How many sports are too many for a multi-sport athlete?

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JimmieJ48fan

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Yesterday I was talking to a friend of mine from high school who I haven't talked to in a while since he moved away. He was talking about his daughter who is a freshman now. And he ended up saying she's a 5 sport athlete and on top of that she's a cheerleader for football and basketball. In the fall she's got flag football, volleyball, and cheerleading. In the winter basketball and cheerleading. And in the spring she plays softball and soccer. And on top of those in the summer she plays tennis, and attends a beach volleyball camp. It doesn't affect her grades as she's getting straight A's. It exhausted me just hearing everything she's involved in. I couldn't imagine trying to balance that many things when I was in high school. You have the classic 3 sport, 3 season multi-sport athlete. But multiple sports during the same season over multiple seasons. I guess it depends on every person but how many sports is too many? What does everyone else think?
 
 
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Totally depends on the individual, and level of success they hope to achieve in each sport.

We had four kids, each one was very different. Our oldest, could handle most any amount of demands on her schedule and operate with comfort. Our next oldest, was reduced to only 2 sports as he would lose focus with too much on his plate. Second youngest was a one report athlete, who developed his understanding of basketball to a deep level for a high school kid. He played year round for 5 years. The youngest, one sport one season only. Focused on Academics.

I would think the amount of activities me toned by your friends daughter would destroy most people, and I personally believe 1-2 hrs per night is max for after school commitments on a nightly basis.
 
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It's truly depedent on the kid, and honestly as a freshman this doesn't totally shock me. There are some kids who want to "do it all" and if the school allows it, they do. Not sure how big the school is, but at many schools, you either play a sport or cheer, you can't do both. At smaller schools, they permit it because they need the kids.
I would like to check back with this kid in 2-3 years to see how it's going. In my experience, many girls peak athletically at 14-15-16 years old. Also when many girls who do it all stop before they are seniors because they've done nothing but play organized sports and activities for 8-10 years of their school life. Boyfriends, driving, getting jobs and just being with friends sometimes becomes more attractive. The other thing to consider is the constant pounding she's putting on her body. I would really be on the lookout for burnout symptoms.
 
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At my school, I see too many kids by the middle of the year that look like zombies with dark circles and heavy bags under their eyes, so my first question to the original poster would be:
Is the kid getting enough rest and taking care of herself?

I've known HS students who somehow crammed 28 hours of activity into a 24-hour day, but it is often accompanied by their parents telling me that they're staying up past midnight to finish their homework, or in one case, it was accompanied by signs of not eating enough that has continued to go unchecked into the person's adult life.
 
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JimmieJ48fan said:
Yesterday I was talking to a friend of mine from high school who I haven't talked to in a while since he moved away. He was talking about his daughter who is a freshman now. And he ended up saying she's a 5 sport athlete and on top of that she's a cheerleader for football and basketball. In the fall she's got flag football, volleyball, and cheerleading. In the winter basketball and cheerleading. And in the spring she plays softball and soccer. And on top of those in the summer she plays tennis, and attends a beach volleyball camp. It doesn't affect her grades as she's getting straight A's. It exhausted me just hearing everything she's involved in. I couldn't imagine trying to balance that many things when I was in high school. You have the classic 3 sport, 3 season multi-sport athlete. But multiple sports during the same season over multiple seasons. I guess it depends on every person but how many sports is too many? What does everyone else think?
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I do see your perspective here! Sounds like she must be one very busy freshman! She must always be doing something!

For me, depends we’re talking maybe “WATCHING/Following” sports? Or “Actually playing/participating” in sports/games?

I personally follow All 5 Major league sports and NASCAR and occasional College Football/Basketball. That’s plenty to keep me busy as a sports fan. Never had to follow like UFC/MMA or Boxing or anything else really so I’d say 6 sports or less would be normal to watch!

But as far as participating playing: I’d argue maybe 2-4 would be my guess? I mean there’s only 12 months in one year? I couldn’t possibly imagine life would be like squeezing 5 or more sports every year in your life as a High school/College athlete?
 
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I'd say 4 is pushing it. 3 sports are more than enough for a player. There are 3 seasons and you need an off season. However, I see more and more 1 sport athletes than multi.
 
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