It took me sessions of personal coaching to realize that in almost every area of my life, I had completely stopped setting goals for myself. Yet, I had been operating and thriving with goals for most of my life up to the point of ‘retiring’ from swimming. The motivation wasn’t exactly ending with exercising and staying fit, but with focusing my energy and work towards something purposeful. This meant there was just a heck of a lot of “exploring” and “doing” just to feel like I was busy and putting an effort towards staying healthy, however none of it was focused (or, I would also argue, effective).
• Education and resources - Prior to and as the transition occurs - make everyone aware of the potential challenges and risks!
• Guidance and personal coaching - Customize the approach based on the needs of the individual and meet them where they are at. This is also the point at which we may need to acknowledge athlete "burnout" and that the athlete may not want to exercise AT ALL anymore.
• Exploration and assessments - How do we learn what we are interested in? We try and do. In addition, take an assessment of current health and fitness to help create a plan for moving forward.
• Check-ins and accountability - This is the most important piece. As stated earlier, when you are used to having support and direction, it’s going to continue to be necessary for a while for growth and traction.
Do you have experiences or challenges with this as a former athlete? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.