When competitive athletes call it quits

There were no tears, but instead unbridled joy at a fitting end to a successful career as a professional football player. 

Former German national team player Simone Laudehr was a star who won numerous titles, most recently with Bayern Munich — including in her final game in June, when she lifted the trophy after helping the Bavarians to the 2020-21 Bundesliga title.

"I've had a few injuries to deal with. You have to recover from them and come back just as strong. This wasn't lost on my body," said Laudehr when she decided to hang up her boots. But a life entirely devoid of sports was unthinkable for the 35-year-old, who now trains a lot less and is still looking for a new recreational sport.

'If you train up, you have to train down'

This is because suddenly becoming a couch potato is not a good idea for competitive athletes when they retire. The muscles that were built up over years, as well as a condition known as the "athlete's heart" — not to mention the psyche — all have to be properly prepared for life after competition, Hans-Georg Predel, director of the German Sport University Cologne's Institute of Cardiology and Sports Medicine, told DW.

"If you train up, you also have to train down, and you have to do it in a very targeted way, i.e., according to a plan," Predel told DW. 

For one thing, there are the muscles, which have been highly trained and constantly exposed to tension stimulus over a period of years. 

"The musculature needs this stimulus even after the end of one's career. If you suddenly stop doing sports, you risk muscular cramps, muscle pain and unpleasant states of tension," the professor said. 

This doesn't mean that athletes can't go on vacation and take it easy after the season is over. In fact, sports scientists and physicians agree that almost all competitive athletes need time off from their sport after their season ends or after a major event such as the Olympics. 

A few months after hanging up the boots, Laudehr isn't missing the professional game. 

"I don't feel like it anymore. I like playing with the Bayern legends once in a while. I'll do so again next year just for fun," she told DW. "But so far I haven't missed it." 

Like an old combustion engine 

Predel said the most important thing for elite athletes who retire from their sports was to stay active — even if it's not in the same sport. 

"The minimum is 150 to 300 minutes a week. I would advise female football players, for example, to continue training endurance and coordination and to do short sprints. That's also important for their heart," he said.

In extreme cases, years of competitive sports can cause an athlete's heart to grow to twice the size of that of a nonathlete. Under stress, it can even pump twice as much blood. At rest, however, the athlete's heart rate is much slower than normal. 

After an athlete ends their career, the heart needs to be started up again and again — like an old combustion engine. Only then will it run smoothly. It's not about performing at a high level, but about endurance, explained Predel. 

"Some athletes develop benign cardiac arrhythmia after their careers. Their heart then stutters because it beats an extra time between two steady beats. Usually this occurs at night and is very distressing and frightening for the athlete," Predel said, adding that this is usually not a reason for alarm.

"There is no threat of a heart attack or cardiac arrest," Predel said. "But it needs to be checked out to rule out something more serious."

Not uncommon: Psychosomatic complaints

It is not just the muscles and the heart that need attention at the end of an athlete's career. The athlete also needs time to adjust psychologically to this new phase of their life. The thrill of competitive success is suddenly gone — along with it the so-called happiness hormones such as endorphins, dopamine and serotonin that physical training sets free in an athlete's body. 

"This in turn can result in psychosomatic problems," Predel said. "Athletes then sleep poorly, complain of headaches and feel restless." 

This is another reason why Predel believes that it is important for all professional athletes to undergo medical examinations after they end their careers. That's something that is a matter of routine as long as they are active in elite-level sports. In Germany, at least, the costs associated with these are usually covered by the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) or an athlete's sports club. 

Predel said it would be advisable for athletes to regularly consult their doctors over a period of one year after they retire from competition.

"Then you could draw up a training plan for them and adjust their level of required calorie intake," Predel said. "And you could talk to them about possible symptoms like muscle pain and what they can do about it." 

Sports federations take responsibility

Laudehr, who was part of the German national teams that won the 2007 World Cup and the gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, hasn't spoken to a doctor since her last game for Bayen Munich. She, too, is calling on federations such as the German Football Association (DFB) and the clubs to do more to look after players after they end their careers. 

"I have no idea about how much I need to do to train down. Checkups including ECGs (electrocardiograms) and lung-function tests cost money. I feel like I've been left to fend for myself in this regard," Laudehr said. 

Not just that, but, as a female player, she earned a lot less than her male counterparts, meaning that she needed to find a job immediately after her career ended — which is why she had studied sports management and marketing. Just three weeks after her last game as a professional, Laudehr joined the marketing department of the Bayern Munich Museum. 

It turns out that there wasn't much time for her to fall into a psychological pit after all — and she still hasn't found the time to properly train down from being a competitive athlete. 

"A little weight training at home and the occasional jog after work — sure, I didn't do enough," Laudehr said. 

Her wish is to try out other sports, such as kickboxing, as she looks for a regular activity to wind down after work — without the pressure of a busy schedule, but in harmony with her heart and soul. 

This article was translated from German.