How to Never Stop Being an Athlete
Everyone is an athlete. You never stop being an athlete. You will always be an athlete. In this article, I go over how never to stop being an athlete no matter your age or experience. An Athlete is - “a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports, or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina.” According to the Merian Webster dictionary. It doesn’t matter what your sport or activity is. You are an athlete. Unfortunately, many people stop considering themselves athletes when they stop playing sports. Even if you will never play a game that means more than temporary bragging rights, your athletic career is not over. Even if you only care about getting jacked, you are still an athlete. In my opinion, an athlete is someone who looks to improve and maintain their physical performance. Being an athlete is a mindset. It about taking pride and enjoying your physical performance and experience. Here are 5 ways to never stop being an athlete.
The first tip is never to stop caring. Take pride and enjoyment at being able to do something physically active. This could be lifting weights, playing golf, playing basketball, pickleball, spikeball, running, it doesn’t matter. It could be some combo of a bunch of stuff. Always have some physical skill/ ability that you are working on. Having something that you are always working on getting better at keeps you focused on improving and enhancing a physical skill. This helps to keep physical activity as a consistent habit, which is a huge win. If you stop caring about your physical performance, you are on a fast route to letting yourself go.
The second tip is to be consistent. Consistency is key for success in just about everything. This is especially true for being an athlete. For example, if you play a sport 1–2x/ week for the rest of your life, there is a much better chance you will be able to do so as you get older. If you take 10 years off, it will be much harder to come back into playing your sport. This is why you will see 90-year-old gymnasts and golfers. If you never stop, your body will always maintain the qualities to perform the sport or activity. Consistency also allows you to be still at least somewhat good at the sport you participate in. If you are halfway decent, there is a better chance you will keep within.
The third tip is to accept where you are and recognize that you will have to put more back in than you taking out as you get older. I mean by this that as we get older, we need to be a little smarter with our bodies. At 18 you probably didn’t have to warm up, stretch, train smart, hydrate, eat well, and sleep well to feel ready to go. Fast forward 10,20, or even 30 years, those activities that help you put back “in” to your body become a lot more important. There is a reason that athletes like LeBron James, Tom Brady, and Kobe Bryant (RIP) invest millions of dollars on their bodies every year. While you are most likely not going to be competing for NBA championships or millions of dollars in contract money, there is something to be learned. If you want to perform, you must put back in. I hear a lot of people complain about being stiff, achy, and old. Okay, what are you doing about it? Creating a habit of putting back “in” to your body can go a long way for keeping your athletic longevity.
The fourth tip is to train like an athlete. Include some variations of runs, jumps, cuts, throws, etc. Even a small dose consistently can go a long way. I see fair to many people who train like want to be bodybuilders who don’t have much to show for it. Many ways of strength training are not bodybuilding or powerlifting. Traditional weightlifting is terrific for adding muscle and strength, but what about speed, power, change of direction, timing, rhythm, and coordination. What are you doing for that? As a lifelong basketball player, I have seen guys strong in the weight room get bullied around on the court. The same is true for other sports as well. Most people train to look good naked and to be healthy, let's be honest. Unless you are a competitive bodybuilder or powerlifter, your training routine will benefit by adding something easy as some sprints, med ball throws, and box jumps (assuming your body can handle those movements). Have you seen the ESPN “the body issue”? Adding athletic movements in can be a good addition for aesthetics as well. Small doses of athletic movements consistently done will help you continue being an athlete. Here are 2 examples of easy add-ins for most people.
The last tip is to have some fun and be creative. The goal is to have a body that is ready for the demands you throw at it. Challenge yourself, doing the things that you love. Once you have a foundation, find new challenges and athletic feats that allow you to keep learning. This could be a mile pace time. This could be a sprint time. This could be a distance of a drive off the tee. This could be dunking again. This could be climbing a more challenging course. It doesn’t matter what it is but have some fun with your athletic abilities. Looking naked is great but exploring your abilities is life long practice that will never disappoint.
I hope this provides some tips on always being an athlete and keeping your fitness and exercise training fun and purposeful. Make the most out of the abilities you have, and never stop being an athlete!