Different strokes: Former swim star preaches healthy approach to gaming at Md. Esports gym

BETHESDA, Md. (7News) — Growing up, two things always brought Josh Hafkin joy. Swimming was one of them. An ACC champion backstroker at UNC, Josh raced in the 2008 & 2012 Olympic Trials.

The other was his brief escapes to the fantasy worlds of video games.

“I was able to do things that felt more freeing," Hafkin said. "I love the Gameboy and, you know, I was an ADHD kid who was always told to sit still. And in this little world, I went on adventures.”

Fast forward to today and games have changed a lot. Esports, or competitive video gaming, is one of the fastest growing industries in the world, with a projected revenue of $1.4 billion in 2022 alone.

So Josh combined his passions and opened Game Gym in his hometown of Bethesda, where he applies the same training principles that made him a champion to teach kids a healthy way to approach gaming.

“These games are, you know, wonderful tools, but you have to learn to set your own boundaries," Hafkin said. "Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of people teaching our kids.”

That’s where Josh and his team of coaches come in. It’s all about balance, he says.

“What’s going on and how people train in video games is the equivalent of somebody training for a marathon by just running to exhaustion every day," Hafkin said. "There's no plan. There's no long-term strategy -- how do you know when to give yourself rest?”

Part of that balance is what’s done away from the consoles. Workbooks, exercise, team building activities and good old-fashioned mentorship.

“It's about teaching people how to use games to better themselves. And that's what we do. We use games to teach life skills," he said.

Josh didn’t grow up in a fully-digital world, so he understands why some parents are skeptical of the screens. But one thing he learned in the pool – you either keep moving forward, or you’re stuck treading water.

“The world is going to be driven by technology, the world is going to be much more connected. What we do need to do is prepare our kids for what the world is going to look like next," he said.