When I first took up flying trapeze 23 years ago, my family thought it would be a short-lived infatuation.
I can’t say I blame them for their skepticism. My closet was filled with relics from past obsessions: the golf clubs, tap shoes, art supplies.
But something in me knew this one would be different, and I was right. 23 years later, I still love flying trapeze, and its “sister sport” of trampoline. Circus sports just clicked for me in a way that has sustained my interest and passion over time.
Over the past year, I haven’t been able to get to trampoline at all, and I’ve only been on the trapeze a handful of times.
This isn’t the first time I’ve taken a break from circus sports.
For someone with ADHD, that’s a recipe for losing interest: out of sight, out of mind.
Yet, just like the previous times I’ve taken breaks — whether intentional or forced —I find my time away has only increased my desire to get back to it.
For people with ADHD, finding ways to make interests stick is often a challenge. I’ve found that with circus, I don’t have to try to sustain interest. The nature of the activity builds in the elements that keep me hooked.
I also see these elements in other activities that have sustained my interest — like weightlifting.
Here are 3 of the elements that have helped circus sports sustain my interest for over 2 decades:
(1) Skill-Based Activities
Flying trapeze and trampoline are skill-based activities in which you’re constantly learning new skills or improving your existing skills. Even in the fundamentals, there’s always ways to refine your techniques.
Like many people with ADHD, I can get mired in the details and perfectionism. This provides a healthy outlet for that quest.
To be sure, sometimes learning those skills can be a challenge, especially given the neuromuscular coordination issues that can come with ADHD.
Often, progress proceeds in the form of “one step forward, two steps back.” At times, this can be an opportunity to expand your frustration tolerance.
But the challenges and setbacks that occur on the path to mastering a new skill mean that even incremental progress feels like a big win. Those micro-breakthroughs trigger the dopamine that keeps you coming back for more.
(2) Open-Ended System
Many sports require you to learn a skill, but once you learn that skill it becomes about implementation. It’s the same thing over and over.
Trapeze and trampoline are open-ended systems. There are always more skills to learn and more ways to push your edge.
This creates built-in variety as well as a constant supply of new challenges.
(3) Progress Isn’t Linear
Once you’ve mastered the fundamental building blocks of the sport, there’s not just one path to progress.
If you don’t have the mobility or strength for one type of trick, you can learn a different type of trick.
If you get bored with one skill on the path to mastering it, you can switch to a different skill for a while.
Sometimes I’ve shelved a particular skill or trick for months or years until I was ready to come back to it. In the meantime, I refined my techniques on other skills.
This satisfies the ADHD for variety and keeps you out of the frustration zone.
It also aligns with the natural ADHD tendencies.
You can hyperfocus on a particular skill for months or years, or you can move from one to another as your energy dictates.
The ability to make progress on one track means the dopamine keeps flowing even when I feel stuck in another track.
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