Being a successful athlete looks like a lot of different things: DII collegiate soccer player, marathon runner, avid hiker, DIII football player, golfer, the list goes on. No matter where you excel, you have something that sets you apart from those that are unable to do what you do. When we’re children, athletic ability or coordination tend to create the biggest stars, though once we get to a certain age, that’s not enough anymore. You have to be able to learn faster, be smarter and more resilient than others. Especially now, in the specialized age of sports that we’re living in, you can’t succeed without both components, physical and mental.
First of all, we probably don’t give ourselves enough credit when it comes to acknowledging how fit our bodies and brains are when we’re in the peak of our athletic careers. So, if you’re in that right now, pat yourself on the back. If like me, you’re out of it, and I’ve good news and bad news. The odds are, your body isn’t in as good of shape as it was in the height of your career. That’s the bad news, but luckily, you’re an athlete, so if you’re willing to put in the work you might be able to get near that level of fitness again. Anyway, the good news is that your brain is still in really good shape! I believe that unlike our physical fitness which melts off of us 10x faster than we can build it up, our mental fitness degrades at a slower rate. Ah, you’re getting the title of this article now, yes?
Once our athletic careers end and we enter the dreaded “real life” phase, the mental side to our athleticism hangs around and definitely has something to do with the fact that many former athletes are tenacious in their fields. For me, despite working two jobs, I still don’t feel like I’m living up to my full potential right now. It’s one of the reasons I decided to go back to school (and start this blog). I’m restless, itching for a challenge or just an opportunity to prove everything that I’m worth. I despise mediocrity when it comes to work of any kind and I don’t think that’s a mindset that most people have.
Abby and I discussed it briefly in her interview about a month ago, that as athletes we go through hell and back, often multiple times a semester. At the end of the day though, we persevere and grow from those moments, they’re what built our bodies and brains into the fortified beings that we see today. Unless you’re in it, it’s hard to understand the mindset that’s needed to perform under the myriad of different pressures. Those memories stick with us and continue guide us for the rest of our lives. This state of mind is where the name of the website came from!
Similar to physical fitness, we have to continue to work out our mental fitness. Continuing to challenge our brains is the equivalent of hitting the gym or logging 487 miles in one month (shameless Colorado Trail Challenge plug). So, how do we do that? Easy. Do what our brains want us to do. If you’re craving a challenge, do something brave like starting a blog (see what I did?), join us on the Colorado Trail Challenge, apply for jobs you might be afraid of pursuing, or read books about topics you’re interested in. There are so many things you can do that satiate that innate need for a challenge, but it seems like a lot of people forget that mental fitness was part of being an athlete too.
This is super random, but if you’ve ever watched or read Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief, there’s dialogue in the beginning of the plot when Grover is telling Percy that his ADHD and dyslexia are all part of his brain being hard-wired for battle and ancient Greek. While I don’t believe that any of us are wired for ancient battles (though I could be wrong), I think that a lot of athletes are hard-wired for facing challenges, undergoing extreme stress, and craving adrenaline-filled success. Talk to any former athlete and guaranteed they’ll say that they miss even the most terrible, stressful parts of being an athlete. We love the grind.
So, no matter where you are in the walk of life, if you were once an athlete, you’re still an athlete. You might not be able to jump back into a game because the physical aspect just isn’t yours anymore, but you’ll always have the mentality of an athlete.