Circa Early 2017: Before Pickleball.
My name is Stacie. In early 2017, I was a 28-year-old single woman living in West Palm Beach, Florida, and working full-time as a business lawyer, which means that I was available 24/7/365 to help clients buy and sell businesses, enter into multi-million-dollar relationships, and otherwise make money and stay out of trouble. It is an exciting job with lots of moving parts, but, on most days, the early mornings, late nights, quick turnarounds, constant deadlines, and high stakes led me to a relentless state of stress.
Prior to being an attorney, I was an international and professional softball player striving to play in the Olympics Games. Stress came in a very different form measured in the score after 7 innings of play. But, the stress was managed simultaneously with high-level physical and mental exertion at all times. Fast forward to my desk job as an attorney, I dealt with stress in a very different way—mostly eating, rarely running, and sometimes a glass or 3 of wine. I think it goes without saying that there were definitely healthier options.
I was working all the time. I was stressed. And, I was generally unhealthy. What I haven’t mentioned so far is that I was also isolated. Transitioning from a team sport like softball, where you have a group of 15 to 20 of your best friends constantly around you, and even at times living with you, to a desk in an office alone, in a city by myself, was a challenge. I made some local friends (of course, through softball), but I really lacked a community that I could identify with and belong to.
Circa Late 2017 and Beyond: After Pickleball.
Around late 2017, I was now a 29-year-old single woman living in West Palm Beach, Florida, and working full-time as a business lawyer. I was dealing with the same constant pressure and stress. However, how I dealt with the pressure and stress completely changed. Now, my outlet at the end of a hard day or hard week was to play pickleball.
As a quick aside, I was introduced to pickleball by my parents, who had recently found the game and were constantly talking about how much fun they were having with their new friends. For those new to pickleball, pickleball—commonly described as a combination of tennis, table tennis, and badminton—is a game in which players use a paddle to hit a wiffle ball over a net, with the idea of winning a rally by being the last person or team to hit the ball over the net and within the defined court. At a rudimentary level, pickleball can be thought of as mini-tennis, but with a few unique rules, such as an underhand serve and the concept of a Non-Volley Zone (affectionately called the “Kitchen”). With that said, pickleball is easy to learn, easy to have success on the court and get relatively good quickly, cheap to play, and, most importantly, FUN!
So, after work or on the weekends in mid to late 2017, I would walk up to a pickleball court and shyly put down my gear, as I was a beginner player who did not know any of the dozens of pickleball players around the courts. Nevertheless, every time I would arrive at the pickleball courts, handfuls of strangers would introduce themselves and ask me jubilantly to play pickleball with them. No matter the day, time or which court, I always was welcomed on to the pickleball court with happy players and smiling faces.
Beyond the welcoming community, one of the real reasons I wanted to play pickleball is that it seemed like a fun option to stay in shape. When asked to play, I would grab my pickleball paddle, jump on a court, and, just before serving up the first point, I would always turn on my Apple Watch to make sure my exercise counted toward my daily steps. After an hour or two of play, with too many laughs to count, I was always pleasantly surprised to see how quickly I could burn 800+ calories. Talk about a workout!
After an hour or two of playing pickleball, I would have had a workout, laughed with friends, and really engaged with my community. This continues to be true today.
With that said, what I found by playing pickleball since 2017 is:
So, what are you waiting for? Get out there, play pickleball, and your health, wellness, and life may change, too!
After retiring early and looking to keep busy while my wife continued working I found Pickleball. Going to the local senior center to play and meet people kept me active and connected. I met awesome people from a variety of backgrounds while 25 of us waited to play on 2 courts.
Now I play almost every day in a community that embraces an active lifestyle with pickleball at the center of our athletic and social life. I continue to meet awesome people every day.
I tell people that Pickleball was a gift given to me for the next phase of my life.
I was retired 5 years and becoming lonelier by the day…. until I discovered Pickleball! I now “workout” (play Pball) 3x a week. It has become a priority. It is wonderful to engage with others who enjoy the game and don’t take themselves too seriously. There’s always an opportunity to laugh at ourselves and each other while trying to score points.
Thanks for a great article. I’m 51 and found pickleball a little over a year ago. I love all the folks I’ve met on court. Pickleball has been one of my daily ways to get some exercise. That, along with some changes to my diet, have led to a 75 pound weight loss. I’ve gone from a size 20/22 to a 10/12. Pickleball has definitely helped change my life!
Great article Stacie I can absolutely relate. Especially to the isolation after leaving the softball community. Hope to catch up with you sometime soon on a Pickleball court somewhere!
I agree! I Started playing in June 2019 and quickly became addicted met a lot of new friends have fun played outdoors in the summer indoors in the fall It kept my weight down and my diabetes in check
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Life lessons come from all places – even unexpected places, like the pickleball court.
If you’re anything like me, you have probably learned a lot about yourself and about life on the pickleball court (plus, you have had a ton of fun!). In this new Pickler pickleball blog series, I will share some of the most important lessons that I have learned through playing pickleball.
Now, let’s dive right in to pickleball lesson #1…
Stacie Townsend
Author