Sportsmanlike Conduct

406 words

Alrighty so I know that most of us are athletes. I mean, we are American so all of us at one time in our lives have probably played a sport of some kind. And as an athlete I can tell you first hand that sometimes it is extremely hard to keep your cool with it comes to frustrating situations. There are times when all you really want to do is tell that referee or umpire or judge exactly what is on your mind without holding back; you just want to give them a piece of your mind. Trust me...I’ve been there.

Well here's the thing: as hard as it is to bite your tongue in situations like that, you have to use every ounce of self-control you have to do it. You may be pissed off at the moment but it won't last forever. It was a stupid call on one play out of many to come. Shake it off and move on. It's the best and only thing you really can do. (I mean you COULD let it all out and get kicked out but I’m pretty sure you won't want that to happen).

I would consider myself a pro at holding things back. Sometimes I do let some things slip but that’s only when I am getting really fed up with someone and I just need to do SOMETHING! But I’m going to give you some of the tips that I use so that next time you get frustrated at an official you can try these out.

 

1.      Take deep breaths. Take a moment to close your eyes and calm down. Tell yourself that it’s over and that you just have to keep playing.

2.      Count backwards from ten. Ever since that episode of Dragon Tales (at 9:06) that I watched way back when I was little I try counting backwards from ten. Surprisingly, it does work!

3.      Clench your fists. Sometimes I do this first. Clench your hands into fists and hold them there for three seconds and quickly release them. Do this three more times. I don’t know why but this just seems to get the tension out of me.

So those are my three main stress relievers when it comes to sports. Try them out next time you get angry at a teammate or an official. I’d love to hear if these work for you or if you have any other ideas please comment below!


~Skooogster(: