Playing Sports Can Teach You Some Really Weird Things

by Jameson

My best experience with sporting events was discovering that I am ambidextrous. I was officially right handed, nine years old, and taking a volleyball class for the first time. The coach showed me how to hold your hands for volleyball and I was not very comfortable doing it right handed.

We figured out that it was much more comfortable for me to use the left-handed volleyball position. It wasn't a big deal at the time, but it had ramifications. The next season I took a basketball class and found that playing basketball left handed was easier than playing it right handed. I checked which foot I automatically kicked with in soccer--left. It was the same thing with baseball. I swung left handed and caught left handed--but could do it right handed as well, because I generally use my right hand to write and my left hand to eat.

The best thing with that was in tae kwon do. Right handed people are used to fighting right handed people. Left handed people are used to fighting right handed people. Because I could fight with either, I could convince the opponent that I was right handed and then switch halfway through to throw them off.

That little bit was my personal edge; I needed it to feel comfortable competing in a lot of different events. Knowing that all you need is a little edge to give you a boost of confidence has come in handy with sports, school, and a bunch of other things, so I'm really glad I played sports and discovered I'm ambidextrous.