Latest / Cristy M. Diaz Podcast Conversations from the Heart / Heart to Heart | Are We Losing the Joy in Youth Sports?

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Heart to Heart | Are We Losing the Joy in Youth Sports? · Cristy M. Diaz Podcast Conversations from the Heart

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  Heartto-Heart is where real stories meet
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  real connection. Hosted by Christy Diaz,
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  founder of Heartful Living, this podcast
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  opens the door to honest, unfiltered
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  conversations about life's most
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  meaningful and sometimes messy chapters.
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  From personal journeys of resilience and
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  healing to experiences with love, loss,
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  family, and finding purpose.
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  Heart-to-heart is a space for the
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  stories that deserve to be heard. Every
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  episode is rooted in authenticity,
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  empathy, and the belief that when we
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  share our stories, we remind each other
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  we're not alone. Join the conversation
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  because the best talks always come from
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  the heart.
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  Hi everybody and welcome to another
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  edition of our heartto-he heart podcast.
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  I am back with my media over here Daniel
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  Diaz Leva and my bestie Ryan Holtzman
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  and we're here for a mini episode to
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  talk about how sports has changed in our
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  city. When we were younger guys, I
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  remember there was a sport for every
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  season. I feel like our kids in today's
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  world have to focus on one sport year
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  round to be good at it because if not
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  they won't get any playing time. Do you
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  guys agree or disagree?
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  >> Yeah, I think that's definitely the case
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  nowadays. I mean growing up, Danny, we I
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  mean we soccer, football, basketball,
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  anything. It's we played year round,
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  right? And now it's to the point where
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  if you want your son or daughter to be
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  on a team in middle school and through
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  high school, you almost have to, you
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  know, specialize in one specific sport.
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  And that come there's a lot of things
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  that come with that like personal
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  training, personal private lessons,
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  going to camps, going to tournaments,
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  and you hope that you know your kids get
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  good enough at that specific sport to be
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  able to be on the team. And you know,
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  for us, I have Luke and Gabrielle,
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  they're 12-year-old twins. They're doing
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  jiu-jitsu for fun, which they love.
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  Absolutely love. No pressure. There's no
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  like goal there. And they're also
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  playing lacrosse. And they're playing
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  for their team for Guliver. And they're
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  also playing in their own respective
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  club team. And you know, the ultimate
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  goal for Sofh and I is all right. When I
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  went to school, my best friends were my
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  teammates. And for me specifically, it
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  was lacrosse. And they're my best
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  friends to this day. And I want
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  Gabrielle and Luke to have those same
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  the same bond that I had with my
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  friends. So in order to do that, we got
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  to make sure that they you can even make
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  that team, right? And it's challenging.
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  I mean, it's it's all about the social
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  aspect. Sports kids are considered the
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  cool kids of school, and I want Luke and
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  Gabrielle to be a part of that. I want
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  them to learn all the life lessons that
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  come along with sports that we can dive
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  into. Um, but yeah, it's it's a
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  challenge now. You really have to pick
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  one and kind of go with it.
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  >> Do you agree or disagree? No, I agree
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  100%. I mean, I I um I remember when
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  Danny started playing baseball and I um
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  uh wanted to coach the baseball team in
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  T-ball where I saw that we showed up to
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  the to the uh first meeting of of all
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  the coaches and several of the teams
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  that we were were in our league, they
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  were year- round players.
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  >> Yeah.
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  >> Excuse me. And these were
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  >> these were five-year-old kids.
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  >> Yeah.
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  >> Right. And I was shocked. I was like,
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  you know, these kids should be playing
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  for fun. It should be, you know, about,
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  you know, uh, sportsmanship and team
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  building and things of that nature.
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  >> In addition, you know, and obviously
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  when we grew up playing, you'd have rock
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  stars and you'd have guys that, you
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  know, couldn't put on a glove, right?
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  Like, and everything in between. And I
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  thought that that was a benefit of it.
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  And so, you know, when you come in and
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  you have kids that are playing year
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  round and they're going to rock your
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  kids who've never played before, I was
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  going to that was kind of discouraging
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  for your kids, right? So, like I came in
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  just shocked. It was very jarring to me
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  when I started this process with my
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  kids. And so, you know, I think it's
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  extremely competitive now. And you have
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  to do all of those things to be
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  competitive in sports.
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  >> It's also very expensive cuz like you
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  said, there's the trainer involved.
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  There's the club the club um fees.
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  There's travel. Travel's huge now.
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  >> We're we're gone every weekend.
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  Literally every weekend. I have a wagon.
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  I have a tent. I have four coolers, five
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  folding chairs. I mean, it's it's part
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  of our lives now, right? We're we're lax
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  parents.
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  >> Well, and you know, I I have to bring up
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  the fact that you also have a
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  four-year-old son and he's kind of the
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  tag along. Do you think it's fair for
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  Cruz to be sitting there all weekend
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  just watching his brother and his sister
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  play lacrosse?
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  >> That's a good point. Um, we've thought
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  about it. I mean, he loves it, but he's
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  also that kid who's kind of happy
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  golucky and goes with the flow, right?
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  But at the same time, it's kind of
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  giving him a vision of his future, too,
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  right? And and what he likes to do. So,
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  we have a little lacrosse stick that we
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  cut down and he, you know, scoops up the
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  ball on the sidelines. He cheers for his
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  his brother and his sister.
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  >> Yeah.
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  >> And we I mean, he he loves it, but it to
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  your point like
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  >> why isn't he doing some something other,
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  you know, than a sport. Maybe it's in an
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  art class or a camp or what have you,
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  but he's he's with us 247,
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  >> right, Danny? as a dad um to one athlete
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  and one that's heavily in the arts, do
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  you find that we are struggling on the
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  weekends to give the kids enough time to
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  be, you know, in their sporting events
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  and then having their social lives? Like
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  I remember when Adriana was deep in
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  competitive soccer and we would get
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  birthday invitations. We didn't know if
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  we had to go to the game, right,
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  >> or if it was fair for her, you know, at
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  6, seven, eight years old to cancel that
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  birthday party. What are your thoughts
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  on that? Look, I think, you know,
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  everybody handles those things
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  differently and, you know, you obviously
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  make your friendships around kind of
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  sports and teams and things of that
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  nature. I think we've, you know,
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  balanced it pretty well. Um, and we've
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  given our kids a little bit of space to
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  kind of make decisions for themselves
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  and, you know, not really forced things
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  on them, which I think is a good thing.
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  Um, but, you know, I I think Adriana is
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  pursuing her passion. I mean, we've not
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  been insistent on her just playing one
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  sport. we've kind of allowed her, you
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  know, which is how I kind of grew up,
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  although I played soccer and baseball
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  intentionally and and very competitively
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  for most of my my younger years until I
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  kind of got into high school and then I
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  was playing more basketball and
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  football. But, um, you know, Adriana's
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  been kind of, you know, she's she even
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  played flag football last year, right? I
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  mean, she was exposed to different
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  things and, um, she's made friends, you
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  know, across teams and across, you know,
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  schools and across clubs and things of
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  that nature. And I think that that's
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  worked out well for her. And the same
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  thing with Danny on, you know, his piano
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  and his art and and now fishing, which
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  everybody's gotten heavy into fishing.
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  >> All all the kids want to go.
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  >> What a rage for fishing right now. And,
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  you know, I love that they're doing this
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  because we live in Miami. We live on the
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  water.
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  >> What better place to be fishing than in
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  our own backyard? So, I'm so glad that
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  there's a rise of fishing again. And
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  there's nothing I love more, Ryan, than
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  Friday after school. And this happened
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  to us last night. We had all these bikes
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  thrown in our front yard. And when we
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  look behind the window, everybody's in
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  the canal fishing, which side story,
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  there is a crocodile in our canal right
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  now, and I'm freaking out about it
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  because all I see is a child getting
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  napped by one. But
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  >> they'll be all right. Of course, they'll
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  be all right. We live in the Everglades.
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  I mean, there's going to be crocs and
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  alligators.
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  >> Another episode for another day.
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  >> Get your crocodiles out.
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  >> To to your point, Danny, it's like, you
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  know, Luke is now exposed by being on
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  the Brothers United Columbus team. You
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  would never have known those kids at
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  Columbus and those boys. And Gabrielle's
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  up in in Miami Shores and she's meeting
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  a whole group of girls that go to
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  university school. They go to Miami
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  Country Day or St. Thomas. And it's kind
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  of it's it's opening up their circles
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  for their future network and and future
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  friends, too.
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  >> One of the things that I love that you
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  guys did a couple years back ago, which
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  you didn't do this year because our
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  schedules are just so insane, was that
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  you got season tickets to the Miami
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  Hurricanes basketball season.
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  >> That was fun. And um it was the perfect
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  situation because it's close enough to
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  home where you guys were able to get to
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  the games on a school night. You were
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  able to get back home as opposed to
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  having to go to the stadium
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  unfortunately to my to watch the heat
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  games
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  >> in Ryan's golf cart
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  >> in Ryan's golf cart. They would, you
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  know, just cross US one and get there.
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  Um how awesome was that?
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  >> It was great because it's almost like
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  our our schedules are so busy. Our lives
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  are so frantic and crazy with school and
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  sports and whatever. It was kind of a
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  break in the middle of the week. Most
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  games were like a Wednesday or a
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  Thursday and we kind of got to hit pause
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  and be together and just, you know,
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  enjoy the moment, be like in the present
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  with our kids and our our friendship and
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  it's you see people that you know and
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  it's a community, you know, school. It's
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  a community game and so it's you see the
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  same faces every single game
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  >> and it's it was fun and you're home, you
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  know, you're home before bedtime. So
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  >> it was the ideal scenario. I wish that
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  everybody's schedules would lighten up a
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  little bit to be able to partake in that
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  again because I know our kids enjoyed it
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  so much. But one of the reasons why we
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  didn't do it, I mean, your twins, for
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  example, let's talk about their schedule
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  after school. These kids do not go to
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  bed until what time sometimes?
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  >> Yeah. So, we're Monday, Wednesday with
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  Luke and Gabrielle. So, I come home from
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  work and I take Luke to Columbus. We
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  leave the house at 6:30. His practices
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  till 8:30. He messes around with his
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  friends playing football after lacrosse.
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  And we're home by 9,00 9:15,
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  >> Ryan. And that's not even having started
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  homework.
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  >> Well, they're supposed to do their
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  homework before practice,
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  >> do they?
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  >> They they have been. They have been. And
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  actually, and and same with Gabrielle.
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  So Sophia's taking Cruz and Gabrielle to
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  Miami Shores for her lacrosse practice.
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  So we're we're going in different
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  directions.
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  >> Um but at the same time, it's it's
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  really helped them in with it with their
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  discipline. I mean, we twice a week I
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  take Luke and Gabrielle to to Coral Oaks
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  to the gym and we work out. We train in
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  the mornings.
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  >> And that's before school.
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  >> That's before school.
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  >> These kids get up to train at 5 a.m.
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  >> They're up at They're up at 5:30. And by
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  the way, they're the ones asking me. I'm
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  not pressuring them.
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  >> They want to wake up. They have, again,
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  back to the discipline. They have their
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  clothes laid out. They have their book
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  bags, you know, prepared and ready. They
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  make sure their homework is done. And
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  it's keeping them on a very disciplined
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  schedule. And since we've done this with
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  the early morning wake up and the late
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  practices, their grades have never been
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  better. They had all A's and B's last
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  quarter. More A's than B's.
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  >> Interesting.
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  >> And so I think that discipline, if we're
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  instilling it, you know, now hopefully
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  they carry that on as they as they grow.
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  >> I think that's that's a huge, you know,
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  thing. I uh I grew up like that as well.
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  Um you know, I think kids thrive in a
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  disciplined, you know, very consistent,
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  steady environment. It just creates, you
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  know, again, consistency and and it
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  manages their expectations when they
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  know what their schedule's going to be
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  like.
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  >> It it just it relieves a lot of anxiety
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  and pressure.
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  >> It does.
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  >> But when they're growing, and I would
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  love to talk to a doctor about this,
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  when they're growing, I know that the
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  endocrinologist has always told me that
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  they sleeping is so important for kids
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  when they're growing. these schedules
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  where these kids are work and maybe not
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  your kids per se or our kids per se, but
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  there's, you know, practice that goes
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  all the way up to 10:30 at night. And
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  we're talking about little kids. We're
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  not talking about high schoolers. We're
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  talking about first, second, third
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  graders. I'll never forget Adriana's
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  soccer club team in second or third
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  grade. Wanted her at a practice till
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  9:30 at night. I kept thinking, she's a
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  child. She's growing. She needs sleep.
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  Um, what do you guys think about that?
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  this end of the day practice. I mean,
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  shouldn't they be in bed by a certain
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  time at a certain age?
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  >> Yeah. I mean, for us, the days that they
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  don't have practice, they're usually in
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  bed early and we're very thoughtful of
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  that, right? So, if they go to bed at
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  9:30 on a Monday, let's try to get them
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  8:15 on a Tuesday,
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  >> right?
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  >> And try to catch up. And then obviously
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  on the weekends, I mean, our kids are
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  sleeping in like teenagers now.
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  >> Exactly.
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  >> So,
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  >> I mean, we left our kids sleeping at
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  home. Right now, they've got the day off
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  from school and they, you know, they
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  need that rest. Um, and the when you
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  said that they sleep in on the weekends,
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  it's very seldom that your kids sleep on
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  the weekend because they're always in
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  tournaments.
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  >> That's true. In tournament season, Yeah.
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  I mean, sometimes we have to be in
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  Wellington for an 8:30 game.
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  >> That's crazy,
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  >> right? Um, it's it's kind of bananas,
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  but you know, also we we stay at hotels
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  with the other families and it's great
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  bonding. We have some of our greatest
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  memories, you know, doing that. So,
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  there's pros and cons, right?
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  >> Yeah, of course. Danny, when you were
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  growing up, was it more that you played
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  for the team of your school or did you
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  play for a club team? And have has that
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  reversed in today's world?
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  >> When I was growing up, uh, I played
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  baseball at South Miami Cory League. Uh,
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  and the majority people that I played
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  with, um, you know, all kind of went, we
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  all went to a lot of the same schools
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  and obviously, you know, feeder schools
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  to, you know, Guliver and and Palmer and
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  Ransom and, uh, and Columbus and Benn
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  and and so, you know, it wasn't so much
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  the school team until you got to like,
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  let's say, middle school or high school.
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  It was really just the club team, right?
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  Um, same thing with soccer. I played
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  soccer at the YMCA. like we didn't have
• 12:45
  Pinerest Premiere and like you know
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  today it's like you have a million
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  options to kind of pick your poison.
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  >> They're like mini pro leagues.
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  >> Yeah. But but that's where we played and
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  so you know no less competitive. Um you
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  know a lot of the folks that I grew up
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  playing baseball with. For instance, I
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  have numerous friends that that got
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  drafted and played you know in the
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  minors if not you know ultimately into
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  the pros. You know same thing with
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  soccer. Guys got pulled into club teams
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  with you know Real Madrid and Barcelona
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  and stuff like that. Um, and then you
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  know when I went to middle school and
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  high school, I played both on my school
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  team. We were at Carver, we, you know,
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  and at Carver I played volleyball, I ran
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  cross country, I played soccer, I played
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  uh basketball, and then when I got to
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  Palmer, I played, you know, uh, football
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  and basketball. And so that was it. I
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  only played on on the the school team.
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  Um, and obviously different things. And
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  again, you know, we were competitive
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  because we were athletic and we just
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  kind of did it and we did it for fun.
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  >> Um, but you know, it it's it's
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  completely changed. Like I don't know
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  today that, you know, if I would have
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  played the way that I played, I would
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  never have gotten to a level of
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  competitiveness as a basketball player
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  or as a football player or as a baseball
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  player. Had I not hired the hitting
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  coach, hired the pitching coach, hired,
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  you know, been playing 24/7, I don't
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  think that I would have been as
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  competitive as I was in today's
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  environment. For sure.
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  >> I totally agree with that.
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  >> Yeah.
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  >> I think it's sad that people have to get
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  to that point just to have fun in
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  today's world cuz I'm talking from a
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  non-athletic perspective, which would be
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  me. Um, my only sport is none of the
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  above. And um if I just wanted to try in
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  today's world try my hand at volleyball,
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  I wouldn't even have a spot on the team
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  to try because I would need to line up a
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  million and one coaches,
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  >> which is kind of sad for those people
• 14:43
  that did not start at 2 years old
• 14:46
  kicking the soccer ball.
• 14:47
  >> At what point do you see that changing
• 14:49
  or you don't see that changing?
• 14:51
  >> I don't see it changing. I see it
• 14:53
  getting more intense.
• 14:54
  >> Yeah.
• 14:55
  >> To be quite honest. And what is the end
• 14:57
  goal for a lot of these people? Is it
• 14:59
  Olympics? Is it sports team? I mean,
• 15:01
  let's be honest. Who's going to go pro?
• 15:04
  A fraction of the people. Like for
• 15:06
  example, your kids, I know you
• 15:09
  personally, so I know your kids play for
• 15:11
  fun, but is there a goal in mind for
• 15:12
  their lacrosse journey?
• 15:15
  >> I don't know if they know that yet. Um,
• 15:18
  for Sofh and I, it's it's really just
• 15:21
  them being a part of a team because you
• 15:23
  learn so many intangibles on a team and
• 15:26
  and I played lacrosse in middle school,
• 15:29
  high school, and college. I even played,
• 15:31
  you know, in men's leagues until I was
• 15:33
  40. I retired. I hung up the cleats when
• 15:35
  I was 40 and I discovered tennis, which
• 15:37
  is my new love.
• 15:38
  >> Um, but it's really just them being a
• 15:40
  part of something.
• 15:41
  >> Yeah. And to your point, it's
• 15:43
  unfortunate that we have to put all this
• 15:45
  time into the private coaches to, you
• 15:48
  know, just working with them personally,
• 15:50
  you know, getting them to the gym, doing
• 15:51
  the tournaments so they can make those
• 15:53
  teams to have that experience because
• 15:55
  >> if we don't do all that, there's a
• 15:57
  chance they may not make that team.
• 15:59
  >> And that's that's your point, right?
• 16:00
  Like that's where I think it's a you're
• 16:01
  doing a discredit to these kids, right?
• 16:03
  Because I think that, you know, as I had
• 16:05
  suggested that you have kind, you know,
• 16:07
  when we were growing up, you had the the
• 16:09
  high performers and you had the guys
• 16:10
  that were just trying this out for fun,
• 16:12
  right? And everything in between.
• 16:14
  >> There's so much so many social skills
• 16:16
  and so many just team building skills
• 16:18
  that you get by being a member of the
• 16:20
  team
• 16:21
  >> that you're you're not giving exposure
• 16:23
  to an enormous amount of kids that
• 16:26
  would, you know, really benefit from,
• 16:28
  you know, learning how to do that and
• 16:30
  collaborating and whatnot. just fine
• 16:32
  motor skills alone.
• 16:34
  >> That too for sure. But you know, look, I
• 16:36
  I I will say this. You know, maybe
• 16:38
  you're not playing football or lacrosse
• 16:41
  because you're not great, right? That
• 16:43
  you're not, you know, competitive from a
• 16:45
  team perspective. Um, and obviously the
• 16:48
  team element is is is super important
• 16:50
  what we're talking about, but but the
• 16:51
  wellness orientation is super important
• 16:53
  as well, right? So, I think that today
• 16:56
  we're more and more intentional about
• 16:58
  wellness um and you know PE and you know
• 17:01
  just being active and outside um and I
• 17:04
  think everybody needs to do that at an
• 17:06
  early age so that you have that
• 17:08
  disposition right and so you know your
• 17:10
  kids seeing you play tennis and working
• 17:12
  out at at Legacy and things like that
• 17:14
  you know that's projecting on them right
• 17:16
  and they kind of have an opening to
• 17:18
  playing sports or just to being fit and
• 17:21
  and and inclined to wellness.
• 17:23
  >> Yeah, no doubt. I mean, I'm just I'm
• 17:26
  blessed and lucky that they want to come
• 17:27
  work out with me in the mornings, right?
• 17:29
  Yeah. And they're learning their bodies.
• 17:30
  Like, they're like baby giraffes, you
• 17:32
  know, and they're trying to hop on one
• 17:33
  foot and understand how their bodies
• 17:35
  work, right? I mean, we're not doing 300
• 17:36
  lb squats in their back.
• 17:37
  >> Yeah.
• 17:38
  >> But they're, you know, they're learning
• 17:39
  how to how to cut laterally, how to run
• 17:42
  sprints, you know, they're just learning
• 17:43
  their bodies now. And hopefully they
• 17:45
  take that discipline into their lives
• 17:46
  because, you know, fitness is a part of
• 17:49
  my life. It's a part of your life,
• 17:50
  right? Big time. And it's without that,
• 17:52
  I don't know where I'd be. And so, we
• 17:54
  want to instill that in them at a very
• 17:55
  young age.
• 17:56
  >> I love that. I love that you do that.
• 17:58
  I'm always in awe that they wake up
• 18:00
  early to work out with you because we
• 18:02
  could barely get ours to roll out of bed
• 18:04
  in the morning and make it to school on
• 18:06
  time. So, it just it shocks me that they
• 18:09
  do that and then they have a full day of
• 18:10
  school and then they go to practice.
• 18:12
  >> Yep. Yep. Kudos to you and so for
• 18:15
  instilling that in them because I think
• 18:17
  that's
• 18:17
  >> kudos to the kids for for first and
• 18:19
  foremost wanting to do it right.
• 18:21
  >> Do you see your fouryear-old going down
• 18:23
  that same path?
• 18:24
  >> So Cruz will just randomly stop us in
• 18:27
  the middle of the house and give us 10
• 18:29
  push-ups, 10 sit-ups, and 10 squats. And
• 18:31
  he says, "Look how big my look at my
• 18:32
  muscles."
• 18:33
  >> That's hilarious.
• 18:34
  >> So he sees them doing it. He sees Sofh
• 18:36
  and I doing it. So I think, you know,
• 18:38
  he's he's well on his way. So Sofh was
• 18:41
  one of my first founding guests, if you
• 18:44
  will. Actually, she was my very first
• 18:46
  interview when I told her I wanted to
• 18:47
  start doing this. Um, when we were
• 18:50
  building up the foundations for Heartful
• 18:53
  Living, I did a dual episode with her,
• 18:55
  which if you're not familiar, it's
• 18:57
  Sophia Holtzman. It's 121 days in the
• 18:59
  NICU followed by a co surprise, which
• 19:02
  was your four-year-old Cruz. Uh, did you
• 19:05
  ever envision this life for them when
• 19:07
  they were born as micro preeis?
• 19:11
  >> That's a lot to unpack. I mean, no. The
• 19:13
  the the short answer is no. I mean, we
• 19:16
  were just so happy that they got out of
• 19:18
  the hospital healthy. And, you know, the
• 19:21
  doctors told us if they do make it out,
• 19:23
  you know, here's a list, a laundry list
• 19:25
  of things that could happen. I mean,
• 19:27
  blind, deaf, not being able to walk,
• 19:30
  speech, what have you. and they've
• 19:32
  surpassed all of that. And so I have a
• 19:35
  different perspective than some parents.
• 19:36
  Like just seeing them out on the field,
• 19:39
  you know, practicing with their team or
• 19:41
  just throwing a football with their
• 19:42
  buddies or kicking a soccer ball, it's
• 19:45
  just like it's everything. I mean, that
• 19:47
  they're able to laugh and have fun just
• 19:50
  playing sports.
• 19:51
  >> If that's not heartful living,
• 19:52
  >> it's amazing.
• 19:53
  >> I don't know what is.
• 19:55
  >> We're very blessed.
• 19:56
  >> Yeah. Well, thank you guys for being
• 19:57
  here today. Um I hope you'll come back.
• 20:00
  >> Of course. I love having this tribe here
• 20:02
  with me and I love having a dad's
• 20:05
  perspective here every once in a while.
• 20:07
  >> So hopefully you guys will come back. We
• 20:09
  could talk about vacation, plan a
• 20:12
  vacation,
• 20:14
  >> much needed a
• 20:15
  >> much needed vacation. We could talk
• 20:16
  about any anything you guys want. Just
• 20:18
  promise you'll come back.
• 20:19
  >> You have my word.
• 20:20
  >> Thank you all. Thank you all for
• 20:21
  listening today. Have a good one.
• 20:23
  Bye-bye.