There are many things in life I wish I could have a do-over in. Whether it be something in my personal life or my social life I have always had at least one regret. Although one decision and choice I made that I will never regret is being a college athlete.

I feel like almost every college athlete had that time and period in their life when they were done with sports. The days they questioned whether or not they wanted to continue this same routine for the next four years of their life. Everyone knows it gets harder physically, and mentally, and everyone else out there on the field, the court, or the track would be just as good, if not better. You questioned whether or not you would be able to handle the pressure of going to school to get a degree that would affect your career and balancing the sport that you have known forever. Although in the end you took the risk and the chances and became a collegiate athlete.

When I first got to my college and finally realized what was happening and realized that I was about to start this journey I was overwhelmed. On top of that I was tired, stressed, and I was always second guessing if I was good enough. Although as the season progressed and I became more comfortable I realized that my decision to become a collegiate athlete was the best decision I ever made, and here’s why.

Being a collegiate athlete, you have a community. No matter what sport you play whether it is football, basketball, soccer, softball, track, etc. you have a group of people who know exactly how you feel. You have people who get the struggles of balancing school and a sport that are not just your teammates. Although being able to have teammates and being surrounded by around 30 other girls was amazing because I knew I had a solid support system. I could reach out to anyone on that team and know that they would be there for me in a heartbeat. Having a group of people to turn to and rely on in college is an amazing thing no matter if it is during season or not. Besides the support system and the community I also learned valuable skills that will carry on for life. My sense of time management is amazing. I know that when I need to get stuff done, I have to get it done. There is no time to put it off or wait until tomorrow because I may have practice, or a game at that time. Learning to balance was probably one of the hardest things to learn how to do, but I am glad I was able to teach myself the value of juggling multiple things. Being on a team has also taught me great communication skills. Having to work together with other people to reach one common goal can be challenging. Everyone is different and they have been through different things in their life, and they were brought up and raised with different morals. Being able to mesh with someone despite the differences that are shared is an amazing life skill that I am glad I was able to develop while participating in sports. I think one of the things that I loved the most about being a collegiate athlete was how much I was pushed. Not only was I pushed and motivated to do well on the field, but also in the classroom if I wanted to continue to be able to play. Having yourself held to a higher standard is a great thing. I had no idea of the things that I could achieve if I was not pushed as hard to succeed inside the classroom as well as on the playing field. Most people think that student athletes are not the brightest kids and just go to school to play the sport, but that is not the case at all. If you do not have a certain GPA you are ineligible to play and knowing that makes you that much more motivated and focused and I honestly could not say if I would have been that determined if I did not have another factor pushing me on.

I learned how to lift, good lifting techniques, good workout habitats, and so many intangible life lessons that I will keep with me forever.

Of course there were those days where I felt like quitting. Those practices where I second guessed why I put myself through it. Those times where I pulled an all nighter because of the long travel trips we had. The times where my teammates and I did not mesh very well. Those times where my coach and I did not see eye to eye. Although, all the negatives outweigh the positives. The negatives and the positives combined is what makes the whole experience, and something that I would never regret or change.