1. Those stairs are becoming a real challenge
The elevators are too busy and you decide to take the stairs to the fifth floor. As you approach the third floor, you are somehow getting progressively slower and breathing heavy as if you had just finished a 5k. You don’t know why this is happening and you swore you were in better shape. But let's be real, you have only been to the gym once this week and you left after 20 minutes on the elliptical.
2. Working out is a real struggle
For your whole life, you have been going to practice 2 times a week at least, doing fitness, and playing games basically every weekend. Someone (coach, trainer, parent, basically everyone) is always telling you what you are supposed to be doing whether it is a drill, an exercise, or some complex stretch to fix your soreness. Now you have to find motivation by yourself: yes, you have to first get to the gym (a mission in itself), then somehow do a workout that will actually benefit you (aka more than a 10-minute jog on the treadmill).
3. You can’t eat whatever you want anymore
From team dinners/lunches consisting of every single form of a carbohydrate featuring some protein (maybe a small salad; emphasis on the “maybe”), you always ate more calories a day than a normal person because your day-to-day activities warranted it. Your days of guilt free eating have finally come to bite you in the butt; those compression shorts and spandex just don’t fit like they used to. It’s a little hard for you to grasp that carbo-loading is not the most sustainable diet for an ex-athlete like yourself. As if your jeans didn’t fit right before, they sure don’t now.
4. Adopting the title of “NARP”
Non-Athletic Regular Person. That is what current athletes refer to you as. It takes a shot at your ego, but nonetheless it is the truth. You constantly reflect on your “glory days” but lets face it, people don’t care that you were on varsity for however many years or that you can squat an ungodly amount.
5. Admit it, you miss it
No matter how glad you are to be free from the huge commitment that a sport brings, you can’t help but miss it. It was such a huge part of your life, shaped you into the person you are, brought lifelong friendships, and even memories you will never forget. So if you still have the privilege to play the sport you love, enjoy every moment because it is not a forever thing.
