Drugs in Pickleball: Is It Cheating?

Adderall might seem like a magic pill to sharpen your focus, slow the game down, and give you that edge when everything’s on the line. But here’s the problem: it boosts performance to the point of cheating. Not to mention the nasty side effects it has. Whether you're on a tennis court, a pickleball court, or any competitive setting, taking Adderall turns the sport into something else entirely.

‍

What Is Adderall?

Adderall is a stimulant made up of two amphetamines, dextroamphetamine and levoamphetamine. Medically, it’s used to treat ADHD and narcolepsy, but outside of those uses, people often pop it when they want to hyper-focus on something, and yeah, sometimes to cheat in competitive sports.

I've heard from people that when you take Adderall, it puts you into a state of hyper focus. It dials you in like crazy. You're insanely focused. So that's why athletes, particularly in sports like pickleball and tennis, take it. Supposedly it makes the ball look three times bigger and impossible to miss. It ramps up dopamine and norepinephrine, which makes you feel on top of everything. If you’ve ever played a racquet sport, you know why focus is so important. Shots are easier, and it pumps you up and gets you ready to move.

But that high comes at a cost. Adderall raises your heart rate and blood pressure, puts your body in go-mode, and kills your appetite. You might not eat for hours without realizing it. Sleep? Nope. Your body wants to keep going even when your brain is begging for rest.

There’s a long list of physical and mental side effects, none of which sound fun:

• Tense jaw and clenched teeth
• Dry mouth
• Shaky hands
• Irritability
• Insomnia
• Anxiety
• Paranoia
• Crash-and-burn fatigue once it wears off

Use it regularly and you’re looking at addiction, tolerance buildup, and potentially serious heart issues.

‍

Performance Enhancement or Cheating?

Let’s just say it straight: taking Adderall in competition is cheating. It doesn’t matter whether you have ADHD, autism, or none of the above. If you’re on a stimulant that enhances performance, you’re not competing on a level playing field.

Think about it. If Adderall is fair game, then where’s the line? Why stop there? Why not jump to something even more intense, like modafinil or some experimental military-grade focus drug? If drugs become fair play, the competition isn’t about who trained hardest, who played smartest, or who showed up with the best mindset. It turns into a contest of who is higher on what. And that defeats the whole purpose of the sport. That's not even true competition, it's straight up cheating.

It’s supposed to be about your preparation, your skill, your ability to perform under pressure, not about what pharmaceutical cocktail you can ingest before the match. If winning becomes a matter of which pill you took, then why are we even keeping score? The game stops being meaningful. And if you win the match while you're on those substances, can you even say you truly won? You're not just disrespecting yourself, you're disrespecting the sport by playing high.

It reminds me of hackers in video games. Like, what’s even the point? You're just chasing that win so hard that becomes meaningless. Taking Adderall for performance is basically like running aimbot in Call of Duty. You might get the win under your name, but it wasn't really you.

‍

Conclusion

So yeah, you could take Adderall, feel really ripped, maybe get a win, and then crash hard that night. But what did you really prove? That a drug could outplay your opponent? That a shortcut could replace sweat, focus, and actual grind? If the game means anything to you, play it clean or don't play at all.

And it’s why I will never take it, or any stimulant for that matter. I’d rather lose clean than win fake. And if I win, I want to know it was me, not a pill, seeing the ball better, moving faster, making better decisions. And also, if I lose, I can get back to work right away without crashing and burning after a high.

Thanks for reading. Follow for more!

‍