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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To ask if your parents were sporty?

13 replies

PassingStranger · 09/03/2024 20:28

Dad, played rugby and tennis. Liked watching cricket and tennis and England football games.

Mum, played tennis and badminton and liked watching Wimbledon.

OP posts:
Swimmerstoe · 09/03/2024 20:36

Not at all and neither was anyone in DH's family. I couldn't ride a bike or swim til I was an adult. DH has developed interest in sports to follow as an adult, so now we have two DC they watch sport with him. I make a conscious effort to be active with the children now. I take DCs to parkrun, swimming, badminton, and dancing classes.

what sparked the question OP, are you sporty? You hit a nerve with me as I really want my DCs to think being active is normal....

Whatsgoingonwithmyhead · 09/03/2024 20:36

My Parents Liked watching football & cricket but didn’t participate in any sports. Both of my parents are now more active at age 70+ than they were when I was young. But now they are retired, back then they were working & raising kids so had very limited time & money.

now my mum age 71 does Zumba, Pilates, gym twice a week, cycling once a week. Dad age 75 does loads of walking.

I am very sporty. So is DH

surlycurly · 09/03/2024 20:39

Dad was a PE teacher and exercised until his health deteriorated. Mum did a bit of running but not much. Of three kids, one does no exercise, one goes to the gym and the other is a swimmer. I'm the swimmer.

Whatsgoingonwithmyhead · 09/03/2024 20:39

Pressed post too soon….. regular activities in our household are cycling, ParkRun and other running, weights, Pilates, yoga, lots of hiking, paddleboarding, swimming, tennis.

I can also horse ride, rock climb and ski but I’m not actively involved in those sports at present due to time & money .

DD age 5.5 thinks sport is totally the norm and she thinks women mountain biking etc is totally normal which is great!

Swimmerstoe · 09/03/2024 20:39

Should add to the above I'm v active so I go running, swimming, badminton, etc with them. They're both used to being out and about and active. DH is not sporty but he follows a lot so they know about sports etc.

Hermione101 · 09/03/2024 20:40

Both mom and dad: tennis, badminton, skiing (downhill and cross country), ice skating, cycling, kayaking, volleyball, lots of hiking, yoga, paddleboarding. They’re in mid-60s now and still do everything except downhill skiing.

Dad: played ice hockey, soccer, ocean kayaking, long distance swimming, mountain biking

They’re nuts about tennis, watch it all the time and travel to Indian Wells every year to watch the pros practice.

Funnily, with all of that neither have been runners.

We’ve always been an active family and my DC are active too. I’m in my mid-40s and also prioritize sports and exercise.

MargaretThursday · 09/03/2024 20:40

My dad was very sporty and very very competitive.
I don't know any sport he tried that he wasn't good at very quickly.
He was captain of rugby, football and cricket at a school that took them seriously. He played golf well enough to win local competitions, tennis to a good club standard, martial arts (one of the harder types, where he was just below black belt, and only stayed there because he didn't want to dedicate any more time at the detriment of other sports), ran, cycled, swam, weights.... etc. Even things like darts and bowls he'd mess around with them for a short time then beat someone who had been playing for years.
I suspect if he'd been born nowadays he'd have been picked up by a talent group in one of the sports and with proper coaching (he never had any outside school) he'd have gone all the way. His dad was a reserve for English football team, so I suspect he took after him.
He did once pull a muscle playing chess though.

Dm wouldn't have called herself sporty. But she did play a good game of tennis as an adult, and played some competitively. She reckoned she was put off sport at school because she was put up a year at age 5yo, and was a summer birthday, so was always competing against girls who were up to 15 months older than her, so she was always immediately at a disadvantage.

Parker231 · 09/03/2024 20:41

Yes - both still ski each year and spend the summer walking along the beach for a couple of hours each day

issabel · 09/03/2024 20:43

Nope. They met at a pub in the 80s where it seems they spent all their spare time after work each day.

My grandfathers on both sides were much more "sporty" - one was very strong as he was a labourer but was a dancer and acrobat in his spare time. The other was in the army and very into boxing.

I have always loved gymnastics and martial arts so clearly their influence skipped a generation.

Onabench · 09/03/2024 20:44

Not at all. Not in my lifetime anyway. Neither am I. I do try and push myself every couple of years but it never sticks. I want to be a good role model to my children but sports feel like a chore. I do make a lot of effort to encourage it in my children but I am not a role model

Powderblue1 · 09/03/2024 20:52

My Dad was yes and we are sporty parents too

MrsPositivity1 · 09/03/2024 20:53

Not at all but we did lots of sports as kids.

I took up running when older and have completed a few marathons and ½ marathons,

My 2 children play football, Gaelic, swim, ski and both go to the gym

PassingStranger · 09/03/2024 20:54

Swimmerstoe · 09/03/2024 20:36

Not at all and neither was anyone in DH's family. I couldn't ride a bike or swim til I was an adult. DH has developed interest in sports to follow as an adult, so now we have two DC they watch sport with him. I make a conscious effort to be active with the children now. I take DCs to parkrun, swimming, badminton, and dancing classes.

what sparked the question OP, are you sporty? You hit a nerve with me as I really want my DCs to think being active is normal....

Yes I love sports.

OP posts:
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