The Special Quality of Sports
A great excerpt from Yahoo Finance by Jim Citrin:
“Participation in sports and fitness has multiple benefits for people of all ages. For young athletes and girls in particular, organized sports boost self-esteem and motivation, essential ingredients in the development of future leaders. Studies show that young athletes who are happy earn better grades, have fewer problems outside school than non-athlete classmates, have better attendance, and drop out far less frequently. Not that sport is unique to developing these qualities. Other competitive collaborative activities such as the military, theater, dance troupes, or debate teams can build them up as well. But there’s something special about the physicality of sports and fitness. Those who exercise regularly know the manifold benefits to keeping active and in shape. A lot of scientific evidence shows that exercise provides a short-term increase in the ability to process data. Exercise has also been shown to reduce depression and anxiety, illnesses that can hamper the functioning of the brain. And over the long term, exercise has been shown to help prevent the mental effects of aging.”
I have met many people in my life who were successful, however, the ones who have had sports backgrounds always seem to have something ‘extra’.
