BURRILLVILLE – One of the most important messages you could provide children that participate in sporting activities is to always remember to stretch first, then play.
Avoiding stretching can lead to painful and debilitating muscle and bone injuries. This Sunday feature depicts a baseball player having to stretch his left leg out in front of him to reach the base before a throw to the plate that could be turned into a tagged out. If you watch baseball games on television you will see major league players stretching before heading out to home plate to engage with the pitcher. They stretch their legs, arms and upper body in order to help prevent muscle strains and cramps. Children participating with sporting activities should do the same exact thing to help them prevent unintentional injuries that could have long lasting affects on their bodies. Injuries today can be felt for weeks and then come back later in life once kids reach teenage years and become adults.
Stretch first. Play it safe kids.
Jim Weicherding is a Burrillville resident, and the founder and creator of an award-winning traffic safety effort Seasons of Safety. Weicherding contributes kids’ coloring cartoons, which can be printed and used to help parents discuss safety issues with their children. He has a long list of police officers and firefighters in his family and has worked with law enforcement and firefighters in a creative public safety capacity for more than two decades.
