Everyone has their perceptions about college. Most of those include having plenty of time to go to class, get their homework done, go out with friends and time left over to kick back and relax without having to worry about graduating. While these perceptions may be accurate for regular college students, it’s a whole different ball game for us as baseball players.
For college baseball players life is stressful. We all think of college sports as glamorous and easy and fun, but a lot of the time its grueling and hard work. All people see are the championship games and celebrations, but they dont see the regular days that us athletes go through. A regular day for me would consist of physical therapy, breakfast, class, pre-practice warmup and skill work, practice, lift, dinner, homework and then go to bed in that order. The next morning it’s like the movie Groundhog Day except with different classes. Notice how I didn’t say eat or relax or go out with friends. Being a college athlete is a lot of hard work and dedication, but most of all it takes time management skills.
It takes a lot of time to be a baseball player at this level. Starting my day at 6 a.m. with either physical therapy or lift takes a toll on the body. Class varies between 1 and 4 hours each day, leaving only about 30-45 minutes to grab lunch before heading to the locker room to get ready to practice. Pre-practice skill work and practice usually runs between 3 and 4 hours. After changing, showering and leaving I usually get back home between 5:30 and 6:30 depending on the day. Trying to eat a healthy dinner requires preparation so by the time I prep my dinner, cook it and then eat and clean the dishes it is 8 o’clock before I sit down and do my homework. Homework usually takes around 2-3 hours per night, leaving me to go to bed around 11 and waking up to do it all over again the next day.
It’s overwhelming seeing a schedule like that, especially as a freshman. The most valuable thing that an athlete can learn is how to take hold of the available time and use it to your advantage. If you learn to use the little bits of downtime effectively throughout the day, it will lead to less stress and more time to relax and spend on other things.
There are a plethora of different ways to achieve the goal of having time management skills but in my opinion, the best 2 ways are getting ahead and staying ahead and using every second that you can spare.
It’s important to get ahead and stay ahead because it gives you some breathing room. With the season starting on Friday, things are going to be getting very hectic and it is going to be hard to stay on top of things. With all the travel and games to be played if you don’t get ahead and communicate early, you won’t be able to stay afloat.
Lastly, being successful takes sacrifice. Giving up some of the things that other students do to perfect your craft is an extremely hard thing to do. Some days you feel like all you want to do is sit at home and relax, or go out on that Friday night remember this: your teammates are relying on you. Don’t let them down by making bad decisions.
How to be a Successful Collegiate Athlete 