Is it normal to get athlete's foot all the time? like multiple times a year? assuming you take all the correct preventative measures, is there some way to avoid having to use antifungal creams so often?

Can happen: Yeast overgrowth can happen in a moist humid environment. You can try to limit by wearing open type shoes, no socks, and if you wear socks change frequently.

Possibly: Athlete's foot is also called Tinea Pedis. It can reoccur quite frequently if the foot is kept moist (sweat). There also may be colonization of your footwear. First, ask your doctor to confirm with scrapings of the rash/lesions that it is Tinea Pedis and not another fungal infection like Candida. Also, treatment may require 1-6 weeks so many times it is inappropriately treated and reoccurs