How to be a Great Student Athlete in High School

Ah, high school. A time when we begin to find ourselves, mature, and begin further thinking about our eventual college and career goals. But for a student athlete in high school, juggling academics with athletics can make the whole thing a bit more stressful.

That’s why, below, we are going to guide you on how to be a great athlete in high school while also ensuring that you keep your grades up and well-maintained.

Now, doing so won’t be easy, but if you have your eyes set on becoming a D-I collegiate athlete, now is the time to start getting organized and readying yourself for the big leagues.

And while the road is tough, your future self will thank you for instilling discipline, fortitude, and toughness into your daily routine and setting yourself up for future success both academically and athletically in your post high school life.

Focus on Your Academics

While, as a student athlete in high school, you would much rather focus on just about anything other than your academics, you should ensure that your academics are placed as your first priority.

While athletics play an important role in your life, they are not guaranteed.

From injury to simply not making the cut, collegiate and professional sporting leagues are extremely difficult to break into.

However, by focusing on your academics and your academic career in conjunction with your athletic one, you are able to have additional opportunities and avenues to succeed once you complete your high school career.

In addition, maintaining your academic grades is a necessity in order to be eligible to enroll in a collegiate athletic program.

Many collegiate athletic programs require minimum grade point averages and will deem an athlete ineligible to enroll or compete if their academic grades do not meet the minimum requirements.

Write Down Your Goals

While in high school, the world is really your oyster. You have near endless possibilities and are typically able to determine the route you hope to choose and pursue in life. However, with so many open and available opportunities, the choices can seem endless and quite daunting.

To help you narrow down your choices and to better help you make the best decisions, we highly recommend writing down your goals.

Do so in both a short-term and long-term fashion.

What do you hope to achieve in one-month, six months, one-year, etc.

Make sure to list both easily achievable and more difficult goals and try your best to stick to both. Doing so will help you plan for both life after high school and your success in it.

In addition, be sure to mix in both athletic goals and academic ones. Again, per the above, athletics are never guaranteed, so you should have a mix of both goals and plans.

Fix Your Diet

As a high school student athlete, you may not have to worry about your diet. However, if you are looking to become an elite athlete and enroll in a top collegiate athletics program, you will need to ensure that your diet and nutritional intake is properly maintained.

Fatty foods, junk snacks, and sugary drinks will hamper your progress and goals. Unhealthy foods put unnecessary stress on your body and affect the recovery process.

Rather, opt for healthier and more nutritious sources of foods and be sure to drink copious amounts of water and other healthy beverages.

In addition, don’t overcomplicate the process. Fad diets and overly complicated diet plans aren’t necessary. Rather, the goal here is to make a lifestyle change that will support your endeavors in the long-run.

Fix Your Sleep Schedule

Sleep is an important recovery tool that will help prepare your body for your next training session. As you sleep, your muscle tissues are healing and your nervous system is relaxing. When you don’t get enough sleep, you’re putting your body at risk for injury and damaging your overall health.

And although high school students are notorious for their lack of proper sleep, as a student athlete you will need to buck that trend and ensure that your body is properly rested for the upcoming day.

Develop Mental Toughness and Fortitude

In high school, as in life, you will face unexpected obstacles and roadblocks. From injuries to personal loss to poor grades. And while some obstacles are easier to come back from, others may take a longer amount of time to recover from.

However, for long-term success, you will need to learn how to handle those obstacles.

Mental toughness and fortitude will help you to better weather those obstacles and trials. And though it will not always be easy, developing that mental toughness at a younger age will help you later on in life when obstacles and roadblocks become more consequential.

Understand What Your Teachers and Coaches Expect From You

One of the best ways to be a great student athlete in high school, and further along in college, is to understand just what is expected from you by both your teachers and your coaches. Understanding what is expected from you and how you can improve to meet and exceed those expectations will help you succeed both on the court and in the classroom.

A great way to do so is to speak candidly with your teachers and your coaches.

Try to get honest, unfiltered feedback from both and don’t take the criticism personally. We all have areas where we need to focus and work harder in, so take the feedback and apply the recommendations to improve in both your academic and athletic careers.

Take a More Leadership Role in Your Academics and Athletics

The famous quote that leaders aren’t born, they’re made, applies perfectly to high school athletics. And while it may seem that certain students simply possess better leadership skills, there are routes and avenues you can take to showcase your leadership skills and potential.

Doing so will not only help you to succeed in both your academics and athletics, but will also place you as a source of strength and unity for your team.

Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

In order to be a great high school athlete, you will need to be willing to get out of your comfort zone. This means that while what you already know may be working right now, you should be willing to try new techniques, exercises, and training regimens to push yourself and your limits.

Too often, athletes are fearful of failure and simply stick to what they know.

However, long-term, sticking to simply what you know can be a recipe for failure and can lead to disappointment. Rather, be willing to try new techniques and to enlist the help of others to help you reach those new heights.

Have Fun

While the life of a student athlete in high school can be stressful, you shouldn’t let the stress of academics and athletics usurp your time in high school. Be sure to have some safe, appropriate fun with family and friends and enjoy your time in high school.