Lazy or burnt out?

Being burnt out is a common issue among athletes- whether it be minimal symptoms or extreme ones, every athlete, parent of an athlete, and coach should understand the signs so that it can be prevented and treated.

But first, what is burnout? In simple terms, it’s mental & physical exhaustion that’s caused by too much training stress with too little rest. Training stress can look like physical, travel, time, academic, and social demands. It’s often caused due to athletes wanting to “push through” any mental issues they may be experiencing. In essence, without recovery time, an athlete can start breaking down. 

In a survey done, 72% of student-athletes who participated were experiencing “staleness” during sports seasons. That being said, 66% believed they had been overtrained and 47% reported feeling burnt out during their collegiate career. 

Now, before we look into what burnout might look like and how to prevent it, what causes burnout? Many things such as specializing in one sport, sudden/large increases in training, as well as having pressure from parents/coaches are the main causes of burnout in a student-athlete.

Burnout can look different depending on the athlete. However, certain symptoms can look like clinical depression. Signs include:

• Changes in emotions

• Losing interest in the sport

• Irritability

• Decreased motivation

• Having a hard time concentrating

• Decreases in strength & coordination & sports performance

• Appetite loss/weight loss

• Sleep disturbances

• Fatigue

• Greater susceptibility to illness

• Frequent injuries

There are also different warning signs you can look out for such as:

• No longer having fun playing sports

• The sport is dominating their life

• The only thing they/their family talk about is their sport

• The athlete has missed 10% or more of their season

• & hasn’t seen a doctor

• The only important thing to an athlete is winning

• The athlete dieting to run faster

What should coaches, parents, and athletes do to prevent burnout? Rest. The most effective way to prevent burnout as well as recover from being burnt out is rest, rest, and more rest. Only after signs & symptoms have completely gone away should the athlete slowly reintroduce training. That being said, there are other ways to prevent burnout as well:

• Incorporating fun activities into training

• Practicing stress-reducing things

• Setting short-term goals instead of long-term ones

• Keep training flexible with breaks 1-2 days per week (and longer breaks every few months to allow complete recovery)

• Maintain supportive environment

• Athlete should know signs that indicate needing to slow down/changing their training routine

• Maintain a healthy/balanced diet (WATER)

• And most importantly: Listen to your body.

As an athlete, your body is your instrument, and there are steps and tricks to allow your body to continue being your instrument for many years. It’s extremely necessary an athlete takes care of their body so that they can continue living a content life.