SportsParenthood

SportsParenthood

By Tiffany BonaseraSports
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SportsParenthood episodes

  • What happens when young sportspeople are thrust into the spotlight with Dylan Walker
    In this episode of SportsParenthood, what happens when young sportspeople are thrust into the spotlight, without the maturity and skills to handle the situation? For most of us, we have no first-hand experience of what it's like, how it feels, and much less the scrutiny involved.
    Are our expectations too high? Today, we're bringing you a perspective from a rugby league player who has walked this path - who went from obscurity to the next-big-thing way faster than he ever imagined. And, readily admits he didn't know how to deal with the pressure of it all.
    You'll hear from Dylan Walker, premiership winner, state of origin player and current first-grade player with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League, in an honest and vulnerable account of his childhood and career in the goldfish bowl of professional sport, including the role of FOMO and ego.
    Plus, how he has turned it all around. And, listen out for a really funny story about his mum!
    HOSTS: John and Tiffany Bonasera
    PRODUCER: Tiffany Bonasera
    CONTACT US: [email protected]
    42 min
  • Some honest feedback on the way we sports parent with Andie Bonasera (our eldest daughter)
    This week on SportsParenthood, a guest who is close to our heart. You'll hear from our eldest daughter, Andie.
    When she was six months old, John suggested we take her to see a paediatrician to get a proper check-up. She was a fussy feeder and wasn't a great sleeper, in fact, she hardly slept at all during the night. Still, nothing prepared us for what happened next. She was diagnosed with an atrial septal defect or ASD - a congenital heart defect.
    In this episode, we speak with Andie about what having a congenital heart condition this has meant for her, while she doesn't remember the surgery, she wears the scar on her chest every day. Plus, how she got involved in competitive swimming, and she gives us some honest feedback on the way we sports parent.
    HOSTS: John and Tiffany Bonasera
    PRODUCER: Tiffany Bonasera
    CONTACT US: [email protected]
    30 min
  • Kids and concussion in sport with Byron Field
    When our kids participate in any kind of sport, they run the risk of an injury.
    When it comes to head injuries in sport - understandably - many of us are faced with making the tough decision on whether or not to let our kids play a sport which we think MIGHT have a higher likelihood of concussion, like contact or combat sports.
    Concern over concussion runs deep, but do the benefits of playing contact sport outweigh the risks? Sometimes, it's not as easy as saying, I don't WANT my child to play a particular sport. There's more to it. This is what we'll be discussing on today's show.
    In our conversation with Byron Field, you'll hear where his interest in this topic began as a kid in the early 1990s, and how it has shaped his professional career - he's been a medic in many different sports, including more than a decade working in professional rugby here in Australia and in the UK.
    Now, Bryon is a PhD candidate with a focus on monitoring head impact and concussion in rugby.
    In the episode, Byron shares some of the latest evidence on concussion, we chat about tech tools that can help, the importance of nailing technique, along with what we SHOULD be doing if a child or adolescent does get a head knock or is diagnosed with concussion.
    HELPFUL RESOURCES
    •Sport Australia: www.concussioninsport.gov.au/parents_and_teachers
    •Brain Injury Australia: www.braininjuryaustralia.org.au/education-campaigns/concussion-in-sport
    •The Sydney Children's Hospital Network: www.schn.health.nsw.gov.au/fact-sheets/concussion-and-mild-head-injury
    •Concussion Hub: www.nswrl.com.au/about/documents/concussion-hub
    •Australian Football: https://resources.afl.com.au/afl/document/2021/04/26/9a186f44-ad48-4fab-b6ab-e4be45a578d7/Management-of-Sport-Related-Concussion-in-Australian-Football-25-April-2021-FINAL.pdf
    36 min
  • What would you do if your child got offered two sporting contracts - in two sports?
    What would you do if your child got offered a sporting contract? How would you feel? It would be a pretty special moment. Well, imagine this. What if your child gets offered TWO sporting contracts, in TWO sports, in ONE weekend! It is EXACTLY what happened - at the end of last year - to our guest on the show today.
    In our conversation with sports mum Nicole Dennis, she talks us through this very situation, when her daughter Heidi got offered contracts with both Brisbane Roar Football Club and the Queensland Academy of Sport Reds Rugby Sevens program - at the same time.
    What's going to be best for her? How's it going to work being a dual-contracted athlete? Is it even possible? These are some of the many questions that were racing through Nicole's mind during what she describes at "the most exciting and mentally draining time".
    You'll hear about Heidi's early years in sport, where she showed natural talent from a young age - and the one attribute that has really helped Heidi to stand out. Plus, how Nicole and her husband have sports parented all of their four kids, including how they've had to fine-tune her approach over the years.
    The episode start with THAT moment - the one they didn't see coming.
    HOSTS: John and Tiffany Bonasera
    PRODUCER: Tiffany Bonasera
    CONTACT US: [email protected]
    42 min
  • What sports parents are talking about in 2022 with Tiffany and John Bonasera
    This week on SportsParenthood, it's just the two of us. With no guest to keep us on the straight and narrow, it's an interesting episode! On the show, we discuss what sports parents are talking about in 2022.
    Sports team WhatsApp groups are in full ping with schedules being posted, jersey numbers finalised and training times firmed up as we head into another uncertain year of kids' sport.
    You'll hear us chew over the following topics:
    •The bittersweet reality of competitor-only swimming carnivals
    •The intense competition and drama at the Beijing Winter Games
    •Player and team grading - and how it can go pear-shaped
    •Logistics and the balancing act of being sports parents.
    Plus, I have a bone to pick with John.
    What are you talking about in 2022? Let us know in the comments.
    Thanks for listening, Tiffany
    Visit SportsParenthood for more information.
    26 min
  • How much sleep do our sports kids really need with Dr Laura Piromalli
    We spend about one-third of our lives doing it. Yes, we're talking about sleep. It's a HOT topic for sports parents everywhere - because we know it helps our kids' bodies and brains recover. But we're always worried they're not getting enough sleep - and we're actually right.
    In the new book called Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention, author Johann Hari includes research that says, over the past century the average child has lost 85 minutes of sleep every night. The effects of this are powerful for children.
    With training commitments, schoolwork and a social life, how do we get our sports kids to get more sleep, without a war erupting at home every night? Adding to this, is the often tricky early mornings or late games to contend with.
    We're often left wondering how we can better manage the sleep situation. You're probably experiencing a similar scenario. So, we reached out to Dr Laura Piromalli whose area of expertise is in recovery strategies, in particular, sleep.
    She's currently working at the Western Australia Institute of Sport in the Performance Services Program, and has previously supported the Australian Netball Diamonds as a recovery physiologist and numerous recovery roles at the Australian Institute of Sport.
    In this conversation, you'll hear whether naps are a help or hindrance, exactly how much sleep an adolescent athlete really needs, and the importance of circadian rhythm - and what this means.
    You're going to love this chat with Laura.
    36 min
  • A sporting career isn't measured by a single performance with legend Shaun Creighton
    This week, you'll hear from Shaun Creighton, a two-time Olympic distance runner who competed at the Atlanta Games and Sydney 2000. He still holds the 3000 metre national steeplechase record set in 1993.
    In 2019, Shaun showed US sports parents how it's done, breaking the over-50s national marathon record in a time of 2:29:23 - a record which had stood for 32 years. A legend of athletics, whose late start in the sport and steady progress, ultimately proved to be a winning combination.
    It's a conversation that sparked plenty of a-ha moments for us - and will spark some for you, too. From the importance of having great mentors and coaches in those early years, who bring together passion, structure and skill mastery to give kids a great sporting experience ...
    ... to parents who are role models, race plans, and getting into the head of your competitors - and a message from his coach, Pat Clohessy, who instilled in Shaun that a running career isn't measured by a single performance. He gives us a real-life example that'll get you thinking.
    Shaun recalls his favourite race EVER, and perhaps a little known fact: his first major sporting goal was to play rugby league.
    FINAL NOTE: We had a sporting parents moment in recording this interview. A last-minute change to soccer training meant it clashed with our scheduled interview time with Shaun. So, we recorded it in the car!
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    39 min
  • The difference between independent and dependent learners and how it applies to sport
    Ash Barty. She is EVERYTHING this week. For winning the Australian Open. For speaking up about mental health. For being proud of her Indigenous heritage. For being a humble person. Ash's coach, Craig Tyzzer, is quoted as saying she's "a much better person than she is a tennis player."
    In learning more about Ash's story, where she left the sport to play cricket when she was 18 because of the toll playing tennis was taking on her, it shines the light on a message many of our guests on the podcast have touched on: the journey of many sportspeople is not linear.
    As sports parents, we have to buckle up for whatever this journey brings.
    Our guest this week, Sarah Dunn, Associate Professor at the Department of Kinesiology, California State University, shares with us how sport can take us to places we may never have imagined. And, there are many pathways to make a contribution to sport, even after finishing a competitive sporting career.
    Plus, Sarah explains the difference between dependent and independent learners and how it applies to sport.
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    45 min
  • Coming back from being an "early burn out child" with Erin Plummer
    NEW SEASON 2022. Welcome to another year of SportsParenthood. It's great to be back in your ears after a break. We know there's been radio silence from us. It wasn't our intention to go completely quiet. But hey, things haven't really gone to plan in general these last few months, have they?
    So, who are we speaking with this week? You'll hear from Erin Plummer. What an interesting story she has to tell. Erin won her first state gold medal in swimming at the age of 8. In an honest account, she explains how she ended up being what she describes as an early burn out child.
    Later, Erin transitioned into synchronised swimming, now known as artistic swimming, where she went on to represent Australia at three World Championships. There is more to this sport than many of us think.
    Now, Erin is a sports parent to three daughters. She talks openly about her eldest daughter's bumpy start to sport, and her own role in that story. Plus, how her two youngest are absolutely loving swimming at the club she began her own swimming career, and continues to call her happy place.
    In a week where Swimming Australia has issued an unreserved apology to women and girls in the sport after a scathing independent investigation, this interview focuses on the many positive and enduring ways our kids can benefit from being involved in the right club, in the right environment.
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    36 min
  • We've called full-time on 2021: what a crazy ride!
    This is the FINAL episode of SportsParenthood for 2021, in what's been a year like no other! It's been a roller-coaster, crazy, wild, interesting, resilience-building - and a shitshow.
    In saying all of that, it's been a GREAT year for SportsParenthood. We've published 35 episodes, interviewed 31 guests who've kindly volunteered their time, personal stories and wisdom, and wrangled the distance of recording shows while you relocated to Queensland for work. What have you taken on board this year?
    Listen if you'd like to hear some of the best advice for this season. Plus, why has John got sores legs?
    Thank you for joining us each week. We'll be back in early 2022.
    PLEASE, PLEASE leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts.
    32 min

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