Football and Kids

 

I LOVE this picture! Why? It is 6 teenage guys sleeping on the ground, they look like puppies don't they? You can only count how many there are after I told you!  

These are not football players, they are lacrosse players, but the picture is the closest I have to football! These guys were attending a weekend jamboree, and were just plain exhausted and tried to sleep in between games (I headed to to the one and only pub open on Treasure Island).

I read the sports page everyday, and today I read an article about the health issues former NFL football players are encountering. No, it's not new, but it is so absolutely sad.

The article I read is called "The impact of hard knocks" by Ron Kroichick, and it was in the San Francisco  Chronicle (I get two newspapers at home, San Jose and San Francisco).

It hits home because I have  a 16 year old (17 next month) and he plays lacrosse. Lacrosse isn't the contact sport like football though.

He has never been allowed to play football, it was never open for discussion in our home, it was a non-negotiable from day one.

We live across the street from his high school. At every single football game, without fail a player is injured and needs to be transported via ambulance. Why would a parent allow their child to be placed in a position such as that?

Think about it. You love your child more than anything or anyone in the world, yet you are allowing them to participate in a sport that is known for head injuries and lack of enforcement and knowledge to prevent and treat them properly.

Here are the players in their glory afterward (more than 6)

Mine is front, center with white t-shirt and mouth guard that has blackened front teeth...

I would never send him out on a football field to play the game. What will you do with your child? I suggest you get them involved in another sport, anything except football, before it's too late.

2010 NPC San Francisco pictures

There is so much to tell about the day when competing. The group of people is very interesting because most non-competitors will lump us all together (meaning bodybuilders, figure, bikini) and we are very, very different in our training, diets, desired outcomes and opinions about what makes a stunning physique.

The bodybuilders have a desire for sheer mass and no body fat, although they are also seeking symmetry, it's the mass they are after. The bigger, the better.

Figure is looking for a balance, symmetry is of the utmost importance, then well developed muscles and a low level of body fat, more than a bodybuilder should display. They should maintain a feminine look, while looking strong and healthy.

Bikini is even higher body fat, a very "womanly" figure, round, curvy, voluptuous.
 

This is why I think that Figure is becoming the sport of women over 30. The training  for Bikini isn't as intense, the diet isn't as strict, you don't need or want the muscle development which can take years to develop.  Younger women are finding their niche in Bikini, it allows the fit gals to compete without the level of work that Figure requires.

The Figure categories of 35+ and 45+ are booming, more and more women are competing and the caliber of competitors is better and better every day. I was amazed at the stunning physiques that I saw in my 45+ class. As we lined up when our numbers were called, a scan made it difficult to name the clear cut winners, they were that close.

It makes it all more exciting when you look around and see that someone is giving you a run for your money!

The open height classes were not as competitive, I felt that it was fairly easy to name the top five and the classes were half the size of the older classes.

Bikini on the other hand is booming. More and more women are flocking to the sport. I only know three women who have competed in Bikini, and only one has told me her reasons. One has since moved to Figure after building up her muscle mass. Some have absolutely no desire to compete in Figure ever! They like the Bikini look and want to stay there.

No matter which category someone chooses, they should be free to enjoy their sport, regardless of what others may say about it.

 
The promoter said this year was the largest turnout of competitors in the history of the San Francisco, that made it long but that much better for all of us.

Here is the link to the musclecontest gallery of my photos.

Here is the link to all of the musclecontest if you would like to see other competitors or comparisons.

You can also look at the score sheets to see how each judge ranked each competitor.

Hardfitness is another site that has some good photos.  The comparisons are here for the "C" class and here for the Masters 45+

Below you can see a short movie of my day.

2010 NPC San Francisco Movie