One of the hardest things about being a student-athlete is managing sports on the side, especially with many other extracurriculars simultaneously. Questions arise when we are hit with this topic: Is it really as hard as they make it seem? How are they able to balance it all? Is there a solution to limit the amount of stress?
As a student-athlete myself who is not pursuing the IB Diploma, but taking a handful of IB classes, the workload is an adjustment at first. Do you eventually get into a routine? Yes, but it takes some time. I’d say it’s very doable whether you’re taking anywhere from one IB class to six. With this, I came up with a list of the five most important things I believe are effective in a stress-free year as a student-athlete.
Getting into a rhythm
The first piece of advice is to get into a rhythm and find good habits that work best for you. Get into a familiar routine that you can use each day to help you study more efficiently and effectively.
“There are definitely times where I’ve had to do homework on the weekends or late nights, things like that. But I think you start to get into a rhythm and it’s really about planning ahead what your schedule is going to look like and you can kind of work around that,” senior soccer player and IB Diploma Candidate Aminah Evans said.
You can’t always expect this rhythm to come right away. It takes some time, so be patient with the process as you ease into it.
Putting school first
As a student-athlete, school and your academic success always comes first. While being a student-athlete often requires you to balance out your schedule, as Aminah mentioned earlier, prioritizing academics is important. Tav Gur is a sophomore, taking one IB class while doing soccer and badminton. While he doesn’t seem to struggle much with schoolwork overlapping with sports, he recognizes the struggle with conflicting sports and academics.
“I know of a kid who didn’t show up to a couple of soccer practices because he had to study for math,” Gur said.
Coaches will understand if you need to take time off your sport to catch up with academics, because they, like students, should know that school is a priority. With this being said, if you plan everything accordingly, you may not need to worry about having to make these priorities in your schedule if you’re able to fit in time for both.
Taking care of yourself
The next thing on the list is taking care of yourself both physically and mentally. Give yourself rest when studying. Taking occasional breaks to stretch and move around can help your overall physical well-being. While breaks can not only be found in studying, many find sports as a break from school. Alex Dils is a junior who is doing the IB Diploma as well as three other sports: cross country, soccer, and badminton.
“People think that sports is a huge commitment when it can actually help your overall focus,” Dils said.
Beth Peng, a math teacher and soccer coach has a very similar viewpoint on this idea as well.
“I think that’s a cool thing about sports though is that you’re in school all day long and then you get that break, you get your endorphins going, you get your body moving and then hopefully then you’re able to go home and really focus on your schoolwork,” Peng said.
I think that sports can definitely act as a break from school, allowing you to take your mind off of it for a couple of hours. Breaks can be a great way to take care of yourself. I also believe that sleep and nutrition can also be beneficial. The importance of this can be highly underestimated, and my coaches can’t emphasize this enough. As a high school runner, it’s so easy to feel a difference in my performance when I sleep and eat well the night before, versus when I don’t. Taking care of yourself with sleep and nutrition and allowing your body to regenerate with rest is key as a student-athlete and I believe this is the same for school.
Finding the most efficient study method
Everyone studies differently, but make sure you find the way that works best for you. Find a quiet space that you feel comfortable in like your room or a library. Find a snack to enjoy while studying. Create a plan of when you’re going to take breaks, and what class you’re going to prioritize.
“I make a Google Calendar. It helps because you’ll have so many things in your mind that you have to do, and then putting them out and then saying ‘Okay, if I just follow this calendar, I’ll be good.’ It makes everything less stressful,” Dils said.
Other students make use of different strategies.
“Look up how to save Chrome tab groups. Whatever project you’re working on, it has all the tabs and you can open it on any device you want,” Gur said.
For me, I need to work towards a more efficient study method, as I find it hard to motivate myself to hunker down on a lengthy homework assignment that I don’t want to do. It’s much easier to motivate myself to do things that I know I can get done quickly, even if the deadline is far out.
Asking for help
The last thing is asking for help. Teachers and tutors are easy to go to for support, guidance and feedback. They enjoy helping you and that’s a part of their job, so don’t be afraid to ask for help and utilize the resources you have on campus. Personally, I have found that going to teacher’s flex hours is a really great use of time to clarify any questions I might have.
“Ask for help. Don’t be afraid to talk to your teachers about your schedule. Talk to your coaches. Everyone’s here to help you,” said Evans.
Your coaches can also help you out with whatever you’re struggling with. They are there for a reason to help support you.
“It’s just communicating with your coach and talking to your coach about what’s going on and what you need to do,” Peng said. “I think communication is the key. Communicating with your teachers and communicating with your coaches about how things are going.”
While it may seem like managing school and sports is impossible, it can be achievable for everyone. It’s a challenge, but using the five things mentioned above, it can be done.