Dr Try Hard wrote:
She had also whined about cross-country being a no-cut sport. Honestly, she really doesn't seem to have the best interests of her student-athletes foremost in her mind. She reminds me of one of those crazy HS coaches that squeezes all they can out of athletes for personal glory. Honestly, a cross country coach wanting to DECREASE participation in cross country, but also claim to be concerned about helping her obese athletes lose weight? inconsistent and frankly, a bit insane
I wasn't going to respond to these ridiculous, hyperbolic and hysterical comments, but this last one is absolutely moronic. Firstly, I don't whine about anything and I never said anything about wanting to DECREASE participation in XC, you seem to have a problem with reading comprehension and complex thought processes. My issue with XC as a no cut sport is that it puts too much pressure on the casual runner that is just looking for an extracurricular activity that involves running. Our girls team is highly competitive and they are very close. That competitive environment puts a lot of pressure on some girls who want to be a part of that. Here's where you need to pay attention. My issue is with telling girls that they have a shot at making varsity when they clearly don't. Telling them that weight doesn't matter and if they just work hard they will be fine, is a lie and they soon find that out. This is where it becomes problematic because that girl will lose trust, close off the dialog and go stealth in trying to lose weight and self train to make the team. This is a real issue and I use my education and experience in this field to find solutions with the full support and confidence of the the school, school board and parents.
Many kids feel left out, even on a no cut team, so I started an after school run club that has been extremely popular. The program is designed as a no pressure alternative to competitive XC and is open to anyone. "Anyone" includes parents, faculty or members of the community. It's just a fun program with healthy living, fun and yes WEIGHT LOSS as the primary goals. We had around 100 girls on our XC team prior to the program and that number has shifted to around 40 running competitive XC and we have around 90 (total participants from all groups) in the run club. Again, the goal was not to DECREASE participation, rather, it was to identify the needs of student athletes and find a viable solution that INCREASES overall participation from the community.
So, I don't just "claim" to be concerned about helping obese athletes, I've dedicated my life and career to it. My mother died from diabetes when I was 12 years old. You wonder why someone chooses to become an endocrinologist of all specialties, well, that's why. We have a childhood obesity problem because everyone is afraid of tackling the issue head on. People like you run scared at the thought of open dialog. Get with the program, no one is putting children at risk or making weight loss recommendations for frivolous reasons. You strike me as a person that would be just fine with his daughter asking for a gym membership because she wanted to drop 5 pounds for prom. I'd much prefer a girl come to me and ask me how to increase their competitive edge in XC because they want to make Footlocker, than how to look better in her prom dress. However, if a kid comes to me and wants to lose weight for any reason, I have the training, coaching and medical expertise to know whether that's a good idea or not and the best way to help them do so safely.
If you don't like that... too bad!
I join you in my sincere hope that your children will NEVER have to meet me.