Berkeley Parents Network: Sports & Fitness for Teens

Berkeley Parents Network

Sports & Fitness for Teens

Advice, discussions, and reviews from the Parents of Teens weekly email newsletter.
Berkeley Parents Network > Advice > Teenagers > Sports & Fitness for Teens

Physical activities for a 14 year old

May 2007

Hello, My daughter, going on fourteen, has recently expressed interest in starting some form of regular exercise. She is quite physical, and in good shape, but has never gotten into anything relating to athletics or movement. I personally believe that this has more to do with family dynamics than with her inclinations, but I say this only to stress that she isn't disinclined toward physical activities. One thing however, that she doesn't care for are sports, particularly team sports. So, no soccer, tennis, track, etc. I've been thinking along the lines of yoga, Akido, or dance, but want to find an environment that is friendly towards and has beginning classes for girls her age (one issue that keeps coming up is that many girls have been taking these things since they were young, and consequently most classes for her age are at the intermediate or advanced levels). If anyone has had good experiences anywhere with this issue, or if you have other suggestions for other physical activities for young teenage girls, I'd love to hear them. Many thanks. anon.

If your daughter is interested in martial arts, there are many many dojos in the Berkeley/Oakland area. Some of them have a lot of... male-dominant energy, but there are many that are more balanced. I was a member of Berkeley Cuong Nhu (on San Pablo @ Hearst) for five years and I found it to be very comfortable place. They have classes just for teens, so teens starting out aren't going to get stuck in kiddie classes and after some training they will have the option to join the adult classes as well. (There are also Cuong Nhu dojos in Berkeley, Emeryville, and Oakland that are all headed by women.) If you're shopping around, consider a dojo that lets you try a class for free, rather than signing up for a commitment beforehand. Krysten

Run, do not walk! Check out the Iron Works,800 Potter St, at the bottom of Ashby Ave in Berkeley. It is where the Whole Earth store used to be. My 15 year old son asked for a membership, and I was thrilled when I went to look. k

Many young people who don't enjoy organized (or unorganized) sports really enjoy Dance, Dance Revolution, a video game that is fun and also provides excellent aerobic exercise. Schools across the U.S. are experimenting with this excellent resource. At home you'd need a Play Station or X-Box, a DDR program, and an electronic mat: not a huge outlay of cash for something that provides great exercise and lots of entertainment. My grandchildren enjoy it and so do I. At the age of 60 I'm consistently exercising for the first time in my life--and loving it! caroline

My daughter was never that big on organized sports either, although she backpacked and hiked from a very young age. She was hesitant about tree-climbing while other kids were high up in the branches, so we signed her up at Ironworks for climbing after school when she was in 4th or 5th grade. She has been climbing ever since, and she is now a freshman in college, where rock-climbing is a popular class; she even went ice-climbing for the first time this winter. Rock climbing has made her very strong physically and it was a great confidence booster. You don't need to compete, except against your last best climb, and there's a cooperative element when you have a partner to belay you. The kids in the Ironworks classes seemed eager to encourage eachother and my daughter made some good climbing pals. I suggest you call and see if there is a beginning class for your daughter's age range if she seems at all interested. anon

Hi Anon, I think your daughter would really like the yoga class I teach for teenagers in the Oakland/Piedmont area. The class is small, and all the girls who come are beginners between the ages of 13 and 17. It's a warm, supportive atmosphere and a lot of fun. It's also a small class so she would get tons of individual instruction. If you have any questions about it please email me. Erica

What about fencing for your daughter? The El Cerrito Sport Fencing Center (off of Central just before the overpass to Costco) is a great place for young kids and teens. Both my boys, 11 and 16 have been taking classes there for a while. Great teachers,great group of kids. www.sportfencingcenter.com The owners are Karen and Darwin Martos. Hope it works out. anon

It is important to encourage anyone who wants physical exericise to do it. 24hr Fitness and the YMCA have great deals and facilities. She can go to classes or meet a time or two with a trainer and follow her own routine. If she is not interested in competitive sports please consider non competitive options like hiking or biking. Also you can hire a tennis, or swim instructor for a few private sessions and then find time on her own to practise. I am sure the people on this list have great ideas. Remember that most programs have at least a one time or first week free deal, ask when you call, and she can try things til she finds something that works. It needs to be something you can get her to and that works in your budget. claudia

There's a ton of dancing going on locally. Lots of it needs no skill or training and is free, and she can take a friend. Check out folk-dancing at UC, contra dancing every week (see calendar at www.sffmc.org or look up Bay Area Country Dance Society), Irish dancing Monday nights at the Starry Plough (free lessons at 7:30 or 8, dancing at 9). Then there's the ballroom dancing scene-- my favorites are the historical recreations like the Gaskell Ball in Oakland and the Regency-era balls put on by PEERS. And Fezziwig's warehouse, which is part of the Great Dickens Christmas Faire, has been attracting young people as participants/actors (workshops start in November; google Red Barn Productions). found dancing late

My son was like your daughter. Then about two years ago he started taking circus classes. If she has any interest at all in this I highly recommend it. My son is now part of the City Circus in San Francisco and loves it. It is a mixed age group (10 - 18) yet are all friends and look out for each other. The kids celebrate being unique, strong and healthy (you won't see them all dressed alike) They each have their talent, strengths and weaknesses and to tell you the truth I have never seen such a supporting group of kids, constantly encouraging and helping each other. They have become my son's social circle and I am sure they are a good part of the reason he's getting through BH as well as he is. There is a circus for youth on this side of the bay (Splash) and two in the City (Acrosports and ....) They all offer classes. My son is at Acrosports and he started at 14. Happy momma of a happy 16 year old

14-year-old sports nut dominating family TV

1998

I need some counsel! I have a 14-year-old sports nut who would rather go hungry than miss the playoffs or the 49ers game or any hockey game that is being broadcast. We have one TV in the living room. We generally do not watch it during the week - no strict rules about it but there are just too many other things (like homework) going on.

I don't want to deprive my son of his one big passion but I REALLY HATE the sound of these games droning on and on hour after hour. Nobody else in the family enjoys sports, so we all just kind of avoid the living room during games. I'm considering getting him a little TV for his room for Xmas even though I've always been opposed to this, but I don't see any other way for the family to live with a sports maniac in its midst and still be able to use the common rooms!

I also need to come up with a limit. I'm thinking about two games per week (not counting weekends) and assuming his grades continue to be good and his homework is finished before the game. But what should I do about the other son, who would love to spend the same number of hours every week in front of the TV watching cartoons, which is something I'm not willing to allow? Help!

I don't have any advice for limiting TV watching, but as for the droning, have you checked to see if either your TV or VCR (if you have one) has a headphone jack? Our VCR does, and it's very handy on occasion. Another option might be to allow your son to move the TV to his bedroom during the games. Beth

The solution that we have at our house is the use of headphones. I don't really care for TV. I watch it occassionally. I also get migraines which until recently required that I retire to a quiet, darkened room. We have a small house, and no matter where I was, if the viewers could hear the TV so could I. My husband got a jack to plug into the existing single earphone jack on the TV (most TVs have them) so that two sets of headphones could be accomodated. Everything, headphones, extension wire, jacks for multiple headsets is available inexpensively at Radio Shack. Good luck! Holliday

Try using headphones!

I have a really sexy wireless pair that I bought at RadioShack. (900 Mhz stereo, about $100.) This let's me watch tv after the kids go to bed. Or if just one person wants to watch tv they're great.

I used to use the wired kind. They're much cheaper, but you have to deal with an extension cord.

If your tv doesn't have a jack, check for other output connections and adapt, or get one of your ee friends to put one into the set for you.

What ever you do don't buy him his own tv. It'd be way to hard to regulate. Roger

If he likes basketball as well as hockey you could be in for a long winter! Having him sit down Sunday night with a TV guide and making choices for the week seems like a reasonable procedure.

One solution for the noise issue that comes to mind is headphones. Aside from the other issues attendant to kids having their own TVs, sports are lousy to watch on small screens. In general I'd keep an eye out to see if he is spending all his time doing this alone. If you're trying to get him to emphasize watching only certain games, he can make a given game more of an event by inviting friends over (the 49ers would be an obvious choice). It may be limited, but the social interaction will be break up staring at the screen and they may all go off and play something afterwords.

I'm assuming you get cable since you're talking about midweek games. Something you could do is trade him some games for highlight shows. ESPN Sportscenter is on for one hour at 8:00 and 11:00; CNN has a half-hour show at 8:00 and I think 10:30. If he watches one of those instead of a game he cuts back on TV time and he'll see anything really remarkable that happens. The flip side is that he gets the build-up for upcoming events. Sports is a little like the soaps, there is this unending stream of things to follow, all driven by the question of what happens next.

Another way to direct his sports energies is to encourage him to sign up for the school paper on the sports staff. Good luck, Ken

I was a lot like your son at that age (although my particular favorites were basketball and football); so I can imagine what it's like for him being the only one in the family who likes sports. On the other hand, my passions for sports have cooled greatly over the years; so I can empathize with your position as well.

The first thing I would suggest is that you don't try to institute any new rules for the next couple of weeks: if you tell your son he can't watch the World Series you're likely to have one sullen kid on your hands (I say this without knowing him at all, of course). The championship of any sport is a special time for sports fans, and even after you set up new rules you may want to relax them at those times.

Otherwise, your idea of limiting your son to 2-3 games a week seems a fair one. It would allow him to, say, watch the 49er game and a hockey game of his choice each week without driving the rest of you crazy. Greg

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