When I ask young athletes why they participate in sports, many say it’s because they can forget about their problems and just focus on the task at hand — whether it’s running, catching a ball or shooting baskets.
As adults, we do the same thing. A lot of us become fans and spectators, watching our children participate. Unfortunately, that can sometimes develop into an obsession. Parents become too involved and they try to influence a coach’s decisions, particularly when they feel their child isn’t getting adequate playing time.
If one complaint is universal among coaches, regardless of the sport, it’s that parents and fans criticize their moves. Sometimes, it’s done despite the success of the coach’s program.
This isn’t a good thing. It turns what should be a release of tension and stress into something that causes it. Lately, it seems that young athletes understand this better than adults.
A little advice. Learn to enjoy the game, rather than expecting something from it.
Better yet, find something to participate in more directly. Take up gardening, hiking or some form of physical activity. I prefer fishing, although lately I’ve found that just walking helps to settle my mind. After the first mile or so, I find myself humming or softly singing a little tune. Some of the people who pass me may find it a little weird, but for me it’s an indication that I’m letting go of stress.
Walking (or running) is also cheap. It doesn’t cost much to put on a pair of sneakers, drive up to the high school and walk eight laps around the track (which is two miles).
I regularly check my blood pressure and after walking or fishing, it reads lower.
I’ve been fishing for many years and, quite honestly, I very seldom fail to catch fish. It no longer matters if I catch a lot of fish or a big fish, or any fish at all, perhaps because I know I’ll likely catch fish the next time. The pressure is just not there.
It’s a little different while I’m hunting. In the woods, I rack up many more fruitless days than days when I do bag something. Still, one of the advantages of growing older is realizing that with any activity, it’s not the winning or losing that matters, but the doing.
I’m going hunting soon. When I was younger, there was more stress involved in hunting. I felt pressure to be successful and if I wasn’t, I felt like I had failed. Maybe that’s a holdover from earlier times in human history, when hunting success or the lack of it could mean the difference between eating and going hungry.
It took me a while to realize that I was putting that pressure on myself, or letting other people put it on me. Since I learned to let go and just enjoy being there, I enjoy hunting a lot more.
At times, while walking with my rifle or fishing rod, I find myself singing or humming. Maybe that’s not the best thing to do while hunting or fishing, but it sure feels good.
Looking way back to when I participated in high-school sports, I think I did my best when I didn’t feel any pressure and could just concentrate on what I was doing.
There seems to be a little more tension in the air these days, and not just in sporting arenas. Maybe it’s the recent financial crisis that’s causing it. I know the price of gasoline makes it a little more difficult to go fishing, but here in Española there’s good fishing close by in the Rio Grande, Abiquiú Lake and Santa Cruz Lake.
I plan to keep fishing, hunting and walking, even though it’s going to cost more and more money. Maybe that’s because not doing these things would cost me even more in peace of mind and physical well-being. That’s one price I’m not willing to pay.