WinAthletic's Holistic Approach

(updated May 2025) At WinAthletics, our holistic systems approach shapes our perspective on youth participation in sports. Here's an illustration of this model.

Quick descriptions:

• Individual youth are represented inside the circle. They are engaging in the sporting experience.

• Their experience is shaped by themselves - their attitudes, efforts, skills, abilities, talents, etc...and by so many other forces. Those other forces are illustrated by the red circles around the youth.

• We focus on the interactions between youth and surrounding units, as well as the interplay among these external influences themselves.

  • Any one unit interacts with the individual youth...and...other units in this figure.

What does this mean practically?

One of our first offerings was a module designed for fans/spectators, and how they interact with sports officials. While this module doesn't engage youth athletes directly, it aligns with our systems approach by addressing the broader environment that influences their sports experience. We thought: there's a real problem with how sports officials are being treated, and this is shaping the environment in which youth play. (They see poor behavior exemplified by adults they look up to. Youth are learning it's okay to exhibit inappropriate behaviors, including verbal abuse and negative social media commentary). So we built a tool to address this problem. If fans and officials are interacting with each other in a healthier way, then the system in which youth engage with their sport just got healthier.

Where did this idea come from?

Training! Not in the gym or practice field...in the classroom and in applied experiences. Our founder (Bryan) and the client and clinical lead (Ericka) are mental health professionals. One is a licensed clinical psychologist, and the other is a developmental specialist (and soon-to-be Marriage & Family Specialist). Their approach is informed by the following:

• Ecological Systems Theory (estabished psychological theory that considers individual development occuring within multiple levels or systems of influence)

• Triple P: Positive Parenting Program (Bryan and Ericka are both trained in this program)

• Their own experiences in athletics and life - as athletes and as active listeners to experiences of others