From what I've experienced from my first two months as a D1 athlete, and from my friends on other varsity teams at Brown and across the country, being a student athlete is a rewarding yet challenging lifestyle. Here are some problems I've encountered so far:

1. Waking up earlyHaving been awake for four hours before your 10 am class makes for an exhausting morning. While your classmates are complaining about how early it is, you've already gone to the weight room, eaten breakfast with your team, showered, and studied before getting to your lecture.
2. Being sore all the time Climbing stairs to your dorm is a struggle after leg day, and you find yourself stopping in the middle of the stairway to do calf stretches and filling bags with ice in the dining hall. No amount of time spent in ice baths can cure your never-ending pain.
3. Never having enough clothes to get you through the weekNo matter how many fancy uniforms you got in the beginning of the season, you seem to go through at least two of everything every day, and by Thursday you're out of clean sports bras and need to do laundry. Making it a full week without running out of clothes is a true achievement.
4. Always being hungryYou don't understand how some people forget to eat, because you're always down for a buffet style meal. You probably eat way more than you burn off, but you tell yourself it's totally necessary to refuel your body.
5. Having a very different sleep schedule from your friendsWhile you want to stay up until 3 AM hanging out with your friends, you would simply die 5 hours later at 8 AM lift. You feel a little left out, but you know that sleep is necessary for your physical and mental health.
6. Being at school during breaksWhile your friends all have a month off for winter break, you don't even have two weeks home before practices start all over again. It's fun to be on campus with no classes and only your team, but you don't get a lot of time to catch up with high school friends and your family back at home.
7. Not having time to join clubs
   Even though you vowed to be a well-rounded and involved student before you got here, and even signed up for 15 clubs on day one, that all changed once practices started. Your dream of training to go on a medical mission trip in Nicaragua with the Global Brigades club was overpowered by your dream to get Chinese food and do your math homework after practice.
8. Losing motivation to look nice
   When you have an afternoon practice after 5 hours of lecture, who wants to look nice all day? Your uniform becomes your daily wardrobe, your athletic clothes, and even your sleepwear. Your hair is in a permanent ponytail, and wearing makeup? Forget about it.
9. Having a day off and not knowing what to do with yourselfShould you sleep in? Hang out with friends? Party? Whatever you end up doing, your day is much less productive than it is when you do have 2-3 hours of practice because you have so many new ways to fill up you free time (that most likely don't include studying).
10. Traveling for entire weekends for competitionsWhile it is extremely fun to get off campus and go to other schools every other weekend, you are missing classes, time spent with your other friends, and crucial studying time. You get back Sunday night, exhausted and unprepared for the week ahead.

But at the end of the day, you don't know what you would do without the sport that shaped your social life, your study habits, and your hobbies. For all of your complaints, there is a positive flip side. Waking up early leads to a more productive day, spending time with your team leads to awesome role models and friends, learning how to manage your time leads to positive lifelong productivity habits, and taking care of your body leads to a happier and healthier life. You decided to be a student athlete for a reason: even when it gets tough, take advantage of all the opportunities it gives you.