The word “pre-season” resonates differently with every student athlete. For some it can cause anxiety and happiness, while for others it strikes fear. It’s as if the three months leading up to pre-season is worse than the actual two weeks that are considered pre-season. Student athletes move into school with pre-fitness test jitters, doubting their abilities and consistent training schedule prior to moving in. “Have I done everything to achieve peak fitness?” or “Am I physically and mentally prepared?” are two common concerns prior to the first team session.

Being a student athlete myself at a Division II school has made me realize that the anticipation leading up to pre-season is a mental game. Those months test your mental strength, physical endurance and emotional level. Difficult early mornings when you wish you didn’t have to work out or the physical soreness that nags your muscles to take a day's rest are few of the many things that athletes (including myself) experience on a day to day basis. Though very seldom, there are days when you constantly question your reason for training. The thought of personal disappointment is gut wrenching, but what student athlete’s soon come to realize is that they will most likely exceed their individual expectations. This factor being something I can 100 percent attest to.

This surpassing of expectations is derived from working out surrounded by a dedicated and highly motivated team. This team not only wants to be the best, but wants to do everything in their power to maintain that title throughout the season. This communal goal is the backbone of your effort, sweat and sometimes tears. You want to be faster than the next person on your team, so you push yourself harder and harder. With that said, the support, the screams and the communication exchanged is unlike no other. It’s the little things in a practice that can really motivate you to do better such as “Hey, you played great,” or a “I know you have more in you.” It’s within those humid morning sessions, painful fitness tests and games of friendly competition that you’re playing for yourself. You’re playing for the little girl or boy who fell in love with the game 10 years ago and hasn’t looked back since.

The beauty of pre-season is to push yourself beyond your breaking point to achieve success and personal improvement. These two weeks set aside for sole conditioning, agility, tactical drills and team bonding activities allow you to realize your fitness capacity collectively as a team and individually as a player. Within these two weeks, you will do more than ever imagined on and off the field. Though very exhausting, it is worth every second.

As hard as leaving my hometown will be, I can assure myself that pre-season will be filled with a variety of activities and acquired emotions. The suspense of not knowing what to expect before a session or throwing yourself into an ice bath post fitness testing are both parts of the crazy two weeks that we (us, student athletes) call pre-season. Hey just like I said, it’s the beauty of pre-season, so embrace it willingly.