Training for the Call That Might Never Come

Nobody talks about this part. Everybody loves the story when the phone finally rings and the flight gets booked and your dream is officially back on.

But what about the weeks when your phone is silent and the only thing you’re answering is your own frustrations?

That’s the part nobody posts about on Instagram.

Living in Limbo

Here’s the reality…when you’re chasing a professional sports career, you don’t actually know what tomorrow looks like. Your agent might call and say, “Pack your bags, you’re headed to Turkey.” Or it might just be another day of lifting in an empty gym, or running sprints while a men’s league waits to start.

That in-between life is brutal.

Because you can’t stop training…if you do, you’re done. Yet training with no guarantee feels absolutely insane. It’s like studying for a test that might never happen…or it happens in three weeks, and if you aren’t ready, fail and never get another shot. That’s the situation.

The Psychological Toll

The hardest part has nothing to do with the physical, but the psychological.

Every morning, you wake up with that voice in your head whispering, why am I doing this?

You scroll through social media and see everyone else moving forward. Old teammates are posting game highlights from Europe and people you know you’re better than are cashing checks. Meanwhile, you’re running hills at the local high school, hoping your hamstrings don’t pop all while wondering if all this sweat is leading you anywhere.

The panic creeps in….What if I don’t get a call? It eats at you. Some days, the weight of doubt feels heavier than the dumbbells you are throwing around.

The Physical Toll

Training to be a professional athlete is really hard. It’s not the same as hitting Planet Fitness three times a week. You’re training like a pro athlete…while technically not being one.

It’s you, dragging yourself to the gym, every single day. And it’s exhausting. But you keep doing it because deep down you know, the one day you don’t…will be the day the phone rings.

The Dream You Keep Feeding

This is the cruel part…you’re pushing a dream that may never come. Every shot you take in an empty gym is an investment in a future that might not exist.

It reminds me of when I was nine and used to walk around ACME with my mom pretending to care about groceries just so I could get a shot at the vending machines by the exit. Those little plastic bubbles were the highlight of the trip. Each one had a tiny football helmet inside, stickers and a detachable facemask, and the whole point of my existence at that moment was to complete the collection.

Then one day I saw it…the Eagles helmet finally sitting right there, pressed up against the glass like it was staring me down. I begged my mom for quarters, got three, and went to work. First spin…Cardinals. Already had it. Second spin…Giants. Gross. Third spin…Bears. I was losing hope.

I begged her for two more quarters, convinced I was right there and the same thing happened. The Eagles helmet never moved. I should’ve noticed it was stuck, but I didn’t. I just kept feeding quarters, certain the next one would be the one.

And that’s exactly what waiting on that call feels like. You keep training, convinced the payoff is just one more quarter away. Some days it never drops. But you keep going, because what if the next one actually does?

Here’s How You Handle It

So how do you survive this? How do you keep your head when the silence is screaming?

Here’s what I’ve learned:

1. Create a Fake Season

If the world won’t give you a season, make one. I would build my own schedule like a coach drew it up. I would try and replicate a normal week overseas with morning sprinting/shooting, then a lift, then a hard skill practice later afternoon. Saturdays I would play pickup or simulate a game. It kept me sane and kept me disciplined. Discipline is what keeps you from slipping into chaos.

2. Find Your Training Tribe

Working out alone will break you. Find one or two other people in the same grind. Link up and push each other. Compete, even if they’re not at your level. You need someone in the trenches with you.

3. Control What You Can

You can’t control when (or if) the call comes. You can control your diet, your conditioning, your film work, your recovery. Win those little battles. When the uncontrollable eats at you, double down on the controllable.

4. Detach Self-Worth from the Call

This is the hardest one. When you let your identity be tied only to that phone ringing, you set yourself up for failure. Find other ways to build yourself. Write about it and be honest. People don’t want to read about Mr. Perfect…share the flaws.

5. Use the Silence

Silence is a gift. When the season starts, life moves fast and it's filled with pressure. Right now you've got space. Use it.

6. Stay Off the Scroll

Social media will wreck you if you let it. Nothing good comes from watching everyone else’s highlight tape while you’re stuck in limbo.Put blinders on. Do not start comparing!

The Truth About the Wait

No one glamorizes this part because it’s ugly, lonely and desperate. But it’s also where you find out who you really are.

Most people quit here because they can’t handle training for a tomorrow that may never come. But if you can build in this limbo, then when the call finally does come, you’ll be ready in ways other guys aren’t.

Final Word

If you’re in that space right now, panicking in the silence, know this: you’re not alone. Every pro you’ve ever admired has been there. Some didn’t make it out while some did.

Stay ready, stay disciplined. Don’t let the silence win.

Because the only thing worse than waiting for the call…is getting it and realizing you weren’t ready.