Playing a college sport provided me with an outlet for my stresses and my bad days, gave me structure and guidance through my college years, and provided me with extra support from other parents, coaches, athletic trainers, and so many other great staff involved in our programs. My team provided a family atmosphere, no matter how dysfunctional and difficult it got sometimes, and my sport gave me the most toned legs I could ask for and what I would call "almost-abs." But after my seasons of college soccer came to an end, after I walked the stage of my university and received my diploma, my life changed immediately. For better and for worse, retiring from my college sport gave way to a lot of change. Here are 5 things that will probably happen, no matter how hard you try, when you walk off the field for the last time.
1. You will eat and drink whatever you want.
With no rules and no meal plan, no fitness or pool session planned for 7 a.m., and no 2-hour session in the heat of mid-day, you will start to avoid calorie counting and start stuffing your face. With no expectation of being fit and no reason to be, you can and will eat whatever you want. With your season being done, the dry spell of an alcohol-free three months is up, and you're going to indulge. Going out with your friends to parties and bars, with nothing to worry about (besides getting to class in the morning). And it will all be OK. Maybe you won't feel your absolute best all of the time, but you finally get to live like a regular student, and you will live it to the fullest.
2. You will break up with the gym for a little while.
Similar to eating whatever you want because you can, you'll skip the gym, simply because you CAN. You won't have to plan your day around your 6 AM weights, your 3-5 training and your recovery session at night, and there won't be an expectation to add in that extra cardio between classes. Without the guidance of your trainer or coach, going to the gym will be more difficult. What program do you do? What exercises work on that specific body part most effectively? Going to the gym will become a chore and an afterthought, and again, that is all ok. You don't need to be in the best shape of your life anymore, and you don't have to punish yourself with grueling gym sessions. So don't expect yourself to keep the same "workout, class, eat, repeat" schedule; you're just a "regular" person now, and your body may need a little bit of a break.
3. You will go on adventures outside the confines of your university or team.
Photo by Jeffrey Lin on Unsplash
Because you won't have to devote half of the hours in your day to your sport, coaches and team meetings, getting treatment before and after training and in between classes, or the gym, you will get to actually leave campus and do things that are fun. I know, it sounds scary and out of your comfort zone, but trust me, you'll enjoy it. You will get to go on road trips with your friends, just because you feel like it. You'll get to visit your significant other's family on a long weekend, and you won't be punished with extra fitness when your coach finds out. You will take yourself on beach dates, movie dates, shopping dates and whatever-else dates, because you can finally take time for yourself. And it will be amazing.
4. You will have more free time than you know what to do with.
Without your sport and your team, you will get to do the things you have missed and that you used to enjoy. Sitting out in your hammock and reading a book. Or sitting out by the pool or at the beach reading a book. Or taking yourself to Starbucks with a nice book (If you're not catching on, I love to read). You will get to go back to working on that art portfolio you had to give up in preseason of your freshman year, or you can binge movies and TV shows on Netflix. You will be able to get back in the kitchen and create the same beautiful dishes that you used to, before they were banned by your meal guide. You will have so much time to better yourself and your other talents and crafts, and it will be amazing.
5. You'll miss it.
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Yes, you will get to be the "old" you again. But you will miss every minute you used to devote to your sport. You will miss the uber uncomfortable bus rides (or shuttle if you were unlucky ), and you'll miss the ritual of getting your left ankle taped twice a day. You'll miss working on your penalty kicks or three throws when no one else was around. You'll miss the pre and post game rituals and cheers and the screaming at the top of your lungs when your teammates do amazing things on the field. You will always have those years on the field in your memories, and you'll carry your teammates and your love for the game in your heart. But once those years are gone, you will miss them.
While your sport was not the entirety of your being, it was a large portion of your life. Without it, you'll miss the routine and the familiarity with your surroundings and peers, but you will move on and take the skills you learned from your time as a college athlete with you into the "real" world. You will always know the dedication required to be really good at something, your work ethic unmatched. You will always understand time management, and how to do whatever it takes to get whatever you need to do, DONE. You will walk away from that field for the last time, thanking it for the unique view it has provided for you, and you'll move on to do great things.
Until next week friends!
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- An Open Letter To All Retired College Athletes ›
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