Moving away to college is a big adjustment in anyone’s life. This adjustment is a little different, however, for teens that decide to leave their sports careers in high school. I, personally, was a competitive swimmer since I was six. It consumed my entire life for years. I had doubles every day and only four weeks of offseason a year if I was lucky.

Transforming from an athlete to a "NARP" (Non-Athletic Regular Person) is a lot different than you would think. Your life changes in so many more ways than you realize at first. Your entire lifestyle is adjusting to not only college life, but also the life of a non-athlete.

Your body changes. Your social life changes. Your eating habits change. How you spend your free time changes. Your sleep schedule changes. Almost everything about you changes.

As an athlete, you can typically eat whatever you want and hardly ever put on a pound. Now that I’m a regular person, I can’t eat as much as I used to. And when I do, I actually have to be somewhat cautious of what I am eating out of the fear of blowing up like a balloon.

I have lost almost all of my muscle. I used to be one of the strongest girls in my class and now I can’t do a push up. It becomes a lot harder to get motivation to take care of yourself and exercise regularly when you don’t have to. And even if you do continue to exercise, the workouts don’t compare to the 4 hours a day of pure exhaustion.

You have a lot more free time and have to find new ways to spend it. You have so much more time to spend with friends. Not to mention, these new friends are no longer just your teammates. You have to branch out and get to know all different kinds of people instead of just sticking to the athlete community.

I have a lot more time to do my homework and focus on school, but I also have time for a lot more naps.

The worst part for me about no longer being a competitive athlete is not how my body looks, or my diet, or my extended amounts of free time. The worst part is no longer being so immensely passionate about something. I miss the feeling of being so in love with the sport that I would do literally anything to reach my goals. My sport kept me disciplined. It gave me an identity. I was “the swimmer” and that was fine because my heart belonged to swimming.

I am okay that this is no longer who I am. I do not regret quitting my sport. I like the woman I am becoming without swimming in my life anymore. I am enjoying the new experiences I am gaining because of it.

But yes, I do miss it. I miss the feeling of the butterflies in my stomach before an important meet and the adrenaline of diving off the block. I miss the tears of joy from reaching my goals that I spent months working towards. I miss the bond with my team and I miss the advice from my coach.

I miss being as fit and healthy as I was. I miss being strong - mentally and physically tough.

I am still adjusting to this life of no longer being an athlete. It is a part of my life that played a huge role in shaping me into who I am today. But I still have so much more growing left to do, and I can’t wait to see where the rest of life takes me, even if I am a NARP.