How to Become a Professional Athlete (From My Experience)

Hello, I’m Adam Kemp, a professional basketball player with ten years of experience playing professional basketball in Europe.

My journey to becoming a professional athlete started without a single NCAA Division One scholarship offer after high school.

Through hard work, dedication, and resilience, I’ve achieved my dream and built a successful career in professional sports.

In this article, I aim to provide valuable tips and insights from my personal experience to help you understand what it takes to become a professional athlete.

Developing the Right Mindset

Becoming a professional athlete might seem impossible for most people, but I can tell you it’s possible.

The road to achieving this goal has more ups and downs than you’d ever expect, but once you get there, you’ll realize it was all worth it.

The first step to becoming a professional athlete is developing the right mindset.

It requires years of training to reach peak abilities, which separates professional athletes from the rest of the world.

To become a professional athlete, you must begin by developing the right mindset because you need to put in hard work, day after day, year after year, and stay fully committed to your goals.

However, you can’t let this journey overwhelm you.

Young athletes with hopes of becoming professionals are drawn by strong success motives and can become overwhelmed without even noticing.

Stress can manifest in various ways, such as anxiety, headaches, stomach pain, unsteady sleep, forgetfulness, chronic fatigue, mood swings, and irritability.

If you become overwhelmed or “burnt out,” you will fall short of your goal, just like those who don’t put in enough effort.

However, confidence is a major factor in athletic success.

Many talented sportsmen and sportswomen give up on their careers because they can’t handle negative feedback.

It’s crucial to learn how to stay positive no matter what happens and remain steady despite the stress around you.

By understanding these aspects of becoming a professional athlete, you can start moving forward.

Benefits of Mindfulness for Athletes

One way to build mental resilience and stay focused is by practicing mindfulness.

Mindfulness techniques, such as the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program, help you focus on the present moment and can even lead to structural changes in your brain, reducing the chances of feeling stressed later on.

Find a quiet place, close your eyes, and just breathe, focusing on the air coming in and out of your body and how it changes your posture.

Start with 5 minutes per day and gradually increase your practice time, but try not to exceed 10 minutes daily.

By embracing the long-term commitment, building mental resilience, and staying motivated, you can develop the right mindset that will set you on the path to becoming a professional athlete.

Mastering Sport-Specific Skills

To excel as a professional athlete, developing sport-specific skills is crucial.

One widely recognized concept in skill development is the “10,000-hour rule,” which suggests that it takes approximately 10,000 hours of dedicated practice to achieve mastery in any given field.

This concept underscores the importance of consistent practice, repetition, and motivation in honing the skills needed to reach the pinnacle of athletic performance.

Thomas Edison, the prolific inventor, experienced countless failures before successfully creating the lightbulb.

His famous quote, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work,” serves as a powerful reminder of the value of perseverance and the importance of learning from setbacks.

Like Edison, aspiring professional athletes must remain resilient and persistent in their pursuit of excellence, regardless of their obstacles.

Developing professional athlete-level sport-specific skills is undoubtedly challenging and requires significant time and effort.

However, the key to success lies in maintaining an optimistic attitude.

Embrace each practice session as an opportunity for growth and improvement, and remember that progress may be gradual. Incremental gains, when accumulated over time, will ultimately lead to the mastery of your chosen sport.

Staying motivated and committed to refining your skills is essential, even when progress seems slow.

Surround yourself with supportive individuals who share your passion and aspirations, as they can help keep you on track and provide encouragement during difficult times.

By embracing the 10,000-hour concept and committing wholeheartedly to developing your sport-specific skills, you will be well on your way to realizing your dream of becoming a professional athlete.

Building a Strong Athletic Foundation

Optimizing fitness for professional athletes requires a well-rounded approach, focusing on strength training, endurance and cardiovascular exercises, and flexibility and mobility training.

Each of these elements contributes to overall performance, injury prevention, and improved physical abilities.

Strength Training

Strength training is a critical component of an athlete’s fitness regimen, contributing significantly to overall performance enhancement, injury risk reduction, and improvements in agility and speed.

A well-rounded strength training program targets various muscle groups, using exercises such as squats, deadlifts, and bench presses to build a robust and resilient body.

The best strength training exercises for athletes target multiple muscle groups, improve functional strength, and translate well to sports-specific movements.

Here are some of the most effective strength training exercises that athletes can incorporate into their training programs:

1. Squats: Squats are a fundamental lower-body exercise that targets the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and lower back. They help improve leg strength, power, and stability, which are crucial for running, jumping, and changing direction.
2. Deadlifts: Deadlifts are a compound movement that works the entire posterior chain, including the hamstrings, glutes, lower back, and upper back muscles. This exercise promotes overall strength and power, enhancing an athlete’s ability to generate force from the ground up.
3. Bench Press: The bench press is a classic upper-body exercise that focuses on the chest, shoulders, and triceps. It helps athletes develop pushing strength, which is essential for sports like football, basketball, and rugby.
4. Pull-ups: Pull-ups are an excellent exercise for developing upper body strength, targeting the back, shoulders, and arms. They help improve grip strength and pulling power, which are crucial for sports like climbing, wrestling, and gymnastics.
5. Lunges: Lunges are a versatile lower-body exercise that can be performed in various planes of motion, targeting the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. They help improve single-leg strength, balance, and coordination, which are essential for sports that require agility and dynamic movements.
6. Push-ups: Push-ups are a bodyweight exercise that targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps. They help develop upper-body strength and core stability, making them an excellent addition to any athlete’s training program.
7. Power Cleans: Power cleans are an explosive, full-body exercise that develops strength and power in the legs, hips, and back. They help athletes improve their ability to generate force quickly, which is beneficial for sports that require sprinting, jumping, and explosive movements.
8. Box Jumps: Box jumps are a plyometric exercise that targets the lower body and helps improve explosive power, coordination, and balance. They are beneficial for athletes who need to develop jumping ability and quick reactions, such as basketball and volleyball players.
9. Romanian Deadlifts (RDLs): RDLs are a variation of the traditional deadlift that focuses more on the hamstrings and glutes, promoting posterior chain strength and stability. This exercise is essential for athletes looking to improve running mechanics, jumping ability, and overall lower body power.
10. Dips: Dips are an upper-body exercise that targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps. They help athletes develop pushing strength and stability in the shoulder joint, which is essential for sports like swimming, gymnastics, and various throwing disciplines.

Incorporating these exercises into an athlete’s strength training program can help build a strong, well-rounded, and resilient body, ultimately enhancing sports performance and reducing the risk of injury.

Core strength, an often-underappreciated aspect of strength training, is the foundation for stability and power across numerous sports.

A strong core enables athletes to generate force more effectively, maintain balance and control during complex movements, and protect the spine and surrounding musculature from excessive strain.

As such, incorporating core-strengthening exercises into an athlete’s training routine is crucial for unlocking peak performance and minimizing injury risk.

To develop a solid core, athletes should engage in a diverse range of exercises targeting different core musculature areas. Some examples of effective core exercises include:

1. Pallof presses: This anti-rotation exercise strengthens the obliques and transverse abdominis, helping athletes resist rotational forces and maintain stability during dynamic movements.
2. Medicine ball or cable chops: These exercises challenge the core to produce and control rotational force, improving athletes’ ability to transfer power effectively between the upper and lower body. Medicine ball exercises, in particular, are especially good for athletes who want to develop better core strength and power.
3. Bird dogs: This full-body exercise targets the lower back, glutes, and core stabilizers, promoting better posture and spinal alignment during athletic movements.
4. Side planks: A variation of the standard plank, side planks emphasize the obliques and deep core muscles, enhancing lateral stability and core endurance.
5. Planks: Planks are one of the best alternatives to crunches and one of the best exercises for athletes. This classic isometric exercise engages the entire core, teaching athletes to brace and maintain a neutral spine during exertion, which is crucial for injury prevention and efficient force generation.

A comprehensive strength training program that includes general exercises and core-specific movements is essential for athletes to reach their full potential.

For optimal results, athletes should progressively increase the intensity and volume of their strength training, constantly challenging their bodies and stimulating muscle growth.

Endurance & Cardiovascular Fitness

Endurance and cardiovascular fitness are essential for athletes to maintain peak performance throughout games or competitions.

Regular aerobic exercises, such as running, swimming, or cycling, improve cardiovascular health and stamina, enhance oxygen delivery to the muscles, and support efficient energy production.

Including a mix of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and steady-state cardio in your workout routine helps optimize endurance, promote faster recovery, and keep the heart healthy.

Incorporating different types of endurance training, such as tempo runs, hill sprints, and long, slow distance (LSD) workouts, can target various aspects of cardiovascular fitness.

Additionally, sport-specific endurance exercises, like shuttle runs for soccer players or continuous swimming sets for swimmers, help develop endurance capabilities tailored to the demands of a particular sport.

Flexibility & Mobility

Flexibility and mobility are crucial components of athletic performance that help prevent injuries, improve posture, and increase movement efficiency.

These aspects contribute to overall athleticism and can enhance an athlete’s performance across various sports.

Investing time in stretching and mobility exercises can improve joint health, muscle elasticity, and range of motion.

Incorporate dynamic stretching before workouts to warm up the muscles and prepare them for activity.

After training, engage in static stretching, like hamstring or quad stretches, to promote muscle recovery, reduce soreness, and maintain flexibility.

Sports Nutrition – What Should Pro Athletes Eat and Drink?

An athlete’s nutrition plays a critical role in their overall performance and health.

The Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDR) recommends 45 to 65 percent of total calories from carbohydrates, 20 to 35 percent from fats, and 10 to 35 percent from proteins.

These guidelines are generally suitable for athletes, with only the total energy intake needing adjustment for specific sports.

Carbohydrate Consumption for Athletes

Carbohydrates are essential for athletes, as they provide the primary fuel source for physical activity.

Athletes engaging in endurance exercise up to 114 minutes can maintain a normal diet within the AMDR ranges.

However, those participating in endurance exercise exceeding 167 minutes, such as long-distance runners or cyclists, should consume a high-carbohydrate diet to store and utilize more glycogen effectively.

Protein Consumption for Athletes

Protein intake is vital for athletes, especially those with more muscle mass, as it supports muscle growth and recovery.

Additionally, research has indicated that combining protein and carbohydrate intake before exercise reduces fatigue markers better than carbohydrate intake alone.

Athletes should prioritize plant-based protein sources, as excessive animal protein consumption can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Most athletes can and should obtain their daily protein needs through a healthy diet of whole foods.

However, some athletes may require protein supplements.

Dietary Fat Consumption for Athletes

Dietary fat, while not a primary energy source during physical activity, is necessary for overall energy needs.

Research has indicated that as blood glucose is depleted throughout intense endurance activities, such as a basketball game, a larger proportion of fatty acids are used to produce adenosine triphosphate, demonstrating the need for dietary fat intake.

Athletes should consume 20 to 35 percent of their daily energy intake from healthy fats, as outlined by the AMDR.

Hydration Tips for Athletes

Proper hydration is essential for athlete performance, affecting various bodily functions and overall health. Inadequate hydration can lead to reduced performance, increased risk of injury, and longer recovery times.

Each athlete’s hydration needs may vary based on factors such as body size, exercise intensity, duration, and environmental conditions.

Understanding your specific hydration requirements and monitoring fluid loss during workouts is essential to maintain optimal hydration levels.

Athletes should begin hydrating several hours before exercise, maintain hydration during exercise, and rehydrate after exercise to promote recovery.

It’s crucial to recognize the signs of dehydration, such as dizziness, fatigue, dark-colored urine, and increased heart rate, and avoid overhydration, which can also be detrimental to athletic performance and health.

By following these hydration tips for athletes and choosing the best hydration drinks, athletes can maintain proper hydration levels, optimize performance, and support overall health.

Benefits of Consistent Meal Planning for Athletes

Maintaining consistency in meal planning and consuming a limited variety of meals can lead to lower body fat levels and support healthier habits.

Meal prepping in advance can help reduce decision fatigue, making adhering to a healthy diet easier.

A consistent meal planning approach, such as The Clean 5 program, provides users with meal prep recipes, training plans, and a meal planner to calculate and tailor daily calorie goals and portion sizes.

By creating a list of the foods that will provide you the optimal macronutrients and micronutrients for your body, you can reduce the time it takes to make healthy meals and spend more time focusing on other aspects of your life.

Embracing this strategy can help athletes make healthier choices and reduce the consumption of processed foods.

The Importance of Sleep for Athletes

Sleep and fitness are interconnected in several ways.

Sleeping is essential for muscle growth, recovery, and overall performance in athletes.

High-quality sleep has a direct impact on the quality of life and should be a top priority for anyone engaging in intensive workouts.

Giving your body adequate rest helps you achieve results faster, reduces the risk of injuries, and keeps you energized throughout the day.

Sleep and Muscle Recovery

Adequate sleep is essential for athletes as it plays a significant role in muscle recovery following intense exercise.

Sleep is anabolic, meaning it supports the production of growth hormones and restores essential neurotransmitters necessary for effective muscle growth, such as adrenaline, acetylcholine, dopamine, and noradrenaline.

During sleep, the body repairs damaged muscle tissue and fosters the development of new tissue.

Deep sleep stages, particularly the non-REM stage 3, are crucial for physical recovery, as they facilitate the release of human growth hormone and the restoration of various tissues, organs, and bones.

Mental alertness is vital for athletes, and allowing the brain to rest during sleep helps ensure optimal focus during training.

Sleep also aids protein synthesis, which is critical for muscle repair and growth. Experts generally recommend 7 to 9 hours of sleep for adults, but athletes may require more for optimal recovery and rest.

Cortisol, a hormone that opposes testosterone, can inhibit muscle growth and cause muscle tissue breakdown.

Increased cortisol levels often result from stress, which may be exacerbated by inadequate quality of sleep.

By ensuring they get enough sleep, athletes can minimize stress and cortisol levels, thus promoting muscle growth and overall well-being.

The amount of sleep required varies depending on an individual’s level of physical activity and other factors, such as injuries, surgery, or illness.

Athletes recovering from injuries or those undergoing postoperative physical therapy may need extra sleep for proper healing.

How to Get Enough Sleep as an Athlete

1. Maintain a consistent sleep schedule: Wake up at the same time every day, even on weekends. This helps regulate your body’s internal clock and improves sleep quality.
2. Create a comfortable sleeping environment: Keep your bedroom cool, dark, and quiet. Use blackout curtains, a white noise machine, or a fan to block out external noise and light.
3. Limit screen time before bed: The blue light emitted by electronic devices can interfere with the production of melatonin, the hormone responsible for regulating sleep. Establish a screen-free routine at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
4. Implement relaxation techniques: Engage in activities that promote relaxation before bedtime, such as reading, meditation, or gentle stretching.
5. Invest in a supportive mattress: If you have the resources and ability, choose a mattress that suits your sleeping position and preferences, and replace it when it becomes uncomfortable or worn out. A good memory foam mattress can make a huge difference.
6. Avoid alcohol before bedtime: Alcohol can disrupt sleep patterns and interfere with the body’s natural sleep process. Stick to non-alcoholic beverages, such as water or herbal tea, in the evening.

Education and Athletics

Elementary, middle, high school, and college sports play a pivotal role in developing a professional athlete.

During these formative years, I believe it is essential for young athletes to establish a balance between their academic and athletic pursuits.

Excelling academically not only paves the way for superior educational opportunities but also lays a solid foundation for life outside of sports.

Throughout my educational journey, I had the privilege of working with multiple mentors and coaches who proved to be invaluable assets.

Their guidance, support, and expertise helped me tackle the challenges of balancing sports and academics while remaining focused on my goals.

Coaches and mentors possess invaluable insights into the subtleties of the sport, offer constructive feedback, and push athletes to realize their full potential.

Based on my experience, nurturing strong relationships with coaches and mentors can have a profound and lasting impact on an athlete’s success and personal growth.

Networking & Exposure

Building relationships within the sports community is crucial for aspiring professional athletes.

In my experience, joining sports clubs and associations has opened doors to networking opportunities and provided access to valuable resources.

Attending sports events and conferences can also be instrumental in expanding one’s network, as it allows athletes to connect with like-minded individuals, coaches, and professionals in the industry.

Participating in showcases and tournaments is another essential aspect of increasing exposure.

These events provide athletes with a platform to demonstrate their skills and compete against top-level talent, often catching the attention of scouts and recruiters.

In my journey, I found that showcasing my abilities in such competitive environments contributed significantly to my growth as an athlete and created opportunities for advancement in my career.

A strong online presence is equally important in today’s digital age.

Creating highlight reels and maintaining up-to-date online profiles on sports-focused platforms can help athletes showcase their talents and achievements to a broader audience.

These digital profiles serve as a virtual resume, allowing scouts, coaches, and potential sponsors to easily access and evaluate an athlete’s performance and potential.

Navigating the Path to Professional Sports

For aspiring athletes, it is crucial to comprehend the different levels of professional sports.

In my journey, I discovered that pursuing opportunities overseas, as I did when becoming a professional basketball player, offered invaluable experiences and opened doors to unique career paths.

These international experiences not only enhanced my skills but also broadened my perspective on the global sports community.

Preparing for tryouts and draft processes is also a vital aspect of achieving success in the professional sports arena.

In my experience, thorough preparation, dedication, and hard work during these events can make all the difference when pursuing a professional career.

Furthermore, collaborating with sports agents and managers has been instrumental in helping me navigate the intricacies of professional sports contracts, endorsements, and other career-related decisions.

These professionals possess the expertise and connections necessary to guide athletes through the complex landscape of professional sports, ensuring the best possible outcome for their careers.

Overcoming Challenges and Setbacks

Throughout my athletic journey, I’ve faced various challenges and setbacks, including injuries, poor performances and being overlooked for opportunities.

These experiences have taught me that perseverance and adaptability are crucial for success in the sports world.

I’ve also come to understand the importance of mental resilience and the ability to cope with rejection and failure.

As athletes, we must remain determined and committed to our goals, even when faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

In my experience, fostering a strong support system has been instrumental in overcoming challenges and setbacks.

Family, friends, teammates, coaches, and mentors provide encouragement, guidance, and understanding during difficult times.

Their support can help athletes stay focused and motivated, even in the face of adversity.

Additionally, I’ve found that cultivating mental resilience is essential for managing setbacks and maintaining a positive outlook.

Techniques such as meditation, visualization, and positive self-talk can help athletes develop mental toughness, enabling them to bounce back from failure and continue pushing forward.

As athletes, it’s essential to remember that setbacks and challenges are an inherent part of the journey, and it’s how we respond to them that ultimately defines our success.