Sports Mama Tip: Help Your Athlete Get Faster!

~ confessionsofasportsmama ~ Leave a comment

You know the saying, “speed kills”. In modern sports, it’s not just “nice-to-have”, it’s a competitive separator. Coaches at every level know that a faster athlete can create space, close gaps, recover from mistakes, and make plays others simply can’t. My oldest plays quarterback and even then he worked on strengthening his legs to improve his agility, quickness, and overall speed.

In this post, I will share some of the tools (and videos!) featuring the exercises my husband used to help him achieve his goal of earning a full athletic scholarship to play football at the Division 1 level. No matter what sport your athlete competes in; football, basketball, soccer or anything else. These workouts are an excellent starting point to improve agility, quickness, and overall speed. If you’re committed and consistent, these exercises can help you get closer to your athletic goals.

The tools he relied on were simple (and affordable!!) but extremely effective; bungee cords, mini hurdles, and an agility ladder. He also made the most of any free workouts he could find, whether it was throwing sessions or footwork drills. Whenever an opportunity came up to train, he took it.

Bungee cords, they build resistance and reactive speed by forcing you to work against a pull, which strengthens muscles for power and explosiveness, and improves quickness for reactive movements.

Mini hurdles, they improve athletic performance by focusing on speed, agility, and proper sprint mechanics. They help develop a faster stride rate, improve foot speed and ground contact time, and encourage better posture and body awareness.

Agility ladders, they improve speed, agility, and quickness by enhancing foot speed and coordination. They also increase balance, body control, and overall athletic performance, while strengthening the body and improving mental concentration.

If you’re interested in purchasing any of these items, simply click on the images above or visit My Amazon Storefront under Gift Ideas for Athletes.

A combination of these tools and exercises helped my son become quicker and faster across every sport he played; football, basketball, and even track and field. All that work paid off when he ran a 4.5 in the 40-yard dash at combines, which definitely strengthened his chances in the recruiting process.

While in college, he unfortunately ended up needing labrum surgery on his throwing arm. Enhancing his agility, quickness, and speed became even more valuable during his recovery, because it allowed him to stay dynamic and contribute in another position besides quarterback. He not only returned to QB but also earned playing time at wide receiver, showing just how far that versatility and athletic training could take him.

Below are a couple of videos showcasing the exercises he did in high school to strengthen his legs and improve his chances of becoming a collegiate athlete.

I hope you found this post helpful! Be on the lookout for more videos on my YouTube channel!

*** Click here for my recruiting process tips!

Team Mama Idea: Personalized Team Spirit Pin With Photo! (NEW)

~ confessionsofasportsmama ~ Leave a comment

I blinked and four seasons of college football have come and gone. Senior Day for No.1 was yesterday. It sounds cliche, but I honestly do not know how that happened so quickly. I swear we just moved him into his dorm yesterday… sniff sniff.

We’ve made some amazing friends over those seasons; friendships that I know will last a lifetime. I wanted to give my closest ones a little something to make them smile, and what better than a spirit pin with their boys’ faces on it!

I mean, seriously, what sports mama wouldn’t love one of these?! They aren’t only for Senior moms… they’d be perfect for homecoming, banquets, or any game day. And the best part of all, you can make them yourself!

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Picture of athlete (we used 4X4)
  • Multiple ribbons (in your team colors)
  • Lighter (to seal ribbon ends)
  • Scissors
  • Cool glue gun
  • Cardboard
  • Laminator (w/ 3mm laminating film)
  • Silhouette/Cricut
  • Heat transfer vinyl
  • Heat press
  • Pin backings (1.5in)

Here’s what you do:

  • Cut your athlete’s photo into a circle. If you’re making more than one, use a stencil to be sure they’re all the same size.

  • Cut the same size circle into your cardboard.
  • Laminate the photo.

  • Cut your ribbon and arrange it onto the cardboard as shown below.

  • Continue with the same pattern until the circle is filled.
  • Glue or staple the ribbon down.

  • Glue the photo onto the other side of the cardboard.
  • Add your athlete’s name and number. We used a Silhouette and heat transfer vinyl. No Silhouette? No worries! You can use stickers or even write directly on the ribbon!

  • Use the lighter to seal the ends and keep them from fraying.
  • Attach it to the back of the pin.
  • Hot glue on pin backing.

That’s it!

My college football mamas absolutely loved them. One of them even told me that she was going to hang it up on her son’s sports wall!

I hope you enjoyed this idea and that you try it out for yourself. Be sure to check back often for more ideas!

Sports Mama Tip: What’s In My Stadium Bag?

~ confessionsofasportsmama ~ Leave a comment

Hey Sports Mamas! I hope you all are well. I’m still knee deep in college football season; my favorite season of the year. Nine games and 3,056 miles later… and I still wouldn’t change this life for the world! The road trips, tailgates, wins, losses, seeing my boy look up in the stands for us, and the lifelong friends we’ve made along the way… makes every single mile absolutely worth it!

While brainstorming a few new things I have coming soon for you all, I realized that I had yet to write a what’s in my football mama bag- college edition. So here it is. Better late than never!

Let’s start with the type of bag. I carry a clear, crossbody type (in our team colors, of course!). Most college stadiums have a clear bag policy, so better to be safe than sorry. The size is perfect and I love that I can throw it over my shoulder.

Now for what’s inside; in no particular order:

  • Tickets. If they aren’t digital, of course. I’ve actually saved every single ticket of my boy’s college career. Sniff sniff.
  • Wallet. To buy food, drinks, spirit wear. Don’t forget some cash! Not all stadiums take credit/apple pay.
  • Hand Sanitizer. Self explanatory… especially after high-fiving other fans all game long.
  • Hand/Toe Warmers. No. 1 plays in the Northeast Conference. It gets cold!! HotHands are my brand of choice. They stay warm for hours!
  • Lap Warmer. Speaking of staying warm for hours… these HotHands lap warmers are a complete game changer! They are 16″ x 10″ and fit perfectly under your favorite cozy blanket. Simply open and within 15 minutes you are good to go! They literally stay warm (borderline hot!) for hours and hours. I used mine at a game in PA and it was still warm when I got home… I live in VA!
  • Portable Fan/Charger. I don’t need it anymore this season, but there were several games where it came in CLUTCH!
  • Spirit Items. Pom poms and red beads can always be found in my bag.
  • Make-up. I don’t wear a full face of makeup to games, but I never leave home without my favorite lip stain and balm. Gotta look presentable in those post-game pics!
  • Tissues. To clean your hands. To blow your nose. To wipe away tears. You get the point!
  • Poncho. Because Mother Nature and her temper tantrums. The disposable ones are my go-to. They fold up to fit in your bag and you can toss them out before you get in your car!

I hope you found this post helpful! What do you carry that I don’t? Let me know below. Or better yet, join me and 77.9K+ other sports mamas in the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook group!

Team Mama Idea: Team Spirit Shoes

~ confessionsofasportsmama ~ Leave a comment

Hey there, Sports Mamas! I hope you all are well. I’m in the middle of college football season, so life is… busy! In the span of 4 weeks, I’ve been to Louisiana, Buffalo, Connecticut, and PA. We have a bye this weekend which gives me a couple days to relax… and write this quick blog post for you!

You all already know that I’m a loud, proud, team reppin’ football mama! One of the ways I’ve been repping my #8 lately is with my shoes.

Idea No.1: Crocs with allll the charms

Start off by purchasing a pair of Crocs in your team color. Then find the charms (I ordered on Etsy and also found a stand in my local mall)! From letters to numbers to balls… the choices are endless! The more, the cuter!!

Idea No.2: Add your athlete’s number to your favorite pair of kicks

I found these cute, self-adhesive number patches on Amazon for about $2 each! SCORE!!! I received SO many compliments on them… easiest DIY ever!

Idea No.3: Customized Nikes

And finally, I customized my very own pair of Nike Dunks! From the color of the soles to the laces, I got to choose every single detail. And you already know that I wasn’t going to pass up on the chance to add text! I added my boys’ initials as well as No.1’s jersey number. They were definitely a bit of a splurge, but I am so happy with how they turned out!

I hope this post gives you some new ideas!

For more ideas, be sure to join me and 77.9K other sports mamas in the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook Group.

GO TEAM!!!

Team Mama Idea: DIY Wrestling Senior Night Idea!

~ confessionsofasportsmama ~ 2 Comments

Happy New Year, Sports Mamas! I hope you all are well.

I wanted to jump on here really quick and share a simple, budget friendly DIY Senior Night idea with my wrestling mamas. Ashley Johnson, one of the awesome mamas in our Facebook group, recently shared this photo from her athlete’s Senior Night.

I mean, seriously… how cute AND CREATIVE is this?!?

She made the singlets our of colored posterboard. (If you have a Cricut, you could use that as well). She then added the school logo, name, weight class, and year to each one.

I absolutely love the simplicity of this DIY!

Be sure to join the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook group for even more inspo. We’re 77,000+ strong… and counting! Thanks again to Ashley for sharing her idea with us and allowing me to share it here on the blog!