Basics

I think my motivation behind studying physics comes from the same place my respect for gymnastics derives from: everything you do in the general field (science for physics, athletics for gymnastics) you will have an objective advantage in from learning these subjects. They create a solid foundation for learning anything you want to in the future, and I would recommend anybody who is interested in STEM or athletics to look into first learning physics or gymnastics. 

Aside: The reason I'm saying physics instead of math is because "learning math" to me is more than simply understanding calculus, and a lot of the higher level math skills are not used often, if at all, in other subjects. Higher-level topics in physics, such as thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, and electromagnetism, can be understood and applied without knowing calculus, and they are applicable to many fields. You will see these topics brought up in most science classes, even youtube videos, but you will probably never see point set topology or abstract algebra in any undergrad-level science course that isn't the corresponding math course. At least, I never did through my physics degree.

Some examples to elaborate: you can't learn geography without understanding how solids, liquids, and gasses interact with each other; you can't study computer science without understanding the physical limitations of computers; you can't research chemistry without knowing the quantum mechanics of atoms, and biology is just chemistry for people who are scared of chemistry. Engineering is just physics for people who think physics is boring and impractical. Whenever I take a different science class, I recognize so many things that I already have a good understanding of from my physics classes, even when I originally thought there was no connection; I took a class about oceans, and a major portion of the class was spent on basic thermodynamics. 

These relationships are very similar to what I have seen in gymnastics, especially regarding safety. You can't play basketball without dexterity; you can't participate in any track activities without balance; you can't do anything where you have the chance of being hit or falling without knowing how to bail. Sure, some sports teach some safety skills, but they're usually very specific to that sport (e.g. tackling in football, leg mechanics in jumping sports). Rarely do schools ever spend an appreciable amount of time on teaching kids how to bail, how to recover from a misstep, or how to judge when they're straining their bodies too much, and I think this is why you see so many high schoolers and college students getting stupid, avoidable injuries, like spraining their ankle on a rock they didn't see or tearing a muscle because they tried to bench too much. The skills you pick up from learning gymnastics are vital in any other sport you can do, and I believe that teaching children these skills decreases their chances of being hurt during physical activity later in life by an extraordinary amount, as well as gives them an advantage in more technical sports that require dexterity and awareness (e.g. tennis, soccer). 

So I guess the main point I'm trying to make is to invest in fundamentals at the most general level. Something like physics or gymnastics is worth putting time into because the benefit you'll receive far outweighs the initial effort, at least according to my experience and what I have seen in others. It upsets me that these subjects are often looked down on as "boring" or "too hard" because people are missing out on the advantages that come with merely being competent in these things.