Basketball is an ultra-competitive, physical contact sport. But there's also that mental toughness that is required to strategize on how to outplay your opponent. It also serves as a good model on being able to play with your colleagues and making sure to adjust your game accordingly so that the team as a whole gathers the win (and learns graciously in defeat).
I want to know with our fellow HN people here, what other physical activity serves as your outlet and why.
Thanks,
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is a great sport, not only for the physical activity, but also as it requires constant learning and humbles you very quickly.
You learn to let go of your ego, regularly getting tapped out by smaller people, including women, and forces you to reflect on your mistakes and learn from them.
I feel as though it is equivalent to a real-life RPG, where you're constantly grinding and gaining experience and gaining abilities to take down better opponents. It's also a ton of fun and stress reliever after a long day at work.
It's always interesting to see the dynamic at the beginning of class where everyone is significantly more quiet, as compared to after several rounds of hard rolling and submissions. Everyone is in a great mood and talking to each other about how they were caught in an impressive and sneaky choke or asking for open criticism from others.
I feel as though this has translated well in my professional life, realizing that situations are not as bad and I believe and can take a step back, relax, and assess the best course of action.
Highly recommend giving it a shot if you want to be challenged to an extreme and learn every single day.
My physical activity is bicycle-riding. I don't do it recreationally much, but intentionally got rid of my car in order to force me to ride a bike, to ensure that I get enough routine exercise.