Tips for your child’s better and more correct choice of sports activity
Insufficient physical activity is the cause of the alarming increase in deformities of the feet, spine and obesity of children – say pediatricians. They warn that children do not need to sit in front of TV or computers for a long time, but to play more and more of some sports, because sports are an excellent educational tool (and their verification through success and constant striving for progress). Sport protects young people from “imprisonment in one’s own person”, but also from drugs, alcohol and crime – very widespread phenomena of today’s society. Healthy, agile and agile children can more easily endure all the difficulties of life. They have a more developed psycho-motor system and better functional abilities of the organism. All this can be achieved through a well-thought-out exercise system, creating healthy eating habits and applying life hygiene in general.
For every sport, there is a best age to involve a child in these activities. For example, the best period for swimming is the age of a child from 5 to 9 years, while volleyball or basketball should start between 8 and 12 years of age. Any early onset (preschool age) is limited in the mental and physical characteristics of the child. Success in sports is related to a number of factors (talent and constant work, training and development). The child should train regularly and hard to achieve high and above average results. Choosing the right sport is important and difficult because there are no reliable indicators of a child’s talent for a particular sport. However, in practice, it has been shown that there are several ways in which a child can choose the right sports activity to engage in in the future:

1. Choose a sport independently (because parents choose it and like to watch it on TV, or by reading newspapers and web portals)
2. Choosing a sport under the influence of parents / guardians-which is often a sport that parents like or have once played
3. The child chooses a sport with an aptitude test. Some sports clubs test the abilities of school – age children and give advice (instructions on the child ‘s choice of sport.
4. Testing to establish motor skills (co-ordination, precision, balance, speed and flexibility) important for a particular sport is important for the correct choice of sport. The psychological characteristics of the child are important. For example, anxious children (prone to react with fear and anxiety) are not recommended to play martial arts but can play tennis, swimming and athletics. Slightly more aggressive and temperamental children are suitable for sports that require “firm contact” because they can withstand loads better.
5. Of great importance is the physical constitution (for example, the height of the child).
6. Strength and endurance are less important in a child’s choice of sport because they are gained through exercise.
7. Positive mental and physical coordination can be felt by the child only as an active participant in sports or other physical activities. All children who want to do sports should do it because of the indisputable value of sports. Children can engage in free sports activities at schools or clubs that offer these options.
8. The most important goal of a child’s involvement in sports is to achieve better results, although sport carries certain messages of lasting values ​​(proper attitude towards health, creating healthy life habits and values ​​and raising awareness of what a child should exercise, how to exercise, how much to exercise and why is generally involved in sports).
   In order for a child to get involved in a sport activity, it is necessary to know the basic motor abilities of the child:
   –coordination is the ability to coordinate movements in time and space. It is important for all sports. It can be improved with exercise that should be developed from an early age.
   –speed is the ability to perform fast movements with a constant load in the shortest possible time, which must not be affected by fatigue. It is mostly an innate trait that should be influenced from an early age. It reaches its maximum between 20 years of age and 22 years of age. There is a proportional relationship between speed and power — which means that stronger people are faster.
   –flexibility is the ability of good joint mobility and should be developed from an early age.
   -balance is the ability of the organism to establish and maintain a balanced position of the body.
   –strength is the ability to overcome resistance in younger athletes (from 7 to 12 years of age) and strength should not be required but should be gradually developed with exercise.
   –endurance is the ability to prolong fatigue without reducing activity. It depends on the functional properties of the organism (cardiac, respiratory, energy and somatic-vegetative systems).