Counseling for Former and Retiring Athletes
Life After Sport: Redefining you
Stepping away from athletics—whether due to injury, age, sports politics, or burnout—is one of the most vulnerable identity shifts you will ever navigate. You don’t have to figure out food, your body, and your purpose alone.
When the FINAL Whistle Blows
For years, your world was defined by practice schedules, conditioning tests, performance metrics, and the drive to excel. Sport provided structure, community, identity, and a clear sense of purpose. When that ends—whether by choice, injury, graduation, or other factors completely outside of your control—the transition can feel like a profound loss. It’s not just a change in routine. It is a disruption to how you understand yourself, your body, and your place in the world.
IDENTITY SHIFT
"Who am I when I'm no longer an athlete?" Navigating grief, loss of structure, and the quiet pressure of figuring out what comes next.
BODY DISCONNECT
Watching your body change as training volume decreases, while grappling with anxiety, shame, or fear around your post-sport physique.
FUELING CHANGES
Shifting from fuel-for-performance metrics to daily nourishment, while struggling with rigid food rules, guilt, or fear of weight gain.
The Hidden Vulnerability: Food, Body & Mental Health
Transitioning out of sport is a high-risk period for disordered eating, body dissatisfaction, anxiety, depression, and other mental health concerns. recognizing that you need support isn't a sign of weakness. it is self-care and a transition strategy.
Why "Moving On" Feels So Complex
Athletes are conditioned to push through pain, ignore bodily signals, and strive for perfection. While these traits may have served you on the field, court, or track, they often turn inward when your athletic career ends. Without the intense physical demands of your sport, you may experience:
Food Fears and Hyper-Vigilance: Anxiety about how much or what you're eating now that your fueling needs have changed.
The “Earn Your Food” Mentality: Guilt for eating on rest days or when you haven't completed a hard workout.
Grief and Unspoken Trauma: Processing unfair cuts, toxic coaching dynamics, sports politics, or career-ending injuries that robbed you of closure.
Loss of Physical Intuition: Feeling disconnected from your natural hunger, fullness, and energy cues after years of rigid external conditioning.
At Annie Beth Company, Annie acknowledges the profound impact of this transition. Annie offers a safe, HAES®-aligned space to process these feelings without judgment.
Does Any of This Sound Familiar?
I feel lost or empty without my sport's daily routine and team environment.
I am terrified of gaining weight or my body shape changing now that I’m training less.
I still view exercise as punishment or feel intense guilt if I don't work out.
I feel angry, cheated, or heartbroken over how my athletic career ended.
I don't know how to eat intuitively without a performance nutrition plan.
I struggle with perfectionism and feel like a failure if I’m not constantly striving.
If you checked even one of these boxes, please know that your feelings are valid—and you don't have to navigate this identity shift alone.
AN Integrative approach for "Life After Sport"
True healing isn't about simply finding a new workout program or going on another diet. It’s about building a compassionate, authentic relationship with your body and reclaiming your identity on your own terms. Here is how we can do just that.
-
We deconstruct the rigid "all-or-nothing" mindsets and cultural expectations that keep you feeling inadequate. We help you cultivate self-compassion and mental flexibility.
-
Using a Health at Every Size (HAES®) and body-liberatory approach, we help you reconnect with your body’s internal wisdom, honoring its changes without shame or punishment.
-
We work together to strip away diet culture beliefs and food rules, allowing you to enjoy an intuitive, peaceful nourishing relationship with food, free from guilt, fear, or restriction.
-
We hold space for the real grief of leaving your sport while helping you explore who you are, what you value, and what brings you joy outside of performance metrics.
Hi, I’m Annie Calhoun Randall!
As a lifelong athlete myself—and someone with a background as a Certified Personal Trainer and Nutrition Therapy Practitioner—I deeply understand the unique pressures, language, and culture of the athletic world.
I know how scary it feels when the structure of sport disappears, and how easily disordered eating and body image struggles can take root during times of transition. As an eating disorder therapist, my mission is to help you break free from food anxiety, make peace with your changing body, and discover the vibrant, authentic life waiting for you beyond the game.
Starting Your Journey
SCHEDULE A FREE CONSULT
Schedule a 15-minute phone consultation. During this call, we will briefly discuss your challenges, needs, and goals. We will determine if we are a good fit to work together, and I will answer any questions you might have. If it is a “yeah, let’s go!”, then I will send you the intake forms and provide you with access to my secure client portal.
COMPLETE AN INTAKE ASSESSMENT
Once all paperwork is completed, we will meet for an intake assessment. During this 80 to 90-minute appointment, we will review my policies and procedures, the limits of confidentiality, and your intake paperwork. We will also further discuss your symptoms and personal history, identify your treatment goals, and address your questions.
BEGIN YOUR THERAPY SESSIONS
After the initial assessment is completed, we may then begin treatment. A standard therapy session lasts 50- to 60-minutes. Clients generally commit to a weekly or bi-weekly standing session time (i.e., “Wednesdays at 3:00 pm”). If you need to cancel or reschedule an appointment, please notify me 24-hours in advance to avoid late cancellation fees.