Getting Started

     So you're sitting on the dorm room couch watching television with absolutely no motivation to start doing anything remotely physical. So what do you need? Motivation, duh. I will admit that it is not always easy to find this, especially when you are surrounded mostly by people who are also sitting on the couch or glued to the computer screen (aka my freshman dorm). 
     One step out of this that I would probably recommend over almost all others is to join a team. This obviously does not mean that you need to suddenly become an NCAA athlete and join one of the legitimate school teams, for this is impossible for most of us. Intramural teams or even clubs on campus can provide the needed encouragement boost that we need to get started in taking care of our bodies again, but we actually have to go sign up rather than just walking by the flyers in the student center. Motivation is primarily provided by other people, and sometimes the more the better. If you have teammates who will be asking you why you missed practice or a competition over the weekend, you will undoubtedly think twice about missing the next time. If not, there is probably another blog somewhere that you need to read regarding the fact that we do indeed care about what other people think before you continue reading this one. 
     Anyways, this is not the only type of encouragement you receive from a team. The excitement of competing with others alongside you who are somewhat dependent upon your performance for their success can be very beneficial in your pursuit of athletics. For those of us who competed frequently in high school, it is easy to forget about the competition high we once knew, and joining some sort of team brings this back suddenly. When you are really into what you are doing, it makes it much easier to show up and work your butt off when needed. And all this can happen during college!
     So check out the sports or club teams on campus that can provide these things for you. Seriously, go to https://recreation.ucsd.edu/Intramural-Sports/General-Info.html. If by some random chance you don't go to the same university as me (yeah I know there's a lot of colleges out there), use this link as a guide to show you what kind of options are generally available for students, then go to your school's recreation website. If this whole team thing is just not going to cut it for you, do not give up on this blog. Alternatives are coming soon. The pursuit of athletic recovery in college is not always a quick and easy road, but it is a great road to jump on with some teammates.