For twenty-one years, my life consisted of myself and my boyfriend; you may have heard of him before, his name is Jim Nastics. Those of you who understand the joke, give yourself a pat on the back. Those who do not, it’s a wordplay on 'gymnastics' (*cue light bulb flashing inside your head*). My mom introduced us only at thirteen months old to prevent her daughter from climbing all over the house, as well as bouncing off of the walls.

What can I say, I was really active when I came out of the womb. Instead of tiring myself out at gymnastics, my mom was the one more wiped out after half an hour of our Mommy-and-Me class.

1. Time

To fully master something, it takes lots and lots of PRACTICE. With practice comes patience and with patience comes being present. Whether it be the grassy field, football turf, track, the pool or the gym, this becomes your second home. Before I became a college gymnast, I used to spend between 25 and 30 hours in the gym PER week!

Honestly, I thought I was going to buried in the gym once the time came around. Some days seemed endless and felt like a prison, other days I felt at home and in my element. Only one of the many aspects of a complex love-hate relationship with sports.

2. Putting your sport first

I lived and breathed gymnastics. Flashing back to my middle school and high school days, there were some days I would endlessly gaze at the clock and tried to use my “mind powers,” think Eleven from Stranger Things, to make the hands go faster. When I would come home from school, I thought about how much time I had to get homework done before gymnastics practice so I wouldn’t have to do it when I came home (especially after a four-hour practice).

A day never went by when I couldn’t stop thinking about it, including college. When it came to going out with friends, staying up late to power through homework, or hanging out with family, Jim made me say no.

Too much time out of the gym and you would have to play the lovely game of catch up. Not all games are fun after all.

3. Eat this, not that!

Most athletes burn off much so many calories thanks to their metabolisms. I used to be able to eat plates of spaghetti for dinner or even scarf down six pieces of pizza with my dad, but not when it came to college athletics.

College coaches are more aware that your body is getting older and you’re prone to more injuries due to late night studying, partying/living like a regular college student, etc.

Some sports, specifically ones that highly emphasize leanness, make you literally count your calories, weigh yourself incessantly on the scale, or even pinch your skin to calculate your body fat percentage.

Like I said, a love-hate relationship at the price of one’s personality all for performance.

4. Labels

As a former gymnast, I would always get asked questions like “Are you going to be in the Olympics after college?” “Can you do a backflip?” and even “So is there like a level 11 in gymnastics, then?” None of these are made up for the sake of this article.

These questions may not seem like a big deal, but it’s kind of similar every time you go to Starbucks and the barista asks you your name: It’s something obvious and simple, but annoying having to spell it out every time you walk in.

The same goes for when you have to do a self-intro on the first day of class or joining a new club — do you introduce yourself through an athletic identifier, a.k.a. your significant other, or your true self? If your tongue can’t slip past anything else except your sport, we’ve got issues.

5. The emotional rollercoaster

Sports make you stronger physically and emotionally, without a doubt. You get to look like a pro doing something you love effortlessly. However, this look doesn’t develop overnight. Behind the perfect home run, touchdown, or stuck landing are the blood, sweat, and occasional tears — tears of happiness, frustration, and pain.

What’s an experience without a struggle? The "Rocky" movies, "The Blind Side," and even "Southpaw" all document the journey of what it truly means to be 'Great.' Speaking from personal experience, there were many days where I cried in the gym.

Yes, my body was always hurting and some days I thought my body was going to collapse but I held it in. I toughed it out on the mat, and then cried or complained about it off of the mat.

My mom and even my friends in college have asked me “Is this sport really worth it? Is it worth continuing to put your body and mental state in danger after all of these years, you should really take a break Lianne."

At the time, I felt like I was being insulted and constantly slapped in the face by people who care about me the most.

I felt like I was betrayed, they didn’t leave me or shun me for continuing to do gymnastics, but they said those things because they really cared about me and could see I was in pain.

They wanted me to change my lifestyle, but gymnastics was like a drug for me — I couldn’t live without it, after all, I practically tumbled out of my mother’s womb.

For anyone who’s taken up a sport and kept with it for a long time, why do sports seem to define us — physically, mentally, and emotionally? There is much more to life than just participating in a sport and receiving praise from one’s athleticism.