Kids sign up for sports thinking it’s going to be a fun way to stay in shape and be with their friends at the same time, but some people may be shocked about the level of seriousness that is taken when playing sports at the high school level. Sports have become a major stressor for students. 

While high school sports should be competitive, there is a point where competitiveness goes too far. High school coaches put so much pressure on their athletes to perform well and win, so people end up playing not to lose. This ends up being a vicious cycle where the coach is upset because the team keeps losing, and the athletes exert continuous effort to not lose in order to please their coach. The constant pressure of performing well can take all of the fun out of the sport and reaches a point where eventually athletes become burnt out. The thing they loved the most becomes something that they dread. It becomes an expectation.

Also, high school coaches want to start their season earlier in each era so the team can be ready for the season. By starting early it makes club athletes have to choose between high school and their club teams, and more often than not they choose club which means the extra practice is wasted. 

High school sports are not the end of the world, and if you want to play in college, recruiters are starting to look at club sports more and more. If high school sports are a major stressor in your life, realize that losing a game or having a rough practice will not affect you in the future.