Travel ball high school balance

[LEsoftballdad]

My older daughter is a freshman at a D3 school. Her fall was very limited in terms of softball action. They played no games, and they only practiced three days a week for five weeks. Each practice consisted of roughly two hours a day. After the five weeks were up, each girl was given a conditioning program they were expected to follow.

My daughter kept up with her hitting lessons, but her work and school schedule were pretty heavy, so her catching lessons took a back seat. She knows she won't be able to work once practices start in February, so she was trying to make as much as possible to pay for her car and lessons when she's not making money.

My younger daughter needed a break from the travel. From late August through last weekend, she slept in her own bed two Saturday nights. She didn't get to go to any get togethers, she didn't see her grandparents, no parties, school football games, or see her sister. Was it physical, for her? Not really. For her, it was a mental break. Hell, I needed a break. Even though my wife and I alternate weekends away, I was burned out. I'm looking forward to seven months in my own bed.

 

[tomorrow]

It is the parents that fuel the Travel ball bus. You are seeing the result of what some parents think youth sports should be.

 

[radness]

The different areas of states have different time frames of high school and travel ball events.
Then add other sports or things to participate in. Which each have their own time frames.

However travel ball continues yearly. Actually to look at the schedule of travel ball, travel ball itself, never takes a break because there's always somewhere we can play.

Suggestion is~
Visually look at a yearly calendar and add to it Prioritizing goals.
(aka things people want to do, and need to do like work)
While it might seem simplistic to physically have a yearly calendar in front of our face and look at it is actually a really good way to understand everything that people are going to be doing. Identifies better where you can take a break, where there is no break, where a break should be added.

Unfortunately there is the unknown of things that occur like illness or different life events that pop in to the schedule.

Everyone has the same amount of time
not everyone has the same amount of stuff in it.
Plan accordingly.

 

[radness]

Going to add this about travel ball schedules~
Sometimes coaches put too much travel distance into their plans. Like right now there's a team that's going to play an event that's 275 mi from where everybody lives. When it is not necessary to have to travel that far to do an event that would have same results closer to home.
= added time to commitment that is really unnecessary.

Sometimes it takes families on the team to speak up ahead of time (and I mean more than a week ahead, I mean months ahead right when schedule is produced) to look at that schedule and say that's right before holidays lots of money is being spent, families need time together, can we please find somewhere closer to home.
= families and players are still wanting to make a commitment they just want a smarter schedule.

 

[ANNASDAD]

My older daughter is a freshman at a D3 school. Her fall was very limited in terms of softball action. They played no games, and they only practiced three days a week for five weeks. Each practice consisted of roughly two hours a day. After the five weeks were up, each girl was given a conditioning program they were expected to follow.

My daughter kept up with her hitting lessons, but her work and school schedule were pretty heavy, so her catching lessons took a back seat. She knows she won't be able to work once practices start in February, so she was trying to make as much as possible to pay for her car and lessons when she's not making money.

My younger daughter needed a break from the travel. From late August through last weekend, she slept in her own bed two Saturday nights. She didn't get to go to any get togethers, she didn't see her grandparents, no parties, school football games, or see her sister. Was it physical, for her? Not really. For her, it was a mental break. Hell, I needed a break. Even though my wife and I alternate weekends away, I was burned out. I'm looking forward to seven months in my own bed.

Yours is a very common, very familiar story to tons of families, just the way it is!

It’s amazing how many people outside of travel ball think we’re completely nuts! The thing is, they’re not wrong!

 

[radness]

Yours is a very common, very familiar story to tons of families, just the way it is!

Then when families jump into the arena of travel ball, some families are already prepared with planning skills and others are not.

 

[_MIA_]

I don’t think there is such a thing as swinging a bat too much, at least from a physical perspective. The best hitters typically come from places where you can play all year. Throwing, especially high intensity (eg game) reps , is a different story. That said the best hitters WANT to hit that much and aren’t forced to by orgs/parents who are chasing rainbows.

 

[ANNASDAD]

I don’t think there is such a thing as swinging a bat too much, at least from a physical perspective. The best hitters typically come from places where you can play all year. Throwing, especially high intensity (eg game) reps , is a different story. That said the best hitters WANT to hit that much and aren’t forced to by orgs/parents who are chasing rainbows.

I completely agree 100%!

 

[Towny9]

I don’t think there is such a thing as swinging a bat too much, at least from a physical perspective. The best hitters typically come from places where you can play all year. Throwing, especially high intensity (eg game) reps , is a different story. That said the best hitters WANT to hit that much and aren’t forced to by orgs/parents who are chasing rainbows.

This is the reason I don’t spend a ton of time hitting at team practice. Every hitter I have ever known that was any good hits a ton on their own anyway.

 

[LEsoftballdad]

I don’t think there is such a thing as swinging a bat too much, at least from a physical perspective.

A good friend of mine played in the Washington Nationals minor league system, and he said winter for them was hit until your hands bleed. Throwing was limited, especially for the pitchers until spring training began.