What are the two phrases you hear from you family almost every time you walk in the door?  “What’s for Dinner?” “I’m Hungry!”  If you are like me it seems to be a daily struggle to figure out what to eat.  Yeah it’s easy to hand your kid a bag of potato chips or grab a candy bar on your way out of any store, but you wonder if that’s the best idea afterwards.

So, on my quest to try and figure out some ideas of what to fix one night for supper I stumbled across some great resources that I wanted to share.  The first was EatingWell, which is a magazine and also a website.  They have whole sections on nutrition for youth athletes!  It’s hard to find something that kids will eat that is also good for them.  One of my favorites that I found was the rice cake sandwiches-cute and tasty!

 Eating Well Kids Section

I also found the magazine currently on sale (can’t beat that), here is the link:

50% Off EatingWell Magazine Subscription

I also have an obsession with cookbooks, so I did some searching on that front and found an author that has some very helpful recipe books for active people (which totally fits my family).  Her name is Nancy Clark and she is a sports dietician.  Her passion is helping people fuel their body to keep healthy and maintain an active lifestyle.  Yep, check-check, I looked at her many books and bought Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook (available in print, or for E-readers)

Happy Cooking and of course Eating too!

Spring is Just around the corner and that means we will begin hearing the crack of a bat and ball.

Believe it or not I still get excited just as if I was 10 years old again.

Wow, Has the world of baseball changed in the last 15 years. 

Can you imagine a time when you could not locate a tournament?  .

Today there are many tournaments available on any giving weekend in any city.  That certainly creates some issues for teams with so many tournaments to play in and the cost keeps going up it is mind blowing what it takes for a team to play in tournaments almost every weekend.

Costs for a Team

Uniforms                                                                                                        $1500.00

1 Kick Butt Banner with pictures of team and sponsors listed                     $300.00

6 Tournament Entries @ $365 ea                                                                  $2190.00

Insurance                                                                                                        $132

World Series Entry                                                                                         $550

Total                                                                                                               $4672

That is only an estimate for only 1 set of uniforms, as you know many teams have at least 3-4 combinations. 

The cost to a family as you well know is through the roof.

With these kinds of costs and to be honest it is a whole lot more then what is described above.  The cost is astronomical.  It cost my son’s team $10,000 a year 15 years ago so it surely is closer to $15,000 today then the $4672 bare bones listed above.

How are teams coming up with the funds today to pay for the experience of a lifetime for players, parents, coaches, and families?

Please leave your comments about how you are getting the money to play the game we all love.  I will share more about this topic in upcoming posts.

ByJack Zelinko

After watching countless hours of NFL and NCAA football this fall and winter, I have seen an overwhelming trend in a dramatic lack of sportsmanship across the entire sports world that causes me to ask, “Where does this come from?”

This slope is becoming even more slippery due to the overwhelming media blitz that is thrust upon our youth every day.  We hear and see the same stories of taunting, fighting, and classlessness that makes me cringe.

One disgusting example of this was during the Capital One Bowl where two players had a fist fight during the game which caused both of them to be ejected.  One of those players was later named the “Most Valuable Player” of the game due to his performance prior to that point in the 3^rd quarter.  Not only do I have a problem with the actions of both players, but the fact that he would even be in the running to be the MVP of the game is ridiculous.  Whoever made that decision should be ashamed of what kind of message that is sending.  The MVP’s team ended up losing the game, but I’m sure it hasn’t crossed his mind that may be his own fault.

In light of this, I felt compelled to find some information to be able to share with parents and coaches to help all of us strengthen our sense of sportsmanship with our youth.  I found an outstanding website by the Josephson Institute’s Center for Sports Ethics[1] that has articles, blogs, and videos that cover a wide range of topics in regards to sportsmanship, coaching, and leadership.

I was especially intrigued by a post from November 23^rd, 2011 titled “How do you teach kids to deal with mistakes?” and by a video from John Wooden, legendary UCLA basketball coach, about a program called “Pursuing Victory With Honor”[2].

These were extremely powerful to me and I hope it helps us strengthen the values of our youth and bring class and character back to the court, field, and rink where our athletes play.

Helpful Links:

http://josephsoninstitute.org/sports/

http://josephsoninstitute.org/sports/pvwh-sportsmanship/category/youth-sports/

http://charactercounts.org/

Wow, I wish this had been available when my son’s Tyler and Matt were playing ball.  You see, as a Dad I worked constantly on defense with my boys.  And all of their hard work paid off… they both were great defensive ballplayers.  In fact, I wish I had a dollar for every ground ball I hit  to my two sons.

The only problem… they were just average hitters.

It’s a terrible feeling for both you or your son when with the bases loaded and two down they dribble a soft ground ball to the second baseman.  As any good parent… you feel helpless.  If only there was something you could do to help!

Well, now there is.

Click here for 3 Free Videos

Let me introduce you to the nations top youth baseball hitting instructor, Coach Vinny Mazzurco.  Coach M understands hitting and the art of properly striking a baseball and has the unique ability to explain it on your child’s level.

His free videos are pure gold.

To be honest I just didn’t know how to instruct them in proper technique to striking a ball correctly and consequently didn’t work on it hardly at all.

Vinny has it figured out and can get your son hitting by the time the season starts.

Vinny Mazzurco puts HOW TO HIT in plain English that both you and your son can understand In my opinion this instruction can just not be easier to understand.

I think everyone should take a look at what Vinny is saying to see if this might be the thing that will send your son into the starting lineup from now on.

 Click Here

• Charge the batteries
• Clear space on your memory card
• Compose Creatively (be sure your subject is off-center & don’t be afraid to zoom in close)
• Take lots of photos, especially when photographing a group of people.
• Capture the action… photograph early and often when the kids are opening gifts.
• Test photographing in low light situations
• Photos make great gifts (pictures are the perfect last minute gift idea and are often the most cherished gift of all)
• If giving a camera as a gift, be sure to charge the batteries and include a memory card.  This way the camera can be enjoyed right away.
• Better yet, practice photographing in the exact location
• Just in case it’s a white Christmas… be sure to use your cameras exposure compensation to add 1 to 2 stops.  This will keep your camera’s light meter from being fooled into underexposing your photos.

The holidays are the perfect chance to capture great family photos.  In fact, I’d bet more photographs are captured the last 9 days of the year than any other 9 day period throughout the year.  So be sure to plan ahead and use your checklist to ensure that you capture the wonderful moments the holidays bring.

By:Jack Zelinko

As a former athlete and sports enthusiast, I still get goosebumps at the playing of the national anthem.  To stare down your opponent prior to battle sends me back to my playing days and gives me hope of taking the field one last time.  However, my athletic ability and lack of training never warranted much more than 3 intramural softball championships in college.

Even now, my passion for sports and the nature of our business has allowed me to stay close to the sports I love and to the athletes I envy.  I am constantly interested by products, training videos, and numerous opportunities that just were not available to me during my early playing days.

I came across an online-based training series at PlaySportsTV.com that offers over 3,000 training videos ranging through 18 sports.  There are videos that offer tips to players about practicing alone and honing their skills as well as ones geared towards coaches offering tips for running practices and doing drills to keep practices organized and optimize the little time coaches get with players.

You can get a small taste of the content they have to offer on their website with a free 3-day trial at PlaySportsTV.com, but I originally found a link to their website through Sports Illustrated Kids at SIKids.com.  They have a Training Zone where they offer a series of 8 short training videos for a few sports.  That can give you a better grasp of what PlaySportsTV is offering.

To gain access to their entire library of videos, you just have to pay a monthly fee of $7.95!  You can sign up for yearly memberships, get discounts for your team, or if you feel like you got everything you wanted out of it, you can cancel any time.

If only my parents and coaches could have had such easy access to these training tools; I could be in the NFL right now!  Maybe not, but I certainly would have learned the fundamentals of each sport I loved to play in a format that is easy to use and can be implemented right away.

Helpful Links:

http://www.playsportstv.com

http://www.sikids.com/sikids-tv/training-zone

We’ve all seen the great sports drink ads that show the big tough athlete drinking (and sometimes even sweating) colorful liquids.  These colorful, great tasting and easily accessible liquids are in all grocery and convenience stores. There has been lots of talk about if they are really beneficial for you or not. So I decided to do some of my own research.

I recently stumbled onto an article from www.momsteam.com (which is an excellent resource for parents with youth athletes) that talked about sports drinks and if they are necessary. They reviewed an article by Nancy Clark, a certified specialist in Sports Dietetics.  After reading it I really questioned drinking sports drinks.  They suggest that eating a banana or yogurt with a glass of water before a game gets you the right nutrition and is a lot friendlier on your wallet.

The body needs hydration after strenuous exercising in order to replenish what is lost in sweating.  If you have a slight increase in sodium that will help you with fluid retention, or in other words help keep the water in your system.  However, most foods that we digest on a regular basis will provide us with the needed sodium intake.

Sports drinks are actually low in sodium and often high in sugars. They are more expensive than even bottled water and add unneeded sugar to your diet.  I’m not an expert by any means but I think I will stick with the much better option of water.  If your kids need the taste factor add a splash of lemon juice or lemonade mix to their second glass to encourage the intake. Other options could include making your own versions of sports drinks, I have copied a link that I found helpful for that method.

Bottom line—keep yourself hydrated and eat balanced meals!  That is the best advise for any age of athletes!

Have a Great Day!

Rachel

Helpful Links to go with this article:

http://www.momsteam.com/nutrition/sports-foods-expensive-convenience-regular-diet-meets-nutritional-needs#ixzz1dtkbRVgi

http://www.roadcycler.com/2006/08/screw-gatorade-make-your-own-sports-drink/

1) If you pay commissions based on packages and not gross revenue you can save a ton of cash.
Yep, it’s true. If you pay $ per package you don’t have to pay a commission on any ala carte items. Often times this can be upwards of 40% of a company’s revenue.
2) You don’t have to report all sales the league never checks.
OK – this one is criminal. The photographer should provide a full breakdown of all sales at the conclusion of each season. This should be part of your contract.
3) Even if you loose the bid you still can contact the coaches from last year.
This happens more and more often each year. Be sure to add language into your contract that protects your database. Most quality photographers will require contact information so that they can effectively communicate with your teams, but that should not extend past the life of the contract and should be permitted only for communications regarding the Photo Day Program.
4) The parents pay upfront… So, you can make a ton of money if you don’t actually fulfill the orders.
Again, this is criminal. There are a few unreputable, unestablished companies that will pull a stunt like this. They are few and far between, but I have heard this story told by far to many (now) untrusting parents. Please know, this is 100% preventable. An established, reputable company is not a threat to steal from your customers. A reputable company will have cash registers and provide a receipt to all paying customers. Additionally, always call references and require a list of 50 or more testimonials.