(BLACK PR WIRE/FAMU-TALLAHASSEE) "" After years of maintaining healthy habits including workouts and diets, most college athletes lose their sense of health. Not all college athletes are internally concerned with upholding a healthy regiment, but some athletes are encouraged by coaches, trainers and their athletics programs to stay healthy. Thus, after college, some athletes discover difficulties avoiding weight gain and sustaining nutritional health.

Former collegiate softball player for Florida A&M Raven Johnson said, "I never really maintained healthy eating habits because I had my daily softball workouts to fall back on. Now I can't remember the last time I was on the field and I eat the same, I can now see the effects of what I eat on my body."

Athletes making the transition from students and full-time athletes to full-time employees also face obscurities adjusting to the workforce. According to insidehighered.com, the average athlete spends about 41 hours a week on athletic activities. When making the switch from a world of sports to the work world, some former athletes cannot find the balance. Sports, no longer consuming their lives, are put on the back burner so new aspects of life can become the focus. Dwayne White, a Columbus State University graduate student from Miami, Fla., is currently experiencing this transition.

White said, "In college, being on the tennis courts daily was my job. Tennis paid my tuition, bills and provided money for everyday expenses. Now that money is no longer coming in, so my focus is my new job, and with this job I have no time to work out." White, a former tennis player at Columbus State University, played a full four years at the university while studying in business.

Some athletes, however, are able to maintain a healthy physical state. Several former college athletes find it easier to work out and sustain nutritional health because they have more time on their hands. Not all former college athletes are consumed by a hectic work schedule. Many athletes have more time to cook healthy meals and partake in a daily workout regimen.

Coaches like Mohamed Reda Nait Omar, current coach of the Georgia Perimeter College tennis teams, thinks that some athletes stay healthy after their collegiate years.

"Most of my players stay healthy even they are done with the program. They don't work anymore but they still find a way to stay in shape. I know so because most of my athletes stay in touch with me and the program," said Nait Omar.