Between a heavy load of schoolwork, extracurricular commitments, and college applications, Berkeley High School upperclassmen can find it challenging to maintain a balance between academics and athletics. This often leads BHS students to quit their sport altogether. While sports for young kids are often regarded as recreational activities, high school sports can be time-consuming, stress-inducing, and lead to athletic burnout.
Kelilah Newman-Anand - Softball & Crew
Kelilah Newman-Anand, a BHS senior, played softball for 10 years before switching to crew, though she stopped rowing halfway through her junior year. Newman-Anand grew up in a baseball-loving family, which led her to play softball from a young age. “It was hard to quit softball just because I played it for so long and loved it,” Newman-Anand said. Gradually, the time-consuming softball schedule started to interfere with various aspects of her life, mainly her social life. This led Newman-Anand to have to choose between her friends and her sport.
“I would miss out on a lot of things my friends were doing, but later I just started skipping practice to do social things,” Newman-Anand said.
In sophomore year, Newman-Anand joined the crew team, though continuing with sports was taking a physical toll on her body. “I have really bad knee problems,” Newman-Anand said, “So I couldn’t really do anything.” Halfway through her junior year, Newman-Anand shifted her focus away from athletics to take better care of her health.
Gloria Bell - Gymnastics
Gloria Bell, a BHS junior who did gymnastics from ages two to 16, made her decision to quit over this past summer. Though Bell was planning on quitting gymnastics in twelfth grade, she was pushed to quit earlier when her gym faced a lawsuit. On top of this, burnout was a key factor in Bell’s decision. “(There was) definitely a lot of burnout and definitely a lot of stress, but more towards middle school and high school,” Bell said. Burnout is a common theme in high school, especially among student athletes. “I think that burnout is definitely very normalized,” Bell said, “Especially if your sport is emotionally and physically draining.” For Bell, stepping away from gymnastics allowed her to prioritize her well-being, especially as the pressures of high school continue to rise.
Sam Shabel - Crew
With the quantity of work that upperclassmen have, free time can be hard to come by. BHS senior Sam Shabel echoes this sentiment. Between schoolwork, a job, and rowing, he had no time to hang out with his friends. “My after-school days were used up pretty much completely for crew,” Shabel said, “So I had much less time to hang out with friends.”
Shabel started rowing his freshman year, when he and a group of friends decided to join the team; his sister was also rowing. Shabel stopped rowing halfway through his junior year. “It was mostly just because I did want more free time in my senior year, I wasn’t getting much out of the sport anymore,” Shabel said.
In addition, rowing five days a week while having a rigorous workload as a junior made it hard to find time to get schoolwork done. “A lot of the time when I got home from practice, I just went right to bed after eating dinner, and I didn’t really get my work done,” Shabel said.
Ultimately, from burnout to injury to other commitments, it is hard to find balance while playing a sport that is often mentally and physically demanding.
Although these students have been involved in their sport for many years, they are generally happy with their choice to step away. “I’m definitely happy with the decision I made,” Bell explained, “I really do miss some parts of (gymnastics), but there’s also a lot of parts that I’m very happy are out of my life.”
Similarly, Newman-Anand agreed that the choice to quit was better for her in the end. “I regret quitting softball, but in the end it was the best decision for my mental health,” she said.