swim and/or soccer

[Anonymous]

I have a 13 year old who is still doing both. Still hasn't had to choose yet

[Anonymous]

That’s the problem. With a heartbreak I guess

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have an 8 year old that is on a top soccer team and a top swimmer. I have zero dreams of her playing in college. So many of these "top" kids burn out by the time they are 12. My concern right now is making she is having fun. Because so many of these top programs suck the fun out of everything - so much pressure on little kids and no fun.

As for which sport to choose, she will need to make a decision in the next year or two. But I am hoping she can keep up with both of them. It probably isn't realistic. I find soccer to be incredibly political, whereas swimming is purely times.

Same. I have an 11 year old boy who has had a lot of success in both sports so far, but chances of it becoming more than a fun and healthy activity is pretty minuscule. We put our kids in sports to stay healthy, stay out of trouble, and learn about themselves and others. To pp above, hopefully you have a few years to keep your daughter in both. My son just turned 11 and we are hoping to have him do one more year of both sports before having to scale back one. It’s a shame that sports aren’t as seasonal as they used to be. Swim is nice in that there are many practices offered and you are not necessarily locked into the same days of the week as in soccer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an 8 year old that is on a top soccer team and a top swimmer. I have zero dreams of her playing in college. So many of these "top" kids burn out by the time they are 12. My concern right now is making she is having fun. Because so many of these top programs suck the fun out of everything - so much pressure on little kids and no fun.

As for which sport to choose, she will need to make a decision in the next year or two. But I am hoping she can keep up with both of them. It probably isn't realistic. I find soccer to be incredibly political, whereas swimming is purely times.

Same. I have an 11 year old boy who has had a lot of success in both sports so far, but chances of it becoming more than a fun and healthy activity is pretty minuscule. We put our kids in sports to stay healthy, stay out of trouble, and learn about themselves and others. To pp above, hopefully you have a few years to keep your daughter in both. My son just turned 11 and we are hoping to have him do one more year of both sports before having to scale back one. It’s a shame that sports aren’t as seasonal as they used to be. Swim is nice in that there are many practices offered and you are not necessarily locked into the same days of the week as in soccer.

I really encourage both of you, especially with an 8yo, to let them do both (or try new activities) as long as possible (as long as they want to also). If they have the desire to both and you are getting pressure from coaches/programs, find others. There is no reason for preteens to be exclusive in these sports unless they/family are looking to limit. Like PP, we had flexible swimming schedule which helped a lot, and we got lucky with a soccer practice being scheduled on the day off from swimming, but I had a kid play travel soccer and highest offered swim group through 8th grade. This kid knew around 12 she was likely picking swimming at 9th when it would not be possible to move to the expected/goal swim group and do a second activity.

This kid recently went through recruiting process, and one thing I noted was that she had no regrets. She talks very positively about both sports, but always saw herself as a college swimmer. She still has great friends from soccer and was able to participate in a true team sport. I think this is really great knowing that if kids make the choice to go all-in on swimming, they do give up a lot. Not having regrets about that and still having passion for the sport was great to hear when she would talk to coaches.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have 8-year old twins. One is a girl; the other is a boy. Both play soccer and do club swimming and they love both. I know down the road, each kid will have to focus on one and it weighs heavily on their own preferences. But granted everything equal (currently both kids enjoy both sports and are pretty good), what's your recommendation for one sport to focus on? Would the recommendation be different for boys vs. girls? As a parent, I'm thinking the impact/possibility of college recruitment as well. Are the chances of college recruitment different for different sports with boys vs. girls?

We are having the same dilemma with our 9yo except it's between esports and basketball.

[Anonymous]

PP with 8 year old. I am all about exploring as many interests as possible. It is just what we have found with our older kids is that sports around here become all encompassing on the top teams. You do team practices, private training, multiple games a week. It is hard to manage two sports when the schedule is so intense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an 8 year old that is on a top soccer team and a top swimmer. I have zero dreams of her playing in college. So many of these "top" kids burn out by the time they are 12. My concern right now is making she is having fun. Because so many of these top programs suck the fun out of everything - so much pressure on little kids and no fun.

As for which sport to choose, she will need to make a decision in the next year or two. But I am hoping she can keep up with both of them. It probably isn't realistic. I find soccer to be incredibly political, whereas swimming is purely times.

Same. I have an 11 year old boy who has had a lot of success in both sports so far, but chances of it becoming more than a fun and healthy activity is pretty minuscule. We put our kids in sports to stay healthy, stay out of trouble, and learn about themselves and others. To pp above, hopefully you have a few years to keep your daughter in both. My son just turned 11 and we are hoping to have him do one more year of both sports before having to scale back one. It’s a shame that sports aren’t as seasonal as they used to be. Swim is nice in that there are many practices offered and you are not necessarily locked into the same days of the week as in soccer.

I really encourage both of you, especially with an 8yo, to let them do both (or try new activities) as long as possible (as long as they want to also). If they have the desire to both and you are getting pressure from coaches/programs, find others. There is no reason for preteens to be exclusive in these sports unless they/family are looking to limit. Like PP, we had flexible swimming schedule which helped a lot, and we got lucky with a soccer practice being scheduled on the day off from swimming, but I had a kid play travel soccer and highest offered swim group through 8th grade. This kid knew around 12 she was likely picking swimming at 9th when it would not be possible to move to the expected/goal swim group and do a second activity.

This kid recently went through recruiting process, and one thing I noted was that she had no regrets. She talks very positively about both sports, but always saw herself as a college swimmer. She still has great friends from soccer and was able to participate in a true team sport. I think this is really great knowing that if kids make the choice to go all-in on swimming, they do give up a lot. Not having regrets about that and still having passion for the sport was great to hear when she would talk to coaches.

Thanks, this is great advice. I’m the one with the 11 year old. We will take it as it comes. The coaches for both sports have nothing but supportive and whenever we tell them about conflicts, they always reply that they support our kid and that he should do what makes him happy. We had a different situation before we moved because pool and field time was so limited, that clubs could and did insist on strict attendance. Anyway, thanks and hope he can enjoy both for a while.

[scrswm]

I have a boy who has been in travel soccer and club swim since he was 8. He prioritizes soccer and dropped down to a swim team that has an option for a couple evenings a week. Travel soccer slows down in winter and it’s nice to have the swim to keep him active and happy. Plus he loves summer swim and because he is fit from soccer and gets some pool time year round he does well. He was never going to be a 5 am swimmer even if he didn’t love soccer so much.

[Anonymous]

For your daughter, soccer is pretty awful for ACL injuries in the teen years. My DD is a swimmer in part because she's good at it and in part because she hates the heat. In swimming, you never get all that hot. Not so in soccer. Your kids will decide for themselves soon enough. Just let them enjoy both as long as you can manage running them around to practices, games, and meets!

[Anonymous]

I have one kid currently swimming in college and one in HS. My current HS kid played travel soccer for several years and I have close friends whose kids were very invested in soccer (travel teams, one with the DC United development team, one who went to Spain for camps, others that went to college camps). Of all the kids who played soccer at what they thought was very high level, 1 girl is committed to playing varsity in college and a few others have got on to play DIII. One mom of a very good player explained to me that at least 1/2 of all the college men's teams come from outside the US. On the other hand, my kids' peers in their swim program routinely swim in college. Some at Ivy league schools or elite DIII schools, many at division one programs (UNC, Duke, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, University of Denver, UVA, VA Tech, Georgetown, BC, Loyola MD, etc.) I agree with everyone else that you should let your kids do both and do what they enjoy. But, to answer your question, it's very clear to me that best swimmers from this area fare much better on the college opportunities than the best college players do. Now-- there is not much money in boys sports in either swimming or soccer. But, swimming can open doors, and make admissions easier. There is significantly more Division I spots (and scholarship $) available for girls because there are dozens of schools that have women's swim teams and no men's teams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have one kid currently swimming in college and one in HS. My current HS kid played travel soccer for several years and I have close friends whose kids were very invested in soccer (travel teams, one with the DC United development team, one who went to Spain for camps, others that went to college camps). Of all the kids who played soccer at what they thought was very high level, 1 girl is committed to playing varsity in college and a few others have got on to play DIII. One mom of a very good player explained to me that at least 1/2 of all the college men's teams come from outside the US. On the other hand, my kids' peers in their swim program routinely swim in college. Some at Ivy league schools or elite DIII schools, many at division one programs (UNC, Duke, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, University of Denver, UVA, VA Tech, Georgetown, BC, Loyola MD, etc.) I agree with everyone else that you should let your kids do both and do what they enjoy. But, to answer your question, it's very clear to me that best swimmers from this area fare much better on the college opportunities than the best college players do. Now-- there is not much money in boys sports in either swimming or soccer. But, swimming can open doors, and make admissions easier. There is significantly more Division I spots (and scholarship $) available for girls because there are dozens of schools that have women's swim teams and no men's teams.

It’s only 30 percent international

[Anonymous]

OP, soccer and swim are very different sports, and I suspect your kids will start having a preference for one over the other within the next few years. One may choose soccer and the other may choose swim, or maybe they lose interest in both. When you’re 8 sports are still mostly fun and a little bit of hard work. As you get older, the training gets a lot harder and you have to push through adversity. Most people have a hard time pushing through that adversity if they don’t have a deep love for the day to day of what they are doing. Swimming in particular is pretty solitary and grueling as you get older. Yes, there’s a fun team aspect to it in high school and college. If you get to that point, but during practice, it is just you staring at a black line alone with your thoughts. Some people really love that but for kids who really like the interaction of a team sport that is not the most appealing. You really won’t know what your kids are going to like based on what practices and competitions look like at eight years old. It changes a lot.

[Anonymous]

Easier for girls to play soccer or swim in college. Fewer girls want to continue their sport and colleges need to fill girls' rosters to balance out football teams under Title IX.

All else equal, my recommendation is keep them both in swimming because they can do it together. It's one of the few sports where boys/girls stay together. It's been a great way for my boy/girl siblings to grow close to each other/spend time together. Plus, one set of practices, meets, etc. is much easier logistically.

[Anonymous]

Swim is generally easier on parents until practices switch to early morning. you don't lose every weekend to games and tournaments the way you can with travel soccer Swim meets are long but are only about once a month and with the apps you don't have to stay the entire time (although you do have to volunteer sometimes). My kids stopped soccer early, but my guess is soccer is more social for parents if you care about that. Also lower risk of concussions with swim.

[Anonymous]

I have not read every page. My DD swam and played soccer growing up and played soccer in college. She quit swimming in high school. Swimming requires a lot more time and very early mornings to be good (and the early practices impact their social life and everything else), and the team aspect is not as prevalent. But my kid decided this herself.