From Passion to Pressure: Tackling Athletic Burnout in High School Sports
How does someone go from absolutely loving their sport, looking forward to practices, feeling the adrenaline rush of games, and scoring goals to hating it more than anything? Sports are a huge part of many high school student’s lives, and while staying involved and busy is good, it can add more stress to the already existing academic workload. In high school, sports become more serious and require more dedication and commitment. Sports offer various skills for people to develop, such as better time management, following through with commitments, keeping up with physical health, and improved teamwork skills. However, too much of anything isn’t suitable for anyone.
In high school, students often think of ways to become more involved. Usually, this is through clubs, specific classes, arts, and sports. There are tons of sports to choose from in high school, making it nearly impossible not to find at least one you would enjoy. While sports are a great way to get involved and better yourself, it is important to be mindful of how much you are doing and whether or not it negatively impacts your mental health. According to Foothilldragonpress, around 50% of high school students partake in some sport, and because of this, athletic burnout is very high. Sports require a lot of dedication and consistency, which can be challenging to put out when you are already putting significant amounts of effort into academic classes. Not only that, but at this age, students are also pushed to incorporate other extracurricular activities, such as volunteering and community service, to appeal more to colleges, which can pile on additional stress. With all of these things combined, some sort of burnout will likely occur, and typically, it starts with athletics.
So, how can we prevent this burnout from happening, and how can we get rid of it? First, let’s discuss how to determine if you are burnt out from your sport. Athletic burnout is typically shown through concentration problems, loss of interest in the sport, weight loss or gain, prolonged recovery time, and decreased performance and skill level. If you are experiencing any of these things along with your sport, you are likely facing burnout, but there are ways to manage this issue. According to Nata, some ways to escape this low point include taking a break from your sport, prioritizing sleep and recovery, discussing the problem with coaches and trainers, making time for yourself, and setting boundaries for yourself. Nata recommends taking 4-12 weeks away from your sport as rest is the primary way to eliminate burnout. To prevent athletic burnout from happening overall, it is important to diversify your activities, prioritize occasional rest days, manage stress, sleep enough, and maintain gratitude for the ability to do the sport at all.
While escaping athletic burnout is easier said than done, following these steps to keep a healthy relationship with your sport is very important.
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