On Health with Houston Methodist
On Health with Houston Methodist is for the health conscious, curious and even skeptics out there. Each week, our hosts are joined by a Houston Methodist expert to explore an everyday wellness trend or significant health topic.
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On Health with Houston Methodist
Rec Leagues: The Case for Playing Sports as an Adult
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Recreational team sports aren’t just for kids. In fact, 50% of young adults say they either play in a rec sports league or are interested in joining one. If you’re wondering what all the fuss is about, we break down why it’s never too late to play, how to get started and tips for avoiding injuries as you get back into the game.
Expert: Dr. Vijay Jotwani, sports medicine physician
Notable topics covered:
- Mental health and social benefits of playing sports as an adult
- The underappreciated physical benefits of exercise, from heart health to balance
- How to safely return to sports if it’s been a while since you last played
- Choosing the right sport based on your age and fitness level
- Why sports like pickleball and ultimate frisbee are so popular
- Injury prevention tips for adult athletes
- Stretching, warmups and cooldowns explained
- Hydration and nutrition tips for game days
- How accountability and community keep people moving long-term
If you enjoy these kinds of conversations, be sure to subscribe. And for more topics like this, visit our blog at houstonmethodist.org/blog.
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ZACH MOORE:Welcome to On Health with Houston Methodist. I'm Zach Moore, I'm a photographer and editor here, and I'm also a longtime podcaster.
KATIE MCCALLUM:I'm Katie McCallum, former researcher turned health writer, mostly writing for our blogs.
ZACH:And Katie, do you play recreational sports?
KATIE:I have in the past. In fact, I played with you most recently.
ZACH:We did.
KATIE:Yeah. We did an indoor soccer league. It was mostly coworkers. ZACH: Yes. Work adjacent soccer league. Yeah, and it's -- I will say, I think, I mean, aside from that I counted it as my workout every single day, I think my actual favorite part about it was getting to, like, be around coworkers in a way that's totally different than work and we can kind of bond over something else.
ZACH:Right. KATIE: It was really fun. Team building, literally,'cause you're a soccer team.
KATIE:Yeah, we are a soccer team, that's true.
ZACH:I've played sports on and off my whole life. I think, you know, when we're kids, most kids, either from school and physical education class, or little leagues and things like that, you've played on a sports team before, right? And as you age though, you get into college, you play intramurals.
KATIE:You age out of --
ZACH:And then you're like, "What do you do now? I'm an adult and I still wanna play." So, you know, recreational sports leagues are a huge deal these days. And we're fortunate that we live in Houston and there's so many options for us here. And I've played, you know, soccer, I've played baseball for several years, and then, you know, you get together with friends and you play and so, you know, it's been a big part of my life, sports. I mean, I'm a sports fan so. And there's just something about playing it as well, especially with friends, as a social aspect, so there's a lot to it. KATIE: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I think, especially the rec leagues it's a good way to kind of keep that, like, joy in exercise. My workout routine can start to feel like a grind sometimes. But, like, you get excited to go play a game. So yeah, I've really enjoyed it. So, who did we talk to today, Zach, about adult rec leagues? We talked to Dr. Vijay Jotwani, he is a Sports Medicine Physician here at Houston Methodist, and he tells us what we can expect from recreational sports and ourselves as we age. All right, well thank you so much for being on the podcast today with us, Dr. Jotwani.
DR. VIJAY JOTWANI:Yeah great, great to be here, thanks.
ZACH:So, you know, for a lot of us, sports leagues are a part of growing up, right? You play baseball, soccer, etcetera. And, you know, when you're in junior high or high school, you know, sometimes you're on the school team, sometimes you're not, but you know, you can join private sports leagues. I myself played Little League baseball for a few years. But then, you know, you go into college, right? And then if you're not a cream of the crop athlete but you still wanna be, you still have that love for the game, right? And you like that camaraderie of being on a team, playing sports together, you seek out, you know, intramurals, right, to play with together. So, by the way, did you play any sports growing up?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, I mean, the nice thing is I got a little mix of sports. I was never a very great athlete but had a lot of fun playing soccer. I was a gymnast through high school, got in to doing some weightlifting, you know, work outs with friends and, stuff to keep you active. I mean, it's just so good for you in so many ways. It's nice to have a variety of things to choose from, right?
ZACH:Absolutely, right. So then, you know, you get to the age where you wanna keep doing that, right? You're past your college years, your young adulthood, middle age, etcetera, it's a little less obvious where you should go, what you should do, but we've had a surge in the United States in interest in recreational sports. So I have a few stats here. So, over the past five years or so there's been resurgence in this. 19% of adults play team sports today as opposed to only 11% back in 2020. So, interest itself has risen as well. 24% of adults today saying they're likely to join a recreational sports league, and that's up from only 20% back in 2023. And so, to break those numbers down even further by demographics, 31% of Millennials and 47% of Gen Z say they're interested in recreational sports like that, right? And then SPORTSKIND, which is kind of a major sports league organizer here in Houston, they have leagues with over 50,000 participants, 3,000 teams, and that's just a small percentage of the population here. We have 2.5 million people, you extrapolate that out there are hundreds of thousands of people playing recreational sports here in Houston. So, all that to say, as we get into it here, what are your thoughts on, you know, overall on adults seeking out or participating in these activities?
DR. JOTWANI:I mean, I love to hear it, right? We want to encourage that active lifestyle. Really, if there's anything in health that you can do to better yourself for the long-term to prevent illness it's to live an active lifestyle. And if that includes finding something that's fun and enjoyable for you with team sports we love to hear that, so. And we see this, you know, across the board too with -- if you look at road races and all the different 5Ks and 10Ks, and how the marathon in Houston has grown. It's amazing to see people outside, playing more sports, finding something they like, whether it's soccer, or pickleball, or running. We love to see it, so we would definitely wanna encourage all of that.
ZACH:Absolutely. And, you know, in addition to, you know, the wellness, to exercise, the love of the game, as I mentioned, right? You know, there's the social part of it, right? And, you know, in my opinion a lot of this, at least this current resurgence, ties intro this post-pandemic world we're living in, right? We were so isolated and we're seeking out, now, human connection because, you know, the pendulum had shifted so far one way we're coming back the other way. And people wanna literally get back out there, right?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, absolutely. And then there's all kinds of benefits that come with that. There's the whole social aspect, meeting people, having that joy of interacting with others. It's good for people's mental health, too, to be in those group environments and have a chance to be outside in the sunlight and play some sports, interact with other people that have a shared interest. So, so many good things to say about all this activity happening around Houston.
ZACH:Yeah, and you know, that's why, you know, when you're younger that's a big reason your parents put you in these sorts of things, right?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah.
ZACH:For social interaction, and you get to learn teamwork. You know, there's so many factors, right? Tangibles and intangibles.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, you know, as a dad I never really pushed or expected my kids to go into professional or collegiate sports, but if we could build a love of different activities, give them some ways that they might enjoy working out later in life, that was really what I hoped for and I think some of that's coming to fruition. I see my kids doing all kinds of different things and, you know, we see it across these generations. People outside swimming and doing other things so it's great to see.
ZACH:Yeah so, you know, all sports are not, you know, created equal when it comes to physical activity, and if someone is looking to, you know, join a league, looking for that exercise, that workout component that's the most beneficial to their health, what are some of your top recommendations for, you know, you should really sign up for this?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, it really depends where you're starting, you know? I'm always happy to hear from, you know, 70-year-old, who's looking to start to get active and reverse some of, maybe their trends of inactivity in the past. And we might just start with getting out for a walk at the park in the morning and building up from there. On the other hand, someone who's just out of college looking for something to get involved with, we'd love for them to reconnect with some of the sports of their childhood and maybe join a recreational soccer league. Some of those leagues can be pretty intense. So the key is that you're building yourself up slowly, you're listening to your body, you're not pushing yourself too hard at the beginning. The last thing we want is you show up on day one, go all out, but then end up sore for a week and missing the follow up practices and events. We want you to be able to build up, feel good during it. You just need to listen to your body and follow, kind of, a progression back into activity if you haven't done that sport for a while.
ZACH:That's a great point about pacing yourself because I was in a recreational soccer league not too long ago and, you know, we started the season, I would just go, like, all out so much. And then a lot of these leagues, you know, you play two games a night when you play and then I was totally spent for the second game. So, you just get, like you said, listen to your body and learn. Learn to pace yourself.
DR. JOTWANI:And there's some good athletes out there so be ready for some competition, so.
ZACH:You know, we're out there just having a good time. You're run into people they think they're, you know, trying out for the Olympic team sometimes. You never know. But no, it's good to -- It's just -- It's -- Sports is such a community thing, it brings people together from all walks of life, you know? That's what you find.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, sports really transcends so much, brings people together that wouldn't normally be together. And you know, playing sports, cheering for sports, it's just a really great world for me to have a little piece in.
ZACH:Yeah. So, I wanted to talk specifically, just for a couple minutes, about the couple of these that have gone viral over the last few years, Ultimate Frisbee and pickleball. Do you have thoughts on these, and why they've become so popular so quickly?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah. I think one of the great things about both of those is that they're easy to pick up and do. The rules aren't super complicated. Most people can learn to toss a frisbee, most people can grab that pickleball paddle and hit the wiffle ball and you have a lot of beginners playing so it's nice to, you know, get involved in something that other people aren't just passing you by with. So, I think they're great activities. So, I'm really pleased to see more and more people out there playing both of those.
ZACH:I think that's a great point too, about how it's kinda new to everybody, right? I mean, so it's intimidating to walk onto a soccer field when someone's been playing for 20 years as opposed to,"Hey, I picked up pickleball last summer we're figuring it all out together." Right, there's still that community learning kind of bonding as well.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, I think you can find all kinds of levels. I've also seen professional pickleball players here in Houston and what they can do on the court is amazing. But then you have a nice mix of people of all ages and you can find a game that works for you. So, it's a great sport to see out there. Interestingly, it's been around for a long time. I played pickleball thanks to a great middle school gym teacher that introduced it to me in 90s. And I remember it because it was one of the most fun things I ever did in gym class so I never forgot it. And to see it get popular now is great. It is just so much fun to play for most people too.
ZACH:I mean, hey, credit to your gym teacher for being ahead of the curve. Right, seeing that coming. I remember -- Again talking about the community aspect and keeping that going. So many fond memories of gym class back in the day. Four square, or kick ball, or any of these sorts of things and it just -- There's that intangibility to it that keeps that youthful energy alive, I think, as we continue to play all these things.
DR. JOTWANI:I agree. I mean, playing kickball, those were big days in elementary school, so to be able to do some of that now there's nothing wrong with that, that's really fun and good activity.
ZACH:Absolutely. So, you know, there are a lot of, we're talking some intangibles there, but there are a lot of tangible things as well, you know, like your heart, lung, cardiovascular, muscle growth, all those sort of things, right? Dexterity.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, absolutely. So, you know, taking a jog? Great exercise, starts to build your heart, improve your aerobic capacity, great for your cardiovascular health, and then you add in soccer where you're now running and kicking a soccer ball at the same time. And it builds proprioception and other neurologic, you know, skills for you, it really helps you with balance, avoiding falls in the future. So, as you add in these different sports the health benefits just continue to, you know, add to that list.
ZACH:Yeah, and, you know, focusing on adult recreational sports here. When we say adult, you know, past your college years, I guess, is what I mean by that. So, let's talk about the approach we should take, you know, as we get older because we can't go, you know, "as hard in the paint" as they say, as you used to be able to. What can we expect? And everyone is different, obviously, but, you know, in general how can we expect our bodies to react and perform?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah. I think, you know, again I would say the key is to build up slowly. Know your body, listen to your body. And I think one of the things we used to get away with as kids is just go out, play a certain sport repetitively over and over for hours. I think you're gonna need to balance that as an adult with some focused strengthening, some injury prevention. That might include, you know, doing some stretching after exercise, doing a little bit of strength training, like core strength training, glute strength training as a way to help avoid injuries, right? You know, the last thing you want is you get on the basketball court for the first time in a while you pop an Achilles. Now, you're talking about something that's -- You're gonna be able to make it through, but it's gonna take a lot of attention and medical care to deal with. We wanna try to avoid those and that's gonna involve going in with good strength overall, flexibility, you know, making sure you're also paying attention to your body and doing a little bit of that work on the side to go along with the recreational sports that you wanna play.
ZACH:Yeah, you can't just show up on game day and think you're ready to go, right? You mentioned jogging a few times, like, that's a great point too. Don't be intimidated by,"Oh, I'm gonna play soccer." And I'm like, "You know what? Just start ramping up to it," right?"And then, your body is more prepared when it is come time to play the game."
DR. JOTWANI:Exactly. And find something that's fun that you wanna stick with, right? We want something that's gonna keep you out there, keep you physically active continuously. Right?
ZACH:Yeah. And there is that, you know, that social pressure that'll keep you going too, because if all your friends are on the team you don't wanna let your friends down, your teammates down, you're gonna show up at the game more so than you might show up at the gym if you're having a long day and it's... I know me, personally, that's the first thing I drop if I'm busy."Oh, exercise? I don't have time today." But when all your friends are sitting there waiting on you at the field you gotta show up, right?
DR. JOTWANI:Exactly.
ZACH:Now, you did mention stretching and what kind of -- What's a good, just, general, like, how long should you stretch before a game? And then how, you know, you mentioned after games too. Cool downs, I don't think cool downs are something people really think about when just playing recreational sports but should they?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, I mean, I think the stretching question's a good one and one that I get all of the time. I think the things to know about stretching are that initial stretch, when you start to lean forward and stretch your hamstrings, your calves, they actually cause a little bit of muscle contraction. So, that brief stretch less than 20 seconds, less than 30 seconds it's a nice way to just warm up the muscle a little bit. But to really stretch the fibers of the muscle and the tendons, that involves stretching longer than 30 and 45 seconds. And so, holding that stretch for a prolonged period that'll actually stretch those tendons. So, if you really wanna avoid an Achilles issue, you're dealing with some plantar fasciitis, you wanna hold those stretches longer, and the best time to do those stretches are after you're done exercising.
ZACH:Okay.
DR. JOTWANI:So again, that short, brief stretching kind of nice -- it's a nice warm up activity, but if you're trying to manage something and really get a good stretch then you're gonna hold that stretch for more than 40 seconds. And you're gonna typically wanna do that after exercise, and that can be a nice way to cool down.
ZACH:Mm-hmm.
DR. JOTWANI:I think cool downs can include some of that stretching. It can also include other recovery techniques. Some dynamic movements. If you really had a tough workout you might get in an ice bath as a way to really bring the inflammation levels down. Help you avoid some of that soreness that might kick in for a couple days afterwards.
ZACH:Mm-hmm. These are great, great tips. So, a hot bath maybe, hot tub too?
DR. JOTWANI:You know, heat's nice to help loosen up a tight muscle and so that can be a useful part as well, but I would almost say ice. Cool is best after an exercise to really bring that muscle inflammation down.
ZACH:Okay, great, great. And, you know, speaking of water, right, while you're playing, it can get intense, you know, depending on the sport, obviously. You're probably sweating a lot, you're perspiring a lot of liquid. Assuming that water is the number one choice to rehydrate.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, yeah. I think for most people it's all about water, and it's about keeping that up as you go. Staying hydrated, super important, especially, in Houston with the humidity and heat that we have. And we see a lot of people just not feeling good after exercise, struggling to recover because they didn't hydrate well. I think for the most part water, you can definitely mix in a sports drink here and there as well. Although nothing wrong with that, but for most people water is the key.
ZACH:Yeah, just don't make sports drinks the primary hydration source, right?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, probably a lot of unnecessary calories there. But really if you're out for long endurance activities, marathon training, things like that, getting a little bit of those electrolytes in would also be smart.
ZACH:Excellent. You know, speaking of calories, right, talk a little bit about meals, you know, so. Pre-game, post-game, like, what is a good meal recommendation just in general to, you know, fuel you up, but not you know, fill you up. And then also, on the other end, what should you eat after? You know, 'cause "Hey, we all played the game, we won, we're all excited let's go celebrate," that sort of thing. But you don't wanna negate all the work you did, all those calories you've burned. So, any thoughts on that?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah. I mean, I think it's a good -- it's important to have a good balance of both carbohydrates and proteins, really. So, having some protein into your system after a long workout is an important thing to allow some of that body building to take place. And then, making sure you have some carbohydrates in your system before exercise, also important to keep that energy level up, keep you running along the soccer pitch so you can keep up with your teammates. But it's really about having balance. I think for most people you don't need to get too into the details of, you know, grams of protein, things like that. I think if you just have a nice, varied plate with some green vegetables, side of carbohydrates, a good lean protein, that's gonna make for a great meal always. And you do wanna separate a little bit of time from that big meal intake to when you're playing. You know, you'll certainly feel poorly if you have a big dinner or barbeque and then jump out onto the soccer pitch, you know, immediately after. So really with the professional athletes that we work with we're typically doing the pre-game meal three and a half to four hours before the game. So, you might think about spacing that out.
ZACH:Yeah, you know, you mentioned swimming earlier, is it still that 30 minute rule before you go swimming after you have a meal?
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, I would say that's probably a smart idea overall, especially if you're gonna have an intense swimming workout.
ZACH:Awesome, awesome. So, you know, we mentioned pacing yourself out, recovery days, that sort of thing, again everybody's different, right? But as a general, you know, how much is maybe too much of this and how much is not enough? Because we don't wanna, like, overestimate how much exercise we're getting playing these recreational sports.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, I mean everyone's gonna be a little bit different here too, right? So, it's about building yourself up. I think in general having a recovery day in between any kind of hard exercise day is a good idea. So, if you're going every other day that might be very reasonable, but everyone's a little different. So, you just have to build yourself up steadily.
ZACH:Well, to wrap up any final thoughts you have for the listeners who are currently playing recreational sports or are thinking about it, any last advice to give them?
DR. JOTWANI:I mean, I would say if you can find something that you enjoy, that gets you motivated to be out there, take advantage of that. Dive in, enjoy it. There's just so many benefits on your body for your health in the long-term, plus hopefully a lot of great social benefits, mental health benefits and others. And then, if something does come up, you know, just consult a good sports medicine team provider that you have access to so they can give you the right guidance to get you back out there and keep you exercising.
ZACH:Oh, thank you. And, you mentioned mental there as well. I think, you know, we default to the physical benefits of this but also, you know, I've seen it, like, it can really help improve your mental sharpness as well.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, absolutely. Your brain functions better, can concentrate better after you've had physical activity. So this is great if you're going to school too. This will help you concentrate, will help you get that boost to go through maybe some nighttime work that you have if you had a little exercise before that. And it's great for mental health, managing depression and anxiety. It's a very proven treatment there to be physically active, to exercise. So take advantage of that.
ZACH:Yeah. So we're very fortunate again. We're the in the fourth largest city in the country, there's so many opportunities for you to join recreational sports leagues or even smaller things like swimming, jogging, that sort of thing you can do on your own. Either building up towards those team sports or just, you know, maintaining yourself moving forward. So, exciting times, exciting opportunities. Thanks so much for being on the podcast today.
DR. JOTWANI:Yeah, appreciate you having me.
ZACH:So Katie, I know you said it had been a while since you played in a recreational sports league, but after hearing this conversation, are you inspired to join one again?
KATIE:I think I am, actually.
ZACH:Okay.
KATIE:Indoor soccer, again, since I'm familiar with it, sounds nice. However, I will say I like that you guys brought up how playing something that's more new to everyone can have its benefits. So, maybe trying like, pickleball, finally, or something like that where everyone's, not everyone, but a lot of people are kind of newcomers to the sport.
ZACH:Mm-hmm.
KATIE:My one hang up with the indoor soccer league we played in last was there were a lot of people who were really good at soccer, even in these rec leagues. So, I kinda got caught off guard and was playing against some guys that are very good, and I'm pretty competitive.
ZACH:Yes.
KATIE:I ramped up too fast, which Dr. Jotwani warned against, and I did do that because I ended up kind of hurting my hamstring a little bit.
ZACH:Well no, that's a huge factor because as you said when you were a kid, you know, you can go out there, you can go 110%.
KATIE:Oh yeah.
ZACH:When you get older you can't do that anymore. I mean, you might be able to for a while, at some point, you know, something's gonna happen if you don't properly, you know, stretch, prepare, that sort of thing. I am a huge culprit of not stretching...
KATIE:Yeah.
ZACH:Before these things'cause I'm like,"I don't know, I feel fine. I'll just run out there." No, not gonna work out for you in the long-term.
KATIE:Yeah. Yeah, definitely. I'm glad you guys talked about the ramping up slowly. You kinda can't go from never sprinting around an indoor soccer field to sprinting around for two games a night, sometimes back-to-back, with people who have been playing since they were probably like 12 and never stopped. So yeah, that was a good reminder that making sure the league you're playing in fits your current fitness level. Good point. But -- I, you know, I think one of my favorite things, and we talked about this in the beginning, is what I like about it is that it's fun to do. It's a fun way to exercise, it's a fun way to be around people and exercise. It gives you something to do with your friends. You don't have to just go, like,"Hey, let's go to a bar later." It's like, "Oh no, I'm gonna see you at our game," and that's like a way healthier way to approach socialization. So I'm glad y'all talked about that too.
ZACH:Yes, beyond just the physical but the mental, emotional, the community components, right. And, you know, going to the gym sometimes it can feel like,"Man, I know I should, ugh." But the accountability of having a team of other people, your friends who are counting on you to show up, because they need you on the team or you don't show up you gotta forfeit a game.
KATIE:Exactly, yeah. I think the accountability part is huge. There's nothing like, sort of, having some, a commitment that, you know, you will feel -- you will feel the repercussions of canceling as opposed to being, "Oh, I didn't make it to the gym today because I was really busy." You can talk yourself through that really easily.
ZACH:I have, I often do unfortunately, yes.
KATIE:Yeah, and I think missing a game, letting people down, it's a huge motivator, for sure.
ZACH:Yeah, like we mentioned, we played on a soccer team together. Truth be told, I'm not the best soccer player in the world.
KATIE:I don't think any of us were to be honest.
ZACH:Fair enough, but I am a pretty good softball player, so if we do a softball league, watch out world,'cause I'm gonna be one of the best players on that team.
KATIE:I can do softball with you.
ZACH:All right, stay tuned listeners.[Laughing] All right, well that's gonna do it for us this time on, On Health with Houston Methodist. Be sure to share, like, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. We drop episodes Tuesday mornings. So until next time, stay tuned and stay healthy.♪ ♪