If I Am Being Honest

Last week, I finally got the green light to play again.

The quad tear was healed, everything looked good. I practiced, no pain. Played the first game, still no quad pain. But then, a different pain started creeping in.

If you remember last year with Benfica, I dealt with a tough knee issue. Meniscus damage led to a bone bruise, and the rehab process was messy from start to finish.

For some reason, that same knee problem is flaring up again, and this time, it’s bad.

I won’t get too deep into the details, but just know this: my knee being “hurt” again is really tough news, both for my family and for my future here in Lithuania.

I’m throwing everything at it: anti-inflammatories, new rehab work, hyaluronic injections…the whole nine yards.

Still, it’s a brutal situation. And mentally, I’m not in a great place right now.

Let’s talk about it.

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Making the Situation Worse

It’s clear as day, I’m in a tough spot right now. (I’ll share more details about how tough and why once I make it through.)

Lately, I catch myself overthinking everything to the point of exhaustion. A million what-ifs run through my head nonstop, and it leaves me completely overwhelmed.

Recognizing these thought patterns is a start, but that’s not enough. I also have to acknowledge how they’re impacting me. And the truth is, overthinking only makes a bad situation worse.

When I stack expectations on top of uncertainty, I end up tormenting my present moment. Worse, I genuinely believe our bodies respond to our emotional state especially through the nervous system. Stress and negativity make healing harder.

So, the obvious solution would be: just stop overthinking. But is that realistic?

In my experience, telling myself to “stop” only speeds things up. The wheels spin faster, and then I start beating myself up for doing the very thing I’m trying not to do.

That leaves me with a better question:

How can I ground myself and find a headspace that actually serves me?

For me, there are three steps:

1. Aggressively weed out expectations

Expectations always create emotional attachment.

• If things meet expectations → content.

• If things fall short → disappointment.

• If things exceed them → elation.

But in all three scenarios, I’m reacting to outcomes instead of choosing my approach. By removing expectations, I regain control over my headspace by focusing on what I can control instead of what I can’t.

2. Take it day by day, step by step

Over-anticipation drains energy from the present. When I stay methodical and give each step the attention it deserves, I become more deliberate and make better decisions.

3. Remember what’s good

It’s simple gratitude, but powerful. When life gets hard, it’s easy to hyper-fixate on the negative. Shifting my perspective, even briefly, helps lighten the weight. Nothing is ever all negative… if we look hard enough, we can find some good.

These three steps don’t magically erase turmoil, but they give me a grounded starting point. It’s not always easy, but at least I know where to begin.

Overthinking only makes a hard experience harder. A mentor of mine once told me:

“Don’t sweat the test twice.”

The test itself is already difficult.

There’s no reason to make it even harder by reliving it over and over in your head beforehand.

Upcoming Atypical

I finally got the samples for the upcoming Atypical Athletics drop and… ooooweee… they turned out even better than I expected.

The shirt and tank didn’t come out the way I wanted, so I’ll leave those out of the sneak peeks for now. But check out the shorts and sweatsuit below. (Fair warning: these are the roughest photos ever—so take them with a grain of salt, haha.)

The first thing that stood out to me was the quality. These are night and day compared to my previous shorts and tees. From the stitching on the patches to the weight of the fabric, every detail feels more dialed in.

I’m really proud of how these turned out.

There are still a few small adjustments to make, but man, I cannot wait to get these in your hands.

Final Thoughts

Tough moments do not need to be made harder by an unsettled mind.

Drop the expectations,

Take it day by day,

And search for the good in everything.

Appreciate you guys following along on the journey.

This has been a tough week.

But I am going to keep pushing.

Love you guys,

Trey