You don't really have a choice, everyone will play a sport on some level. For most: it is both a stress reliever because it's a bit of a break of the "military" aspect of the Academy and a stressor because it's 2+hours out of your day that you may otherwise would have liked to use for homework, room/uniform inspections, or other school/military prep. With that said, most Mids during my time, even if they were in their offseason or had an off day from intramurals would spend the time getting a long run or a good lift in.