For many GHS students, sports are a huge part of their lives. As the fall sports season comes to an end, many athletes find themselves cut loose from their in-season routine. For volleyball player and Garfield senior Lauren Foster, that routine is busy, “it’s five days of practice in preseason, which starts in August, and then when games start, we have three practices a week, and usually two games a week, sometimes three.” Foster said. For other sports, such as cross country, preseason practices can begin even earlier. 

Junior Ava Stewart said that she started running six days a week at the end of May, with practices “either at least one, if not two, sometimes almost three [hours long].” These long hours and months of practice quickly become normal life to athletes, with many finding friendship and community on their teams. But, just as quickly as sports seasons start, they unfortunately come to an end. For some, the transition is jarring. 

Foster said “I kind of find myself like not really having much to do. [I’ve] been asking my friends what they’re supposed to do when they come home from school, because I genuinely have no idea. For the entire year, besides the summer, it’s always just been volleyball, like all day or all week long.” Stewart echoeds the sentiment,  “I definitely have a lot more time on my hands, which is almost like, a little bit too much to where I like, sometimes I don’t know what to do.” 

For some athletes, these feelings are not just due to a schedule change, though. Sports have very real effects on mental health. Exercise releases endorphins, and regular exercise has been proven to reduce stress, ward off feelings of anxiety and depression, boost self-esteem, and improve sleep. 

But apart from all the doom and gloom surrounding the end of sports seasons, there are positives to having extra time. Athletes could try to pick up a new hobby, or spend more time on homework, which Stewart stated “usually doesn’t get done” during the season. Stewart saidys she’s trying to play more guitar and do more drawing. Athletes should savor their free time though, because the awkward period of having too much is temporary, with the next season or preseason just ahead. Stewart said, “I’m definitely excited for the track season and to start training for track and for cross country next year. Already, I am excited.” 

For most seniors across athletics, there is no next season ahead for them. As Foster put it, “ for a lot of girls on the team, including myself, volleyball is kind of no longer a part of my foreseeable life.” This makes the postseason transition even more difficult. Foster is optimistic, though, saying that she’ll “bring her volleyball shoes with her to college,” just in case the opportunity presents itself.