Being an athlete in multiple sports all the way from grade school to high school has taught me so much. Although, not pursuing them in college has taught me even more about myself as an individual and how much of me has come from those sports I played.
1. Communication is key.
If you played a sport, you learn how to communicate to your fellow playmates and coaches. This carries through your whole life. You may not be calling plays anymore, but you can be calling the plays within your adult job or during a group project. No need to yell these plays, but it sure does build your confidence with making future calls in life. It is a huge necessity to communicate with others and this is a great way to learn how to talk about errors in games as well as successes without it hurting others.
2. Once an athlete, not always an athlete.
The sad part about playing sports is once you stop playing academically, it is almost impossible to play to that competition level again. Unless you are a professional, that type of competition does not come back again. Yes there are your bar leagues later in life and seasonal intramural leagues but those never feel the same. That means that if you do not have any sports to keep you in shape after not having separate work out slots in your life, then you won't have any at all. In a study done looking at the comparison between alumni who were athletes and who were not to see how active they were. They found that they both averaged to about five hours a week no matter if they were athletes are not. Not being in the routine of the sport takes away that same drive to workout because it was an added part of the activity. Whereas, later in life working out is a separate activity now and is much harder to push to do than a sport.
3. You will always get competitive when playing "your sports."
You are always one of the ones everyone depends on if you casually somehow play the sport you played growing up. You will feel on top of the world playing your sport again after a long time, but it will be different this time around. If you are playing your sport "just for fun," you really do not know how to do that. You will play as hardcore as you would in a normal game or match and it will get ugly if your friends mess up an easy play. You grew up doing this competitively. "Just for fun" is not in your vocabulary in these instances. No mercy.
4. You get nostalgic when it comes to your teammates and your favorite coaches.
There will be times you will turn through your yearbooks and find old team photos. You usually think of all of the times you had riding the bus to games, all of the inside jokes you had, and the most memorable games or matches you played. You'll remember the coaches you loved along with the coaches you hated. They all helped make you the player you were and the person you became. You will never forget any of them.
5. You will become a sideline coach.
If you are watching your sport on television or in person you will turn into a sideline coach. You will call plays in your mind, or even out loud. You will think of ways you would have completed the plays or gotten that last point. Be careful if you have kids that play these sports, because things could get ugly really quickly if you do not learn to use these powers for good.
6. You will regret quitting at every mention of the sport.
If someone even mentions a sport I've played I try to remember why I stopped playing. Everyone has their reasons, but the feelings you have towards the sport never change. I will always regret quitting even though I know it happened for a reason. It helped make me the person I am today.
7. If you find someone who used to play the same sport as you, it's like you're soulmates.
There is an unspoken camaraderie between people who have played the same sports. It's another language you two both understand. You can talk about the awful conditioning exercises you used to do, the best plays you've ever made, and watch the sport without having to explain what is going on. Not only that, but if you make an intramural team with one of these people, you are bound to dominate.
8. Your number will always have a special place in your heart.
Your number will apply to everything in your life. If you have to choose a number for anything like a combination or even a game you have to guess a number. It will always be "yours" no matter what circumstance it may be involved in. You may even favor players on teams with that number and it will always stick with you throughout your life.
9. You will never regret playing the sport.
Although you did quit within good reason, you will never regret the time you had playing. You made great friends, built amazing skills that may be able to be applied later in life if need be, and learned a lot about yourself as a person. Even though you do not play anymore, you will always know what it feels like to hit a softball, kick a soccer ball, or shoot a basketball. Even though those skills are not applicable to nonathletic related jobs, they are still hobbies you will continue to love and pass on to others. Even though you may not have pursued it in college, they have given you so much and you will never forget that. You will miss everything related to the sports you have played, but it's time to move on to other things in life. You are a better person because of it and you'll always destroy any (insert sport you played here) tournament you're in with your friends.
