Asia Mape on the Truth About Kids’ Sports: Burnout, Pressure, and Why Balance Does Matter — A Survival Guide to Youth Sports

Being a sports parent today feels like navigating the Wild West—early morning practices, weekend tournaments, college pressure, burnout, and the constant fear of doing it wrong. In this episode, we sit down with Emmy-winning sports journalist and founder of ILoveToWatchYouPlay.com, Asia Mape, to talk about what it really takes to raise a D1 athlete—or not. From how early is too early to specialize, to the signs of burnout, the politics of “daddy ball,” and why joy, balance, and mental health matter more than any scholarship, Asia gives us the honest, expert advice every sports parent needs to hear. Mentioned in the Episode: ilovetowatchyouplay.com I Love to Watch You Play Podcast by Asia Mape I Love to Watch You Play Blog by Asia Mape I Love to Watch You Play Newsletter Sign Up The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic-and What We Can Do About It by Jennifer Breheny Wallace Younger (TV Series) Normatec Air Compression for Recovery MZ Wallace Bags A Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us at @sonypodcasts To bring your brand to life in this podcast, email [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices