High School Athletes Should Read a Book This Summer to Stay Mentally Sharp

Your Mind Will Get Lazy If You Don’t Keep It In Shape

First, let me admit out front that I have absolutely no scientific evidence to back up this claim, but from experience of watching thousands of high school athletes during the last 10  summers, it is my opinion that your mind can definitely get lazy if you don’t keep it engaged with meaningful activities, and I don’t mean video games.  You know, something literary which makes you think and imagine outside of weapons being fired and balls being hit or whatever.  Granted, it’s not a novel idea, but reading is the very best way I believe which will keep a person upright and thoughtful. 

Pop culture magazines can’t do it, so don’t go there.  They’re too much like TV with quick-hit articles meant to get your three bucks and then temporarily fill your brain with useless stuff.  A book does the opposite.  It puts you into a life or interesting scenarios which cause you to ponder and project.  Books put you into unique situations which allow your mind to exercise its basic job — to make you think.  When you walk away from PlayStation or any other gaming station, you leave with what?  Wondering what’s in the frig? 

Do yourself a huge, huge favor, try it.  Just once.  Go to a bookstore.  Buy a biography of autobiography.  Pick up a book on an interesting time in history, or a fantasy story of the future.  Better yet, if you have an e-book of some sort, order a book and take it around with you so that in your down times you will be reading instead of doing, well, nothing.