Ari Rajaram: Varsity-level Track and Field, and Cross Country Runner
-Junior at Monta Vista High School
-Varisty Track and Field, and Cross Country runner
How do you manage track and field, school, friends, family, etc.?
“Usually, track and field is every single day after school and on Saturday for Saturday practices. I don’t really work on homework after I finish running because I’m way too tired. I spend my time relaxing and I do all of my work the day after and usually, it works very well. I’m more refreshed and so that helps me a lot. For family, I sometimes skip practices to go do things with my family if there is something we were planning on doing. Generally, I don’t really hang out with friends very much outside of school but I sometimes play basketball with them.”
How do you deal with burnout?
“Cross-Country and Track and Field are something I enjoy doing mainly because it provides me with the sensation to relieve stress. With any other sport, I feel like I would be burned out but I’ve been running so much and I get so stressed throughout the day that I find running to be a way to relieve my stress. It helps me feel less stressed out than I usually would be.”
How do you deal with stress during and before track meets?
“Usually, during a track meet, I am very stressed out right before it starts. As I start running, all the stress goes away and I enjoy it so much that I don’t really think about all the people cheering me on and the stress. I try not to think about the track meet until I actually get to the track. Generally, I feel like as long as I do very well or as long as I PR (personal record), I’ll be happy. I listen to music before races - that’s really helpful. I also try working on homework very early in the day so that I don’t have to think about anything stressful just before the track meet. I also prefer to not think about anything right before I go running because it’s not very good for me since I’m too preoccupied with thinking of something and I run slower as a result.”
Is there a lot of internal pressure that you put on yourself? How do you deal with mental health during losses (you don’t achieve a goal you set for yourself, you lost at a competition, you got injured)?
“Well, yes, there is a lot of pressure. I want to be able to get very fast but the thing is, I feel like it's a very slow process. So, as long as I meet my goal by the end of the season, I’ll be happy. During those times, as long as I have other people on my track team do well, I don’t feel as worried. This is because track, despite having a lot of individuality, is still very much a team sport because everyone on the team is working together for the same goals. I don’t feel as worried because I know that as long as my team does well, my loss doesn’t really matter to me as much anymore.”
Track and Field + Cross Country drains you both physically and mentally and so how does that affect your mental health when you have to do this day in and day out?
‘I think my mental health has gotten better after I did cross country and track because after I run, I feel very invigorated and my brain’s at its maximum thinking capacity. I ran really hard for like 6-12 miles and it gets really tiring, but after I’m done I feel like I can do anything. Sometimes I do homework, but usually, I get a good sleep and do homework the following day. And so I feel like my mental health has generally gotten better since I’ve started running.”
Is there any parental pressure? How do you deal with it?
“There isn’t very much parental pressure. My parents are really happy that I’m doing this. My mom used to be a marathon runner and she knows how hard it is to deal with running and the hardships of it. I think that her advice has generally helped me get through a lot of my hardships when it came to running or social pressure.”
What kind of environment does your cross country team have(intense and competitive VS supportive and positive)? Which one does your track and Field team have? Which one do you thrive in?
“The thing about cross country is that we’re together for the entire school year because we have cross country, winter running, track and field, and then summer running. We get to know each other for an entire year, and as a result, we are very supportive of each other. We’re not like the other sports teams that have 1 season but it’s more like a family of sorts. We just support each other so much. Generally, I thrive in environments that are more supportive and positive. We push each other a lot when it comes to running but we’re also very supportive of each other, especially when it comes to problems with mental health. It helps very much.”
Is mental health talked about on your team? Would you like to see it talked about?
“It’s not really mental health problems. Generally, thanks to running, we’re not as mentally insecure. We’re more supportive and help each other and I feel like there isn’t a need to talk about mental health on the team since we all have it down. I know for some people, cross country can be too much for them to handle since it’s every single day for two hours. However, most of the time, people are managing it very well.”
What other external pressures affect track and field/cross country? ((1) peer pressure about college, school, and T&F in college(2) social media - athletes feel a little bit of pressure when others post about what they are doing, posting just the good days and wins)
“Generally, there is a lot of peer pressure when it comes to Track and Field and Cross Country. However, it’s very hard to get into a college through running. You need to be extremely fast and extremely good at running in order to do well and get into a college for running. If you get into a D1 school for running, you will have to devote your entire life to running. Not just a small section of your life, but devote everything to running. Generally, I feel like running would be a very good tool for college but I don’t think it's something that would get me into college personally. No, I feel more proud knowing that my team is getting recognition and I feel that even for my underclassmen, seeing them do very well and posting it on social media, makes me very happy - especially when some of the people I know become very fast and are rewarded for all their hard work. I really like it when people post about me or my team because it shows that we’re being recognized for our efforts.”
Are you comfortable talking to teammates about mental health and pressure? What types of teammates help with your mental health/wellness: examples include “keep going”?
I’m very much comfortable. As I said before, the team is very much like a family. We’re very good friends with each other and we’re willing to talk about anything with each other. I’m willing to talk about mental health with anyone on my team, especially in long-distance groups like track and field. I feel like in races, it’s really easy to lose mentally but I feel like the cheering and a lot of the stuff that my team does, helps a lot. It gives me the ability to move forward and generally, I feel like I can do it. I feel like I can move forward and complete anything. Knowing that I did well at running helps with achieving my goals in other things. If I did good at running, I can do good at everything else.”
Does your coach emphasize mental health and provide support for your mental health? Would you like to see changes?
“My coach definitely provides support for my mental health. He gives us the ability to talk to each other personally. He’s like our grandfather of sorts since he's been coaching for so many years. He allows us to talk to each other about anything and he gives us advice on what we can do and it’s very helpful. I feel like the coach, when it comes to mental health, is very well informed and helps with a lot of things. “