Many people talk about how physically stressing sports are, or how strong and tough athletes must be, to compete the way they do. It goes much deeper than that. So many athletes and even coaches struggle with the mental aspect of competing in sports. This is a topic that needs more recognition, not only in our LT athletic communities, but in our school as well. 

Cross country, a sport where athletes run about three miles every race to achieve the best time possible, is a feat everyone can agree is physically impressive and takes lots of training to complete. But, the mental blocks these runner’s face can prove to be more challenging than the physicality.

“We do have a lot of girls who get very stressed, but most girls, regardless of ability, get nervous before races, and then enjoy the feeling, and realize they are ready and care, which are all positives,” Head Coach Greg Franderson said. 

Varsity track athlete Brooke Boniwell ‘25 does hurdles as her main event and knows exactly how the mentality of sports can be even more difficult than the physicality of it.

“Hurdles is 100% a mental game,” Boniwell said. “Hurdles are extremely technical, and when you’re not in the ‘zone,’ it is easy to fall behind with bad form.”

Boniwell also faced multiple fractures and knee injuries heading into the 2024 season, and this is a feat she had to overcome.

“Coming to practice injured can be really difficult because you feel as though you aren’t running your best times or improving to the extent that you can,” Boniwell said. 

Instead of trusting in their training and practice, athletes often overthink and believe they are not trying hard enough or simply aren’t good enough at what they do. LT athletes typically have practice six times a week. Many athletes struggle with anxiety. Since so much time is devoted to their sport, many athletes view messing up as not an option.

Coaches can also have a huge impact on not only their athletes performance, but their mental state as well.

“I have had a coach destroy my confidence in myself as a player because they didn’t have faith in me,” an anonymous soccer player said. “But I also have had a coach who has given me constructive criticism and made me feel stronger as a player.” 

Athletes throughout LT agree that you need to have a healthy balance between loving and training for your sport while also giving yourself grace.