Larena Tannert is a journalism sophomore and opinion columnist for Mustang News. The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Mustang Media Group.

Every year like clockwork, as soon as the weather starts warming up, my social media feeds explode with “get beach body ready” workouts and “slim for summer” meal plans. And every year, I feel that familiar knot in my stomach tightening. Will I be “beach ready” this year? Will my body be “good enough” for summer?

Let me tell you a secret: I’m so over needing my perfect summer body. And you should be too.

For years, I’ve ridden the seasonal fitness rollercoaster. Desperate exercising in April, crash-dieting in May, feeling guilty about ice cream in June, then abandoning all efforts by September because “what’s the point now?” 

Does any of this sound familiar? This cycle left me with nothing but a complicated relationship with my body and the gym that I’m still working to repair.

Here’s what I’ve learned through my journey: your body isn’t seasonal merchandise. It doesn’t need to be “summer ready” or “bikini approved.” It is an incredible and important thing that deserves to be taken care of, healthy, and happy all year long.

The “summer body” mentality is deeply problematic for so many reasons:

First, it treats fitness as punishment rather than self-care. When we exercise with the goal of changing our appearance by a certain date, we are telling ourselves our bodies are problems that need to be fixed, rather than something that deserves to be maintained and celebrated.

Second, it sets us up for failure. Crash diets and intense workout regimens aren’t sustainable or reasonable. When we inevitably can’t maintain them, we feel like failures instead of recognizing that our approach was the problem.

Third, it completely misses the point of what health is actually about: feeling good, having energy, managing stress, sleeping better, and enjoying life in your body.

Instead of seasonal desperation, I’ve switched to year-round consistency, and honestly, it’s changed everything. Here’s what I’ve learned works better:

Find movement you actually enjoy. For me, it’s playing beach volleyball and going for walks. I no longer force myself to do workouts I hate. Movement should be fun, not a chore.

Focus on how you feel, not how you look. When exercise becomes about stress relief and energy rather than appearance, it becomes a form of self-care, not punishment.

Treat nutrition as nourishment, not restriction. I eat foods that make me feel both good and energized. Sometimes that’s a banana or a salad, but other times it’s ice cream with my friends. It is crucial to have a balance.

Set goals based on performance, not appearance. Celebrating what your body can do, rather than how it looks, is incredibly liberating. Rather than focusing on cellulite or belly fat, working toward being able to run a mile in under 8 minutes or do 20 pushups will change your whole perspective on fitness.

Turns out, when I stopped obsessing about looking perfect for summer, I actually started feeling better in my body year-round. Without the pressure of a deadline, fitness became something sustainable rather than a two-month panic session.

But what about people who enjoy seeing their body change as they get fitter? Yes, watching your muscles grow and your abs begin to show can be rewarding. These visible changes show your hard work is paying off. But here’s the thing, when looking good becomes your only goal, you set yourself up for failure. 

You risk quitting when results come too slowly or miss out on all the other amazing benefits of staying active. So go ahead and enjoy those physical changes, but connect them to how they make you feel – stronger, happier, and more energetic – not just how they make you look.

I’ve discovered that my body is capable of amazing things when I treat it with respect rather than criticism. I’ve learned that confidence doesn’t come from reaching some physical standard that society sets, but from making peace with who you are right now.

This summer, I’m adopting a new mantra: Every body is a summer body. Your body deserves care, movement, and nourishment every month of the year—not just when swimsuit season approaches.

So the next time you see those “Get Beach Ready!” headlines, remember that your body already deserves the best care you can give it, regardless of the season. Consistently treat it with kindness and by the time summer rolls around, you won’t need to frantically prepare. You will already be living your best life in the body you have.

DAVIS, Calif. – UC Davis and UC Davis athletics will celebrate the Class of 2025 over the upcoming weekend of June 13-15 with ceremonies taking place at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif.
 
“I told our student athletes to remember to take your time to listen to your heart,” said Faculty Athletics Representative Professor Greg Downs. “There are so many things they can do in the world with all the talents and skills they have. The question I asked is what drives you and inspires you, and it isn’t always the thing you would have guessed.
 
“I’ve encouraged them to try new things, check in to see what gives you more energy and drives your passion, and that it’s ok to live with the uncertainty of telling people you’re figuring things out. Then dive in with the same work ethic and drive you’ve shown here, and the next steps will take care of themselves. I’m proud of this group of Aggie student athletes and look forward to what they will accomplish going forward.”
 
174 Aggies make up the combined graduating class, which includes all four quarters going back to the Fall 2024 quarter. Of that group there are 17 graduate students and all four majors from all four UC Davis colleges are represented. Among the graduating Aggies, there are 35 different and distinct majors showcasing the diversity of UC Davis student athletes.

UC DAVIS ATHLETICS CLASS OF 2025

 

This story is an example of UC Davis Athletics’ commitment to the Ignite Strategic Plan Pillar of “Student-Athlete Development and Welfare”. Read more about our strategic plan here; IGNITE.
 

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Head Coach Alexa Keckler has unveiled the 2025 Middle Tennessee volleyball schedule, featuring 28 total matches — including 12 at Alumni Memorial Gym in Murfreesboro.

The season opens with three non-conference tournaments, beginning at the Big Dawg Kickoff hosted by Butler University in Indianapolis, Ind., on August 29–30. The Blue Raiders will face Purdue Fort Wayne and Evansville before closing the tournament against the host Bulldogs.

MTSU will then return home to host the annual Blue Raider Bash, welcoming Marist, UT Martin, and SEC opponent Mississippi State.

The final non-conference tournament will take place in Oxford, Ohio, where the Blue Raiders will face Miami (Ohio), Duquesne, and Southern Indiana.

Following the tournament slate, Middle Tennessee will travel to Virginia for a pair of matchups, taking on Virginia Tech on September 18 and Radford on September 19.

Conference USA play begins with a home series against Kennesaw State on September 26–27, followed by a road trip to Jacksonville State the next weekend.

This season, MTSU will face both of CUSA’s newest additions — traveling to Newark, Del., for matchups on October 10–11, and hosting Missouri State to close out the regular season in November.

Other conference opponents include home matches against Liberty and WKU, along with road trips to NM State and FIU.

The 2025 Conference USA Tournament is scheduled for November 21–23 in Miami, Fla., hosted by FIU.

Keep Up with the Blue Raider Volleyball Team

Follow the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_Volleyball), Instagram (@mt_volleyball), and Facebook (Middle Tennessee Blue Raider Volleyball).

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State’s athletic department is going to share $18 million in revenue with its athletes during the upcoming fiscal year as part of the new era of name, image and likeness payments.

That money will be split (not equally) across four sports: football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball and women’s volleyball.

Why was volleyball selected as the fourth choice? The answer stems from multiple layers ranging from the national scale to the local level.

“We think with the attention that our program can receive, the Columbus market, volleyball as a booming sport, the Covelli Center is an amazing atmosphere — we thought volleyball could be a sport that could drive more revenue,” athletics director Ross Bjork said Thursday.

In Columbus, volleyball has had bright moments.

The Buckeyes have made 25 trips to the NCAA Tournament with a pair of runs to the Final Four (1991, 1994).

Under coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg, who has been at the helm since 2020, Ohio State has made three NCAA Tournament appearances — making the Sweet 16 in each of her first two seasons and an Elite Eight in 2022.

The city also has a professional team, the Columbus Fury. The franchise started as part of the Pro Volleyball Federation’s inaugural season in 2024 and is partly owned by Joe Burrow’s family.

“The sport is really popular,” Bjork said. “The Big Ten is a leader in women’s volleyball. We want to get better. Coach Jen is working on a plan to get us back on track.”

How much will Bjork have to invest in volleyball from the revenue sharing side?

He elected not to dive into specifics of how much of the $18 million will go toward each program. However, the range of what Big Ten teams will give toward volleyball is vast.

Some schools won’t include volleyball in revenue sharing. Others could devote more than $1 million, a source with knowledge of the situation told cleveland.com.

Many schools will be in the middle, giving around $500,000-$600,000.

The higher figures are a testament to the elite volleyball in the conference.

The Big Ten had nine teams make the NCAA Tournament last year. Two teams, Penn State and Nebraska, made the Final Four with the former winning the national title.

Since 1999, the Big Ten has won 13 national titles, which doesn’t include UCLA, Southern California and Washington winning four championships in that span.

The conference has an opportunity to continue growing the sport, which could lead to larger crowds, increased viewership and more revenue.

HUNTSVILLE – The Sam Houston Bearkat volleyball team released its official schedule for the upcoming 2025 season on Friday with a pair of tournaments and four Conference USA weekends highlighting the fall slate.  

Coach Brenda Gray is back for her 42nd year on the bench leading the Kats and will get the season going on August 29-30 when Sam Houston hosts the Bearkat Invitational with Southern Illinois, McNeese and Tulane. 

Weekend tournaments at Stephen F. Austin and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and a home midweek match vs Lamar (Sept 9) will follow before the Kats return home to HCU, Georgia State and ULM in the Bearkat Classic on September 18-20 to conclude non-conference play.  

The following weekend CUSA play will begin in Huntsville when UTEP comes to Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum for a pair of matches on September 26-27. A trip to NM State follows the next weekend to open the month of October ahead of FIU coming to Huntsville the weekend of October 10-11. 

The Kats will then go on the road for consecutive weekends at WKU (Oct 17-18) and Jax State (Oct 24-25) before two straight home weekends vs Kennesaw State (Oct 31 – Nov 1) and Louisiana Tech (Nov 7-8) concludes the home portion of the schedule. 

Sam Houston will close the regular season with a trek to league newcomer Delaware (Nov 145-15) ahead of the annual CUSA Tournament. FIU will play host to the Conference USA Tournament in 2025 with play for the three-day tournament set to begin on Thursday, November 20.