5 Ways to Stay Sane During Training Camp

By: Diana Holmes

A drop of sweat trickles down a knit brow to the tip of the nose and slowly drops on the grass between a pair of shoes. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale. Huge, deep breaths to regain any sort of breath composure...That's me running after my son in the month of August because I'm out of shape. And you thought I was doing a clever, lyrical depiction of what my husband goes through at training camp, haha.

Training camp is one of the most physically and mentally exhausting parts of football season--for both player and family. So I decided to put a list together of things to do during this next month.

• Work Out! Stay sane and get those endorphins pumping with a nice workout. This one is tough for a lot of the moms out there because of the whole 'no babysitter' thing but even going for a run with the stroller can change your whole mentality. I usually go running when I'm having a bad day and it helps to clear my busy mind. In the famous words of Elle Woods, "Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don't shoot their husbands, they just don't. " So there's that.
• Build Friendships. Admit it or not, we all morph into homebodies during the season. It seems like plans always get made and canceled because we don't get much time with our guys during season, so we try and capitalize on any we can get. Take training camp as an opportunity to build your friendships or make new ones. Dinner, wine tasting, play-dates--whatever!
• Work Towards A Goal. Set a goal for yourself to achieve. Plan to run a race at the end of the month, join a book club, or declutter your house. The options are really quite endless. You'll keep busy while working towards something that will empower your self-confidence.
• Support, Support, Support!I always get an attitude during camp because it's always frustrating. Andre is exhausted and never has much time to talk. If you're in the same state, you maybe see each other once a week--not to mention all the added stress they experience. It takes a toll on the relationship so this one is the hardest for me. Send care packages, inspirational quotes, Bible verses--anything helps.

Our significant others and their teammates will spend the next four weeks improving their skills and pushing themselves to better their craft. Why shouldn't we do the same?

God has NO limitations…

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Expecting

If you are anything like me (a hopeful and expectant person), then you have more than likely arrived to a place in your life where you are truly believing God to manifest some things for you in the natural. Now, these are not just any little things...NO they are the things that we have been asking and praying and hoping for, for quite some time now. They are the things that we really can’t share with everyone, because we might actually sound crazy if we said them out loud. They are the things that appear in the natural to be absolutely impossible, so much so, that they keep us up at night. You know...those things that we have tried to accomplish over and over again, but we have yet to achieve. I am even speaking about those things that have isolated us and separated us from other people. Simply put, they are the things that we have held near and dear to our hearts…

…and yet, they are the very things that we have allowed to LIMIT God and all that He can and wants do in our lives…

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Limitations

I am so remorsefully guilty for doing this…I start out believing with great expectations, and when life happens, I allow my expectations to transform into limitations. Limiting God in my mind by letting my thoughts go wild and crazy. Limiting God in my heart by settling for what comes fast and easy. Limiting God in my prayers by accepting the notion that “the sky is the limit." I begin to set unrealistic timeframes out of impatience and desperation, as if God is not the author of time. I make suggestions to God on whom He should use, how He should use them, and why he should use them, as if He is not the creator of the earth. I start to doubt the reason why I even began to expect some things from God in the very first place, as if He didn’t give me those desires and placed them in my heart. Listen, God has NO limits! He is not limited to the things we see, the way we feel, or even the life we’ve lived!

Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding. He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Isaiah 40:28-29 NLT

Reading this scripture speaks directly to my heart, and it lets me know that we can not possibly fathom the things God can do and will use to answer our prayers, to exceed our expectations, to bring healing to our bodies, to deliver a loved one, to make a barren womb fruitful, or to even fight for us. God is such a good good father! He cares about the things we care about. He is interested in the things we are interested in. He knows our limitations but He is not moved by them….He sees what we are up against but He will never let it overcome us!!! Look, I don’t know what you have been waiting on God to do in your life, but I want to encourage you to never give up on God. He knows exactly what He is doing. God has been God a very long time, you can trust Him with your most ridiculous prayers! He is crazy faithful and watches over every word to perform it! If He said it in His word, He will do it!

In closing, I want to encourage you right where you are….with everything you are believing or at one point in your life once believed. God is more than able! He does not give the way this world gives, so get into a posture of renewing your mind about your limitations. And if you have been waiting for what seems like such a long time, let me assure you that God can, and He will make up for all of your lost time. He knows how to get you to where you need to be, in the time that you need to be there…His timing is so perfect. Be inspired my lady, to pray prayers that scare the things that are scaring you, to pray prayers that overcome the things that appear to be overcoming you, to pray prayers that stop the things that are stopping you, to pray prayers that attack the very things that are attacking you and your family, and to pray prayers that limit the things that are limiting you!!! I dare you, no I double dare you to go beyond the sky in your prayer life!!! Pray like you have never prayed before and just let God be God!!

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No Limits

Stay encouraged!! Keep your eyes on where your help comes from….the good Lord! He will strengthen you and help you! The enemy’s weapons will never prosper. Even when the enemy comes in like a flood in your life, trying to wash away all your hope, all your joy, all your trust, all of your patience, and all your faith….Our God will build a mighty mighty standard against him, he shall never prevail!!!! Until next time, I want to leave you with two scriptures to hide in your hearts when you feel your expectations are becoming limitations…

Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord. Psalm 27:14 AMP

I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe in him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also the world to come. Ephesians 1:19-21 NLT

Keep on believing and never stop until you receive it!!! The sky is NOT your limit...I will be praying for you!!!

Featured WAG: Katie Levitre

Down to Earth, gorgeous, ambitious, genuine; ½ of a dynamic duo is Katie Levitre; former sideline reporter, Bills cheerleader and wife of Andy Levitre, offensive lineman for the Atlanta Falcons.  If you haven’t met Katie, then you are in for a real treat as we chatted about everything from how she met her husband (“love at 2nd sight”) to what she is passionate about (hint, her family and empowering other NFL WAGS).

Name: Katie Levitre

Husband/Team(s): Andy Levitre/ Atlanta Falcons (formerly the Tennessee Titans & Buffalo Bills)

What #hashtag describes you best?

#multihyphenate

"A large percentage of us don’t work outside of the home because of how much we move, so we don’t have something outside of marriage and children to call our own. I am definitely lucky that Andy always goes out of his way to make sure I am comfortable and made to feel just as important as he is, regardless of the situation. Having someone like him as my husband can make this hard transition a lot easier. I have always been a career driven, independent woman and Andy still treats me like one." Katie Levitre

Who is Katie?  Where are you originally from and how did you get to where are now?

I was born and raised in Buffalo, New York.  Since I was a little girl I knew I wanted to be a journalist, specifically a broadcast journalist.  I am passionate about writing and speaking and have always been comfortable performing in front of large groups of people.  I graduated #1 in my journalism class from Buffalo State College and immediately pursued my career.  I started with an internship at the local NBC station then freelanced for an entertainment website run by the Buffalo News.  I moved on to sideline reporting for Time Warner Sports for a year.  In early 2013 I was up for a full-time reporting job at one of the top 3 news stations at the same time Andy was ready to move back to California for his first off-season as a free agent.   When he asked me to move with him, I had to make a decision that I knew would affect the rest of my life.  I was deciding between love and my career.   I knew the NFL lifestyle wouldn’t be conducive to my life as a journalist.  In the end I know I made the right decision by choosing Andy.  It’s easy to think about what life could have been if I had chosen to follow my dreams, but no part of me regrets my decision.  If I had to do it all again, I would choose love every time.  

How did you meet your Husband?

Andy and I met at a children’s toy drive hosted by the Buffalo Bills.  It was his rookie year playing Left Guard for the Bills and my rookie year as a Buffalo Bills cheerleader.   We spoke briefly at the event but there was no romantic spark (and thank God, or I would have been kicked off the squad!).   Two years after we met, he walked into the bar I was bartending at in college and we both got that butterflies in the tummy, hearts in the eyes feeling.  We think of it like love at second sight.  There is something so beautiful about timing.  We were both in such a stable place when we met the second time around, it was almost as if fate wanted us to wait a little while to really find our soul mate.

Tell us about your day to day?

I am a big spin fan!  They have a great place in Atlanta here called Flywheel and the instructors are amazing.  I finally understand what people mean when they say they get “addicted” to a workout.  After spin, I run a lot of errands and take care of our house(s).   I am a dedicated mommy to two French Bulldogs and as anyone with a Frenchie knows, they are quite high maintenance!   I also love to cook, which you can imagine is quite enticing to an Offensive Lineman! ;)

What’s your game plan when adjusting to a new city?

I am in the process of trying to downsize everything!  Andy and I have lived in 4 states in the past 3 years.  My usual game plan was to pack 3,000 bags and hope I had enough.  But now I am trying to get rid of things I don’t need so I can alleviate some stress when we go back and forth to our home in California during the off-season.  When it comes to making new friends and feeling at home in a new city, it definitively isn’t always easy.  Each football city has been totally different for us.  I remember my first year dating Andy in Buffalo, some of the veteran’s wives told me that they don’t give new girls or girlfriends the time of day because they don’t know whether they’re going to be around for long.  I remember thinking how sad that was! But, now I sort of get it.  I will ALWAYS be welcoming and kind to new people but it can be so hard to find friends that you absolutely love only to have one of you leave the next year.   In a sense it’s like starting your social life over from scratch every year, not to mention if you’re like us and live in another state in the off-season.   Sometimes you just have to take it one day at a time and do your best to make this crazy life feel normal.   I’ve been blessed to meet some really incredible people along the way.

What are some of the challenges of being married to an NFL player and what do you like about it?

I think when some people find out you’re married to a man in the NFL they automatically think your husband must be cheating or constantly followed around by women.  It may be true for a small portion of the league but for the majority of us- that is definitely not the case. To be honest, its not the women at all- it’s the grown men that are big football fans!! Haha! I joke that I could be standing next to Andy naked and if a guy finds out he plays football they wouldn’t even notice me!  In all seriousness though, it can be easy to feel like you’ve lost a big part of your identity.  A large percentage of us don’t work outside of the home because of how much we move, so we don’t have something outside of marriage and children to call our own.   I am definitely lucky that Andy always goes out of his way to make sure I am comfortable and made to feel just as important as he is, regardless of the situation.  Having someone like him as my husband can make this hard transition a lot easier.  I have always been a career driven, independent woman and Andy still treats me like one.

What are you passionate about?

My family is my greatest love.  I love being a wife, a dog mom, a daughter, sister & daughter-in-law. There is nothing more important to me than the people who surround me.  Something else I’ve been passionate about lately is giving not only myself, but also every woman in the NFL a chance to stand on her own.    I want to be known as Katie Levitre, not “Andy’s Levitre’s wife” or “the football player’s wife” and I know other women feel the same.   Solely identifying as someone’s wife or someone’s mother is not AT ALL a bad thing, but I want to give women a chance to have something outside of the home to call their own if that is what they want.   People outside of professional sports don’t understand that its not glitz and glam; women have to leave their families, friends, homes and careers to support their significant others.   In every city and on every team we’ve been on at least 5 women have told me that they wish they could work but “no one wants to hire someone for 5 months of the year.”  So, I’m making moves to try to change that.  I recently spoke with someone from the NFLPA about helping women find companies that would be interested in hiring us in the cities we live in during the season.  After all, we are a league full of intelligent, hardworking and mature women!  

Tell us about your babies, the bulldogs!

Awww, my babies! They are amazing!  I got Titan right after Andy got signed with Tennessee, hence the name.  We had to find a dog that could travel in a plane with us and Andy and I both didn’t want anything too fluffy.  We were deciding between a French Bulldog and a Pug- until we heard that pugs eyes can pop out when they get too excited!  We found Titan (who is blue with tan paws and a white chest) in Dallas.  Four months later, I had puppy fever all over again and Andy surprised me for Christmas with a little black and tan Frenchie puppy.  I always wanted to name a little girl Olive, but Andy wasn’t in to naming a human baby after a food- haha! So, my little black puppy became my Olive.  They are my only children for now and I spoil them accordingly!

Love it!  Now for something a little less rigorous; a fun question for you:

What do you do in your home that no one else can do?  Lights, Camera, Action!

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"JUST" a Wife?

Despite what you see on TV and on the blogs, most of the women in the NFL are educated, dedicated and driven. They run their husband’s foundations, their own businesses and they hold down their families like I’ve never seen before. They aren’t all stay at home moms either.  There are some women that work full time and others (like myself) who chose not to move with their men and instead make the decision to continue their education. When my now husband first began his NFL  journey, we were uncertain of his longevity and his future.  He went undrafted and after a season ending injury during his senior year- it wasn’t until 8 months after the draft that he got the call to play again. At the time, it didn't feel like it was in my best interest to move with him so I stayed in Texas.

Staying in Texas was a hard decision- a decision that I made for three straight seasons.  During those three seasons; I worked full time, had a baby, earned a Masters degree and got married.  And after every major life change, I still made the decision to stay (where I was).  There were people who called me selfish and said that I would “miss out on being an NFL wife” and that “men of this caliber want their women to stay home.”  They speculated about his fidelity and the strength of our relationship and because of this, I often felt anxious and uncertain. 

It was never easy but, we trusted each other and knew ourselves. We both had dreams and goals before we met one other and respected the other enough to pursue those goals together and apart. I often wanted to miss those early morning flights home after a late night playoff game—but in retrospect, I’m glad I didn’t.

I’ve met many women around the league who work full time, went to graduate school, law school and even medical school.  These women are teachers, reporters and photographers.  Many do not make those moves across the country for 1-year deals or uncertain contracts.  Some live in their home towns until after training camp to be sure their man is on the final roster.  But, in the end we are all sacrificing something to make sure our families are "set" for the future and that is whether you are a stay at home mom or a career women.  There is not one "cookie cutter" way to be a supportive wife and mother and because of THAT, we should never feel guilty.