Growing Champions for Life – Mike Koleber, Nitro Swim Coach

Mike discusses the motivation issues that parents and athletes face.

Parenting WELL through the youth sports journey is not only measured by the accomplishments our kids realize but also by the health of family relationships along the way.

Here Clay Townsend—dad of three successful boys—shares his parenting insights. Two of his sons have gone on to play in the NFL and he and David look back at the intentional activities that impacted their skill development and the culture they fostered in their home.

Mary sheds a new perspective on how athletes and parents can get more of what they want out of sports through a shared commitment to choosing powerful thoughts and words that work.

Moms are often at the center of the youth sports experience—whether it’s shuttling athletes to and from practice, cheering loudly from the sidelines, washing stinky uniforms, or just keeping the family unit together and moving forward.

In this question and answer episode, long-time sports Mom, Jeanie Rahman joins David to give her perspective. She shares some of their personal stories to illustrate the valuable life lessons families can learn along the way.

Jeff shares the story of his journey from Little League to Big League. It all started as a dream in Central Florida with a relationship with his dad that matured and evolved along the way.

The great pause of 2020 will probably go down in infamy. Covid 19 has impacted virtually every area of life, making “normalcy” feel like an elusive but treasured concept from the past.

Athletes, coaches, and sports families have had to adjust to the unexpected interruption. In this episode, David gets the front-row perspectives of two soccer coaches, John Lamothe and Samantha Bohon, as they candidly share their coaching experiences in the age of Covid.

Hear the fascinating true story of a family that made a loving commitment to nine athletes, and the lessons everyone learned in the process.

The view from behind a boat has never lost its appeal for Tarah Mikacich. At the age of seven, she began competing in water skiing events and built up a remarkable career. Then at 21, she decided to venture into the world of wakeboarding and quickly rose to the top on an international level.

Here, she and her Dad reminisce about being an athlete in the Benzel home.

Get ready to take a deep-dive into a pivotal parenting issue—how much control to exert when raising children.

Based on two of his favorite books, Choice Theory and Parenting With Love and Logic, David delivers a framework that parents can use as they help their kids learn to make good choices.

You’ll learn about:
* Three areas that make up a child’s “quality world”
* Two primary approaches that parents take to resolve situations
* When children should have the freedom to choose and what should be non-negotiable

In this episode of The Sports Family Corner, David has a lively conversation with professor, author, soccer coach, and sports parent, Dr. John Lamothe. They dive into several of the implications of “bad boys” in sports, which is the topic of Dr. Lamothe’s most recent work, Athletes Breaking Bad.

David and John dig into what behaviors are defined as crossing lines, and how the narrative surrounding an athlete’s activities and lifestyle change depending on the sport, gender, culture, and media attention.

John also transparently shares personal stories from his experiences as a youth soccer coach and sports parent.

Whether you’re an avid fan of professional athletes or you’re trying to point young athletes toward principled mentors, this episode is rich with insight, encouragement, and practical wisdom.