With winter finals creeping around the corner, AP classes, tons of homework, practice, work, clubs, and sporting events, student-athletes are dealing with extensive workloads. How does this affect their academic and physical performances?
Arcata is proud to have hundreds of athletes who participate in team sports and represent our school. Playing a sport builds team skills and physical health.
According to the National Institutes of Health, team sports can also improve an individual’s academic performance. But to what extent is this statement true? And for which sports?
“Missing a lot of teaching material definitely affects my grades,” Mira Rust-Kelley, a senior on the girls’ golf team, said.
Rust-Kelley is a hardworking AP student and the number one player on the girls’ golf team. Golf is one of the most time-consuming sports because of long tournaments. She dislikes having to skip class for these tournaments, but she also appreciates the skills and important lessons that being on a team has taught her.
Another golf player, junior Brenden Mosher, recalls a time in his freshman year when his grade in Tech dropped from an A to a D because he missed two weeks of school. Additionally, he struggled to keep up with his other classes.
The accumulation of missed work can be overwhelming and cause unhealthy stress for student-athletes. According to Research Gate, this combination of stress and high expectations causes burnout.
Sophomore Rosalina Shaw said, “Always try your best at communication and knowing what you’re missing beforehand” to avoid this.
Reaching out to teachers and collecting work from the classes you will miss is one way to stay on top of your schoolwork.
Playing a sport is also a good way to build stronger connections with your team and community. This social life boost is an incentive for a lot of high schoolers.
“It’s helped me a lot to make friends and feel like part of the school,” junior Luciana Buchheister, a player on the girls’ soccer team, said.
Above all, your mental and physical health should be a priority. Make sure to get enough rest and take a break when you’re overwhelmed. Know your limits; everyone has to make cost-benefit decisions when it comes to school and extracurriculars.
As Rust-Kelley said, “It’s important that you keep a balance.”
