Powerade Play Takes on Xiaolinmama Family's Weekend

This is sponsored content from BlogHer and Powerade.

I was given POWERADE PLAY to try in my own home, and was paid for my time to write the review. I was not paid to write a positive review and all thoughts written below were my own.

Sports play a huge role in my family's life - whether it is playing competitive sports or goofing around in the background our lives revolves around a sports field.  I grew up in New York City, where playing soccer on a gorgeous field was not the norm.  Actually doing exercise was never high on my family's priority list, but somehow my dad taught my sister and I to be baseball and basketball fans.

As a parent, I have tried hard to ensure that my kids love sports. To me it has always been about being active and having something we could enjoy as a family. I had no idea how it would take over our lives and weekends. On any given weekend, we have some combination of baseball, soccer, gymnastics and the occasional track meet.  At times, it is exhausting shuttling kids to games, hauling chairs/umbrellas/coolers full of drinks and snacks and balancing team schedules. It is crazy at times, but there is nothing that beats the smiles on my sons face after a goal or the pure joy of my 6YO daughter's soccer teams "celebration cheers and matching hair ribbons".  On the other hand, I would never trade the conversations in the car after a loss or a bad call. Despite the logistical chaos, I know my kids and family have learned a great deal. (For example, I've learned that I need to do more actual running than coaching.)

POWERADE has introduced a new drink aimed at your young athlete, POWERADE PLAY.  My kids have drunk their share of these beverages, so when BlogHer asked if I'd be willing to give a whirl, I jumped at the chance.   After their delivery, I iced 'em up and brought a case of the POWERADE PLAY to my son's soccer game since I was "snack mom".

With just 60 calories per 12 fluid ounce bottle, it has 25% less sugar than traditional sports drinks.  PLAY is enhanced with 100% of the Daily Value (DV) of Vitamin C and 20% DV Zinc to help support a healthy immune system.  PLAY also boasts 20% of the DV of Vitamins B3, B5, B6 and B12 to boot.

I will be the first to admit, that I am lame when it comes to reading bottles for nutritional value. I am partial to providing water or flavored waters.  I hate the idea of all sugar, sodium in the full size bottles.  Doesn't seem right to feed kids something formulated for adult athletes.  However, I know that kids play hard and after an hour of running, sometimes sports drinks are what hits the spot.

So what did the kids think of POWERADE PLAY?  They overall loved the flavors - purple and red were big hits!I They disappeared quickly from the cooler and I seem to have trouble keeping them in stock in my fridge.  As a parent, I liked the smaller size of the bottle. No left overs and excessive sodium. I like the idea of increased vitamins, especially when broccoli is not as popular as it was when he was younger. Sigh. The kids liked the taste and other soccer team parents thought it was good enough to buy their own cases!  Seems like a win for POWERADE PLAY.

What do you do or plan to do with your family to teach the love of sports or physical activity? Leave a comment here and be eligible to $125 that can be used for your children’s sports teams/activities. Tweet about the giveaway and you get an extra entry! (Only one per day.)

Contest ends on 6/10/10. Check out the roundup page on BlogHer.com for 7 other chances to win $125 and a chance to win $500 on the BlogHer.com Exclusive Offer page. Check out their site for more information here.

BTW: Check out these tips for sports moms. 

Comments

[Mami2jcn]

I think you can teach your children to enjoy physical activity if you do active things with them, like walking, riding bikes, and kicking the ball around. If you set a good example of physical fitness, your kids will follow suit.

[Annette D]

My kids enjoy all types of outdoor activities. We are involved with the Boy Scout program and enjoy camping, rock climbing, hiking and skiing.

[Nita B]

When my boys were growing up, we helped keep them active by taking walks with them around the neighborhood in the evenings. We also encouraged them to play team sports.

[morninglight mama]

Well, I cannot claim to much of a sporty person, but my husband has been since birth, I believe. So, our three kids are encouraged to try whatever they like-- we keep simple equipment at home and sign them up for the youth sports activities in our city when they're interested.

[jodifur]

I think you teach kids to be physically active be being physically active yourself. I have recently taken up running. And even though some nights I hate it, my 5 year old sees my strap on my shoes and head outside.

[Susan @ 2KoP]

I think just getting kids to go outside and play his a big step toward fitness. We also bike and swim pretty regularly — just for fun. Sometimes I think all the competitiveness of athletics gets in the way of moving your body in a fun way to keep you fit.

Thanks for the chance to enter. We need new bike tires and a pump.

2kopeople at gmail dot com

[Julie Bouf]

My 4yo already loves playing soccer and doing gymnastics. Swimming is also a big hit. But most importantly, my husband and I have joined a gym and make sure we pass on the message of how important it is to exercise to stay healthy. Now, if only we could act on our own advice.

[Donna]

My main objective when I signed my daughter up for activities was social - this is what her little preschool friends were doing. Fitness was just a bonus. And at first, it was just an exploration -- we were trying different things on for size, to see what she most enjoyed. Since I am the most unathletic person who ever lived, I did not actually expect her to stick with any of them - but in second grade, she fell in love with gymnastics. By the time she was in middle school, she was training 4-5 hours a day, six days a week. So I stopped worrying about her fitness level!

[kara-noel]

We teach the love of sports/outdoors to our kiddos by example. We spend a min of 1 hour outside per day and in the evening when my hubby comes home we play twilight baseball or go for a bike ride with the kiddos in tow. We love being active and now they do too!!

[Eunice]

I teach the love of sports by taking them to soccer and swim class. I don't love the outdoors myself (born and raised in a big city!) so I will be relying on my Eagle Scout husband to do all the camping stuff with them!

[Eunice]

tweeted!

http://twitter.com/unellie/status/13924526772

[Tiffany]

My kids see my husband and I working out, and we go on family walks. My son takes gymnastics, and as soon as he's old enough we hope to get him in to soccer or Tee Ball. I hope that gives them a love of physical activity, because my husband I both have struggled with our weight as children and adults and we really don't want that for our kids.

[Matt]

I just added my family onto my Y membership as a Christmas present. My son's in swim lessons this session, so that's keeping him active. My wife has been walking on the track while at the Y and I try to get in 3 mornings a week to workout!

mattschmunk at gmail dot com

[Amanda A]

My son is trying out several different sports to see what fits him best. He is playing soccer and tball right now, and I think it's important for him to know there is a range of fun physical activities that he can participate in!

[Jill Hayes]

I had my son try out for each sports activity that was offered through his school to find what fits him best and then encouraged him to go for it.

I always was a great support for him for whatever he was doing to encourage him to enjoy it and have fun.

[Stimey]

I try to keep my kids engaged in sports by playing with them in the backyard. We also take them to game (men's AND women's) and are starting to get them involved in organized teams.

[Abella]

We are all about physical activity! My kids spend almost all their free daylight hours in the yard with sticks, balls and trees, and their occasional participation on school teams has reinforced their joy in using their physicality.

[Erin from Long Island]

like my mother did with me, I signed my kids up for soccer first, when they were in kintergarden. As they got older they chose what sports they wanted to play (soccer being one of them!) I only ask that they keep it to one sport per season so I dont drive myself crazy

[Erin from Long Island]

tweeted

http://twitter.com/erunuevo/status/14216179053

[Miriama59]

My daughter was so busy when she was in grade school: plays, dance class, choir, baseball, basketball. Then came jr. high. And now it's high school and she basically was doing nothing but homework, video games and being on the computer. So we have stepped in. Walking. Gym. Just trying to get the family moving as much as possible. Setting a better example.

[suzi]

I try to teach my kids that exercise is fun and not a chore (still can't teach myself that!). We try to be active as much as possible--walking, riding bikes, swimming, etc. It's just vital that they love it early on in life.

[Tomi]

Fostering a love of sports or physical activity is easy for hubby and I since we both are pretty active and engage our kids in physical activities with us.

[Tomi]

I tweeted.
http://twitter.com/Panda_SpaceCamp/status/14239727329

[Bernadette Batts]

My husband and I take my daughter hiking all the time and she also watches us when we do workout videos. It's really funny because she'll actually try to do squats while my husband does them.

[Brittney Smith]

Yes, we try to teach the importance of being active and healthy, but enjoying it at the same time!!!