The lifelong friends you’ve made. The coaches you will never forget. The fun you had with the teammates who taught you there is more to sports than wins and losses. These are just a few of the reasons why you wouldn’t trade your youth sports experiences for anything in the world.

But will your children enjoy similar experiences?

Unfortunately, many of today’s children aren’t building memories such as these. They’re participating less and less when it comes to youth sports. Why?

Maybe the “win-at-all-costs” mentality that today pervades all levels of youth sports has taken much of the fun out of the game. Maybe the relentless pull of new technology is responsible for luring our kids away from fields of play. Whatever the reasons, it is your job as a parent to encourage your kids to participate in, or at least try, youth sports.

If you don’t attempt to get your kids involved, not only will you assure that they miss out on very special sports memories, but you will also inadvertently perpetuate the general degradation of their health.

To help get you thinking about the ways to frame and discuss the many rewards of participating in sports to your kids, Liberty Mutual Insurance and Positive Coaching Alliance have outlined four of the central benefits of youth sports participation:

Fitness – Youth sports provide fun reasons for your kids to get off of the couch and get active.

Friendships – Teammates often become life-long best friends.

Wisdom – From learning how to overcome individual challenges to how to succeed on a team, youth sports is the platform from which many of life’s most valuable lessons are learned.

Focus – The mental preparation that it takes to succeed in youth sports provides the groundwork for being successful both in school and later in life.

For more advice and resources to help promote sportsmanship and a more positive youth sports experience to your kids, visit PlayPositive.com.

At Liberty Mutual Insurance, we constantly look for ways to celebrate the countless acts of sportsmanship and integrity shown by people every day. We created Play Positive™, powered by Positive Coaching Alliance, as part of this belief to help ensure that our kids experience the best that sports have to offer in environments that promote and display good sportsmanship. We believe kids can learn valuable life lessons when coaches and parents come together to support winning on and off the ice.

In an effort to benefit millions of youth athletes, parents and coaches, this article is among a series created exclusively for partners in the Liberty Mutual Insurance Play Positive™ program powered by Positive Coaching Alliance.

©2014 Liberty Mutual Insurance and Positive Coaching Alliance. All rights reserved. This material may not be distributed without express written permission. Any reproduction in whole or part by and individuals or organizations will be held liable for copyright infringement to the full extent of the law.