sports mom

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!

8 Things I’ve Learned as a College Football Mom

~ confessionsofasportsmama ~ Leave a comment

No. 1’s college football season is about to kick off in 17 days! We’ll be making the eight-hour truck from Virginia to Ohio to cheer our boy and his team on. I seriously cannot believe that football is back!

This will be my third year as a college football mom, so I’m no longer a rookie. Here are EIGHT (in honor of my boy’s number) things I’ve learned along the ride:

  1. It’s a full-time job. You thought high school football was a lot? Collegiate athletes (specifically D1 players) have jam-packed schedules; literally from sunup to sundown. A typical in-season day for No. 1 begins with 7am breakfast, followed by practice from 8-11am, lunch, 3pm lift, meetings from 4-7pm, followed by a walk-through until 8pm, dinner, rest and repeat. Once school starts in two weeks, class and homework will be thrown in. And yep, your professors still expect your work to be turned in on time… game week or not!
  2. Summers are short. See above. No. 1 was home for less than 20 days this Summer. I never want him to feel left out of our family vacations, so I am always sure to schedule them around his availability. 
  3. Everyone is talented. There’s a reason only 7% of high school athletes go on to play in college. You’re competing with the best of the best. Work hard, be patient. Your time will come! Which brings me to number 4.
  4. Redshirting is a blessing in disguise. Of course your child wants to play as soon as they get to college. They were probably always on the field (or equivalent for their sport) in high school. They wouldn’t be collegiate athletes if they weren’t! BUT, you will learn very quickly that the size, age, and experience of those you are competing against is drastically different. As a 19-year-old Freshman, my son had 24(24!)-year-olds on his team. (Think re-classing, redshirts, etc.) He was redshirted (as were 99%) of the Freshman on his team. This ultimately gives him an extra year of eligibility AND schooling. Looking back, it’s definitely a win-win situation.
  5. It’s a lot of travel. For the athletes AND their families. Even though No. 1 didn’t play his Freshman year, he still traveled with the team as a signal caller. Hubby and I decided early on that if he traveled, we would too. Gone are the days of playing your local hometown teams. You will be traveling to several different states. Plan early! As soon as that schedule is released, start booking your hotel stays. The closer to game day it gets, the higher the rates will be. Not only that, but rooms sell out!!
  6. Those post-game 10 minutes are everything. EVERYTHING. After each away game, the families gather near the busses to await our players. That is when you can sneak in that big mama bear hug. There is nothing I look forward to more. They make every single mile worth it!
  7. Find your tribe. Because just like in youth and high school sports, it takes a village. We have an amazing group of families that we tailgate and cheer with. For home games, we also do post-game tailgates and feed our boys as well as any other teammates who are hungry. Such a great tradition!
  8. It goes by fast! I’d say even quicker than high school. At least it feels that way! I feel like I was just crying my eyes out and dropping him off for Freshman year. How can this possibly be year 3?! So savor every moment, mama. Take it all in. The good, and the not so good. Remember that only 7% of high school athletes are playing at this level. Never let a day pass without letting them know just how proud you are of them!
Wishing you all a healthy, successful season! GO RED FLASH!!!

10,000 STRONG… and Counting!

~ confessionsofasportsmama ~ Leave a comment

We did it, Sports Mamas! WE DID IT! Our Facebook Group hit 10,000 members last week!!! 10,000! So amazing.

So why should you join, if you haven’t already? Let me tell you why. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a football mama, a soccer mama, a basketball mama, a baseball mama, a swim mama, a wrestling mama, or a dance mama. All Sports Mamas; rookie, seasoned and retired are welcomed.
It’s a fun, positive place to share personal tips, tricks, experiences, victories and defeats. We share photos, stories, and ask questions.
No judgement passed. Just support!
But don’t just take it from me. Here’s what our Mamas have to say.
  • A place where you can “brag” about your athlete’s accomplishments and victories without embarrassment or feeling bad.
  • Good advice from other moms.
  • Shared experiences… we appreciate each other because we know.
  • Seeing the accomplishments of kids you’ve followed online and will probably never meet in person but feeling so happy for that kid because as a mom, you know how happy that mom is.
  • Such an amazing place for us Sports Mom’s to come together.
  • Have never felt more belonging or “at home” in a FB group before!!
So if you’re ready to be part of this awesome, private, women only, Sports Mom community, click HERE to join us today! If you’re already a part of it, thank you. Thank you. THANK YOU!