend on the field, and every ounce of energy on securing the next win. It’s draining, stressful, and overwhelming for everyone involved.

TrueSport Talks: Mental Wellness and Healthy Sport Families.“As both a sport parent and a member of Team USA, I have a deep appreciation for all the benefits that sport can offer, but I also know that creating a positive youth sport experience for the whole family has never been harder,” reflected four-time Paralympian Trevon Jenifer. “From very early on, we’re seeing immense pressure on athletes and caregivers to invest everything they have in sport, and oftentimes, it creates far more anxiety than joy for everyone. We’re seeing families fighting over the travel, the money, the playing time, and countless other stressors that take away from the ability to focus on development and well-being.”

So how do we make sure youth sport is a positive experience for the whole family? It starts with promoting open communication, resilience, and self-care strategies, which was the focus of this year’s TrueSport Talks Symposium on Mental Wellness and Healthy Sport Families.

Led by TrueSport, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency’s (USADA) youth sports outreach program, the fourth annual symposium was hosted in collaboration with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), NBC Sports Next, and the Kansas City Royals, with support from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) and the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation.

The free and virtual event, presented live from the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum, featured Team USA athletes and a wide range of experts specializing in mental health, sport, and athlete well-being.

Leaders from the Aspen Institute and the Kansas City Royals, along with Olympian and USADA Board Vice Chair, Dr. Judi Brown Clarke, kicked off the day with a session on how we can protect the joy of sports and the mental health of our young people, all while ensuring that these experiences reinforce an environment where healthy competition and challenges strengthen the next generation.

“As we continue to evolve our understanding of youth sports, it’s clear that mental wellness and family engagement are inseparable components of athletic success,” said Dr. Judi Brown Clarke, Olympian and Vice Chair of USADA’s Board of Directors. “This year’s TrueSport Talks represents our commitment to creating environments where young athletes can thrive both mentally and physically.”

This session was followed by a panel discussion hosted by Deborah Gilboa, a board-certified family physician, who spoke with Jenifer and Team USA weightlifter Abby Raymond, along with her father Todd Raymond, about resilience. From handling setbacks to fostering a growth mindset, this session offered small changes parents can make to see a big difference in their child’s ability to overcome challenges.

“As both a parent and coach, I’ve seen firsthand how the pressures of youth sports can impact our children’s mental well-being,” said Todd Raymond, the parent of Team USA weightlifter Abby Raymond. “We have navigated this space as a sport family through some pretty emotional highs and lows, and I loved the chance to celebrate my daughter’s resilience, share our family’s experience, and look for solutions that benefit all of us in this sport system.”

The symposium also featured breakout sessions on navigating emotions, setting boundaries, developing a balanced identity, and nurturing the connection between physical and mental health. Led by psychologists, a registered dietitian, and a sports medicine physician, these sessions offered practical and evidence-based strategies that parents and caregivers can utilize every day to protect and enhance their child’s health and well-being.

“By focusing on the entire sport family ecosystem, we’re addressing the fundamental need to create sustainable, mentally healthy environments where young athletes can thrive,” said Dr. Jennifer Royer, Senior Director of TrueSport and Awareness at USADA. “Through the collaborative insights of athletes, medical professionals, and industry experts, we’re developing practical, evidence-based solutions that will help families navigate the unique pressures of youth sports while preserving the joy and developmental benefits that sport should provide. This year’s event marks another significant step toward humanizing sport and ensuring it delivers on its potential to grow resilient, well-balanced individuals.”

To conclude the day, several experts who regularly work with young athletes focused on how to rekindle joy in youth sports, discussing the importance of clearly defining the purpose of sports for kids and how families can better appreciate the value sports bring to a child’s overall development.

More information about the event, sessions, and speakers is available here.

This event built off of the actionable takeaways and evidence-based recommendations from Mental Wellness and the Young Athlete in 2021, Mental Wellness and the Student-Athlete in 2022, and Mental Wellness and the Modern Coach in 2023. The event was streamed live via NBC Sports Next’s newly launched SportsEngine Play streaming platform.

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Goal-Setting Lesson Video Transcript

Hi. I’m Trevon, Trey, Jennifer. Team USA wheelchair basketball player, paralympian, and true sport athlete. Today, I want to talk to you about goal setting. And there are three things that I would like you to know. First, successful athletes set goals and a planned roadmap. Second, goals should be written down, assessed over time, and changed if necessary. And third, goals need to be challenging in order to be worthwhile. As a freshmen at Edinboro University, I was a part of a team that made the national championship game. And at that time I recognized I was the low man on the totem pole, but I felt in my heart that I knew my dreams were so much bigger than winning a national title. I wanted to make Team USA. I knew what achieving my lofty goal was not going to be easy and that I would need to work hard every day.

So, as a reminder, I created a pyramid of goals that I kept right above my bed. This pyramid reminded me of the accomplishments that I was working towards and visually represented my need to create a solid foundation underneath me before reaching the top. In the bottom roll of my pyramid of goals I listed goals such as obtaining my bachelor’s degree, becoming a scholar athlete award recipient, and becoming an All-American. The middle row listed winning a national title and playing for a professional team. And at the top row, the most challenging of them all, I listed becoming a gold medalist for Team USA.

By understanding that there are smaller stepping stones to achieving my ultimate goal of being on Team USA, I was able to stay motivated and to stay focused on completing the smaller stepping stones fully before moving onto the next one. Now I’ll be the first to admit that not every goal that I listed on my pyramid was accomplished, but seeing my goals every day when I went to bed, I was able to push through the days that I felt like doing nothing in hopes of achieving the bigger picture. Remember, create a clear goal roadmap, assess your goals often, and continue to challenge yourself. I hope that you never stopped dreaming big or reaching for the stars. And I look forward to seeing where your roadmap takes you.

Body Image Lesson Video Transcript

Hi, I’m Kara Winger, Olympic javelin thrower, and true sport athlete. Today I want to talk to you about body image and I have three things I’d like you to know. First, healthy thoughts often lead to healthier bodies. Second, there are varying body types and no one’s body is exactly like another. And third, true beauty goes deeper than the skin. As a multi-time Olympian, I’ve experienced a lot of variation and progression in my training. My coaches and I adapt to my training frequently, all with the goal of supporting my long-term success and health in the sport of javelin. I’m talking to you about body image today because sometimes even with the best of intentions and a common goal in mind, the changes you make to your training habits can prove to be detrimental if made for the wrong reasons. In the lead up to the 2012 Olympic trials, I was told in order to improve my performance on the field, I should try to become a leaner, skinnier version of myself.

So I changed my diet. I went along with what I was being told to do, even though I’d had great success at a slightly heavier weight and higher body fat percentage, and became much leaner than ever before. It seemed like a successful change at first, but I didn’t have nearly the results I’d had before. And I believe becoming leaner than my body naturally wanted to be was what caused my ACL to tear. In the end, it cost me heavily going into the 2012 London games. The takeaway for me, and hopefully for you, is that it’s important to know what works for you and your body and to not compare yourself to others. You should do your research and experiment with your diet to find what makes you feel the best, rather than focusing on what you look like. Today, if I feel like having a chocolate chip cookie, I have one, just not every day.

I’ve learned what a properly balanced meal for my body looks like and I recognize food as the fuel that keeps me throwing. I hydrate and allow myself time to recover. And I listen to and communicate with my body so that I can be the best version of myself. In the end, you are in control of how you see, treat, and respond to your body. We only get one and it’s amazing to discover how many things our bodies can do. Be a true sport athlete. Love who you are in this moment and get excited for all the places your body will take you.

A Good Sport Lesson Video Transcript

Hi, I’m Izy Isaksen, Team USA, Modern Pentathlon, Olympian, US Army Sergeant, and True Sport Ambassador. Today, I want to talk to you about being a good sport. There are three things I’d like you to know. First, real winners act the same toward their opponent, whether they win or lose. Second, follow the rules and be a gracious winner and respectful loser. And third, sportsmanship reveals your true character.

I started competing in Modern Pentathlon eight years after my older sister and three-time Olympian, Margaux Isaksen, began competing. I soon realized that people often compared the two of us. I would overhear spectators and teammates asking, “Who’s the better athlete,” and “Who’s going to beat the other.” Instead of letting outside pressures create a negative experience for us, I chose to practice winning and losing with grace and respect. I know that it would have been easy to let our hyper competitive mindset affect our relationship, but instead we decided to support and cheer for each other, regardless of our own performance. My experience of competing against and being compared to my older sister, taught me to focus on how to perform at my best, rather than putting wasted energy into wishing for others to fail.

I believe that sportsmanship reveals true character. So, no matter what situation I encounter during competition, I know it’s important to always treat people with respect and be a good sport. Remember, be a fierce competitor, find grace in all your victories and losses. And I hope to see you out there.

What Kind of Coach Do You Want to Be? Video Transcript

Edwin Moses: You’re a coach. Maybe what you want is very simple, for everyone to just run in the right direction, score for their own team, to try and try again and again. Maybe you want your athletes to become all stars. You want them to earn trophies, medals, win titles. You want them to reach the highest height their sport allows. And wanting all of that, of course, that’s good. But as every great coach discovers, developing a great athlete means nurturing, nurturing the even greater person within. Truth is, you have even more influence than you know.

You have the ability to affect even deeper change, to take what’s in your hands and do something even more extraordinary. You can be both the coach who provides the skills needed to win the game and the coach who helps them learn and succeed beyond the sport, to become all stars wherever they land in the future, and to enjoy their lives more now, because the confidence and courage they find working with you will stay with them when they need it the most. There are games to be won, lives to change. Coaches have the power to do both.

I’m Edwin Moses, and the lessons I’ve learned through sport have challenged me, guided me, and shaped my life forever. What kind of coach do you want to be?

THE SIMPLE TRUTH: DECODING THE SUPPLEMENT INDUSTRY VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

At first glance, dietary supplements look the same. They seem safe and healthy, but just because the label says a product is a dietary supplement, that doesn’t mean it’s safe. Unfortunately, you can’t tell whether a product is safe or not just by looking at the label. Most vitamins, minerals, fish oil, and other supplements containing nutrients are probably just fine, but supplements are not evaluated or approved by FDA before they are sold. Although it is rare for vitamins or minerals to be contaminated with drugs, there has been at least one case of a vitamin containing an anabolic steroid.

At the other extreme are products that contain drugs, stimulants, anabolic steroids, or other hormones. Even though these are not technically dietary supplements, many of them are labeled as supplements. For example, body-building products sometimes contain anabolic steroids or Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators, known as SARMs, or other hormones. Some pre-workout or energy products contain illegal stimulants like DMAA, ephedra, or other amphetamine-like stimulants. Weight loss products might contain prescription drugs like sibutramine, or hormones, like human chorionic gonadotropin, also known as hCG. All natural or herbal sexual enhancement products might contain hormones or Viagra-like drugs. Products like these can harm your health and career, but they’re for sale online, in some nutrition stores, and they’re labeled as dietary supplements.

When you pick up a supplement, especially one that promises performance enhancement, you don’t know if it belongs in the “Mostly O.K.” pile or in the “Dangerous” pile. After all, two products might look the same, but one might contain just amino acids and other legitimate ingredients, while the other also contains anabolic steroids. Because of this, FDA has issued a warning about certain categories of supplements: body building products, weight loss products, and sexual enhancement products. Be extremely careful when considering a supplement in one of these categories. We strongly recommend that you avoid products in these categories.

Even when FDA tests supplements and finds dangerous ingredients, companies sometimes refuse to recall them. Sometimes, they simply repackage their product and continue selling it under a new name. Just because a product is on a store shelf doesn’t mean it is safe. You need to do your research and be an informed consumer. The dietary supplement industry is enormous. Supplements that appear to be safe could actually be dangerous products in disguise. If you use dietary supplements without doing your research, you may be taking serious risks with your health and your career. Please visit USADA’s Supplement 411 for more information about dietary supplements.