Throughout my adolescence, I introduced myself as “Tara” and described myself as “being a lacrosse player”. This identity spanned over a decade, until one day, it abruptly came to a halt:
Two years post operation, my orthopedic broke the news - if I wanted to avoid a premature knee replacement, I needed to quit impact sports immediately. Due to complications from my ACL/Meniscus injury, the longevity of my knee was at risk, and it was time to choose my personal health over my life-long passion.
As a year-round athlete, I had no idea what this meant other than, I needed to drastically adjust my lifestyle and quit what I had dedicated over half my life to.
The day I quit, I walked away with a hole in my heart, and a “Now what?” thought. I did not realize, this was the start of discovering who I was outside of performance. Metrics no longer mattered when it came to working out, the amount of goals I scored no longer contributed to how good I felt about myself - I needed to now cultivate all of this from within.
Fortunately, I was able to discover different aspects of “me” while still having access to university clubs, organizations and programs.
After I took that first leap, my personal and professional bucket list exploded - I reached “out of bounds,” studying abroad, learning new languages, interning internationally and traveling; volunteering, working part-time. My view of the world and how I fit into it became wide open - extending far beyond the field.
I took part in multiple clubs and branched out further through my studies - transferring leadership skills I learned as an athlete - becoming President of German Club, Events Chair for the Honor Society, running a case study for the American Marketing Society competition; writing a "how to" guide for my business school, educating students on how to create their own opportunity abroad. I began taking classes out of genuine curiosity and interest rather than to fulfill program requirements or fit in with my practice schedule; I found myself spending time applying what I was learning in the real world instead of rushing to finish assignments in between commitments.
As I explored “out of bounds” I learned how to find joy in working out without a specific "goal" in mind, hold myself accountable, manage my own time and create a new network of friends.
As an athlete, you have the luxury of having this built in to your daily life - a set schedule, workout plan, teammates to call on, fans to cheer you on, a coach to hold you accountable, games to measure how “well” you are doing.
Throughout my journey, I realized true “wellness” comes from having a deep sense of purpose, confidence, self-assurance, and love from within. Aligning your head with your heart, tying in your own personal values and living by them. Once you have this, everything else falls into place and “performance” becomes more of a natural talent, rather than a narrow goal-oriented approach. Suddenly, the “challenges” and “losses” that arise, whether on or off the field, become easier to tackle.
I am here to help current and former athletes cultivate a deep self-confidence from within, discover purpose beyond performance and lead from the heart. Create a solid sense of "self" outside sports to beautifully intertwine with the attributes you'll always have from being an athlete.
