How to Find a Sport That You Love
Even if running isn’t your jam (like it is for champion runner Nick Symmonds), there’s a way to find the right sport for you. (Photo: Flickr/Björn Láczay)
No secret: I freaking love the Olympics.
They are what inspired me to get off my sister’s couch and find a new sport to conquer after my football career ended. And they are what have kept me going through years of crazy training in handball while running my business. They are what I dream about.
So any chance I get to interview an Olympian on The School of Greatness, I take.
Nick Symmonds is not just any Olympian either. The national championship-winner runs faster than 99.9 percent of people on the planet, and he’s been to two Olympic games so far (and is gunning for a slot in 2016).
But Nick isn’t just a runner — he’s also an entrepreneur (and is self-described first and foremost as a businessman.) What I learned from Nick was how powerful a positive mindset is, how to bounce back from a loss, and why it’s so important to him to fight for the rights of athletes to earn higher pay.
As we talked about his path to becoming an Olympian, I found out that Nick had actually tried many different sports all through school. He would play several sports a year and loved many of them. But it wasn’t until he joined his middle school cross country team (for a girl, he admits) that he started to realize how much he loved running in particular.
In fact, he hated running at first. But with time, dedication, supportive teammates and coaches, and the improvements he saw in himself, he started to see that his body was built to run the half-mile — amazingly well.
Nick’s advice to anyone who is trying to find a niche sport that they love is try everything. You don’t know what you haven’t tried.
If you haven’t found a sport yet that you love, set a goal to try something new every month. And have fun with it!
Who says exercise has to be a chore?
As Nick says, “Everyone is an athlete at something.”
For my full conversation with Nick, listen below:
For more on Nick, click here.
ABOUT LEWIS HOWES: Lewis is a pro-athlete turned lifestyle entrepreneur who hosts the top-ranked podcast The School of Greatness. He interviews the best and brightest minds in health, entrepreneurship, relationships and lifestyle. Follow Lewis on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
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