Head Help

Day 14

There are a lot of resources available to athletes that train at the Olympic Training Center. And because they come at no cost to us, it makes them that much more valuable. One of the greatest, and possibly most overlooked resource, is our very own sports psychologists that help us with the most important part of athletics. That space between your ears has to be given the same kind of attention as all your other training. It took me a long time to realize how important it truly was, but now that I know, I'm one of the biggest proponents.

I used to cringe at the idea of talking about "feelings" and having someone try and pull things out of me while I lay on a couch and reach for a box of tissues while a soothing waterfall babbles in the background. But that's not it at all. Well, at least the type I see. I've been able to be in such better control of what I do and have a better vision of what I'm trying to accomplish, far better than I ever would without this help. I still have a long way to go, but I see the progress I make when I work on training the mental side of my sport with a qualified professional.

The longer I've been seeing him, the more I continue to broaden his uses. Technically, he's a "sports psychologist" but I tend to use him for everything. And that makes sense. Everything that goes on in your life has an impact on how you train, how you prepare for competition, and what kind of emotional state you're in on a day to day basis. Just the ability to talk to someone who is legally bound to not repeat or gossip about anything you tell them is an asset. It's to the point now where I only have to say hello and he can tell that something is bothering me. Then it's only a matter of moments before I'm spilling my guts and that release always feels better, even if all I did was talk about it.

If you're an athlete and you don't talk to a sports psychologist, I would highly recommend it. If it can be worked into the budget I promise you that at times you will find it just as important as your coach, strength coach, massage therapist, and chiropractor... combined. Making one part of your team might just be the best thing you ever did for yourself.

High School Track

Day 13

It's been years and years (and years and years) since I was an athlete in high school, but there are some things I still remember vividly. I didn't know much of anything about the sport of track and field outside my very small bubble. I knew nobody who competed in college (and certainly not a professional) and all I was worried about was how to do the least amount of work at practice and win on Thursdays. Over the years I developed an appreciation for what I was doing and knowledge that would help me accomplish bigger and better goals. But I know that there are things I could have learned a lot sooner and goals I probably would have achieved a lot faster if I had just been better informed and knew a little more.

Yesterday I spent my afternoon talking with a local high school track team here in San Diego. One of my college teammates is the head coach and he asked me to come speak to his team and share my knowledge. I have no problem getting up in front of a group of people and giving a speech on all the important aspects of being a good athlete. I can talk all day about motivation, confidence, developing a good work ethic, etc, etc. And I suppose I did touch on those things a bit. But mostly I just let them ask me questions. Any questions they could think of. I remember being exactly where they are and all the stuff I just didn't know because there was really nobody to ask.

What workout do I hate doing the most?
Do I have a boyfriend and how do I balance my social life?
Do I ever cry after I don't do well?
What if your coach thinks you can do something you don't think you can?
What if you don't get along with your coach?
Do I eat well?
Is lifting going to make your arms all buff?
When did I know I wanted to be a professional?
How do I prepare for a meet?
...


After the first person was brave enough to speak up, the questions kept coming and coming. And I appreciated their curiosity and desire to know. I think back at all the things I didn't know back then and wish someone would have came by to drop just a little bit of knowledge on me. So, if you are a high schooler (or not) and you have a question, now is your time to ask. Fire away..

Pain Management

Day 12

I may look young, but my body feels very old sometimes. I woke up this morning with a stiff lower back and knee instability that always rears its ugly head first thing in the morning. As I was walking to the bathroom in a hunched position, with one hand on my back, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. Who am I, a 70 year old Grandma walking around a nursing home?!It was comical almost, except I was still wincing too much to chuckle.

The truth of the matter is, I don't remember the last time my body felt completely good, I've just begun to measure how I feel in terms of it not being so bad. I saw the doctor yesterday and I was rambling off the body parts I was having issues with... my left shin that has such bad shin splints I wince from the slightest touch...my right knee that basically has arthritis and is very temperamental in the morning, but also when I jump and it just decides to buckle and not cooperate when it needs to, which is understandable seeing as how it's missing a chunk of cartilage...my shoulder that almost came out of the socket the other day during lifting that happened to be the opposite shoulder of the one I dislocated a few years ago... . But I followed up this list, with I'm feeling pretty good right now.

And in the crazy world that I live in, that's actually the truth. If my shin splints turn to a stress fracture, that will be trouble. If pieces of cartilage break off again and cause my knee to lock and be inoperable, I'd be out of commission. If my shoulder had actually dislocated and I had to wear that awful sling for six weeks, I'd be really bummed since that's my writing hand and such. But aches and soreness are par for the course. And these little issues I'm experiencing just need to be controlled so that they don't turn into something really problematic.

Athletes control the pain, but we never really expect to be pain free. I don't remember what that even feels like, and by the time I'm done beating my body up, I may never know. I'm on my way to the athletic training room before practice so I can tape things back in place, put a heating pad on my back, and do some quick rehab exercises before I go to work. And today I feel pretty good...

MLK

Day 11

Martin Luther King Day always inspires me.

To do more.
To want more.
To be more.

I hope it does the same for you.


(if you think about it, if it weren't for him there may have not been a me...)

Enjoying the Sunshine..

Day 10

People come from all over the world to train at the Olympic Training Center during the winter months. I never really thought much about it, but this week, as I see athletes training hard all day long and soaking up every last bit of sunshine, I kind of get it. It's easy to train in San Diego. While the rest of the country is shoveling snow and trying to stay dry, we are enjoying 75 degrees with a light breeze. Besides that ridiculous storm a few weeks ago, it's like that here more often than not and I've learned to appreciate the added value that brings to training. I work harder and enjoy training that much more because I get to do so in perfect weather pretty frequently.

It's Friday now...the end of my work week...and I'm absolutely exhausted. But I feel like I've put in a great week of practice and I've enjoyed working hard AND working on my tan. Now I'm going to enjoy a couple of days off, recuperate, and hit it hard again next week. I've already checked the weather and it seems I have some more sunshine coming that I must take advantage of. :)

Have a great weekend!!


(sunset last week at Sunset Cliffs)

Finding Motivation

Day 9


Today I was out at the track basically all alone. Which is fine. I sometimes like it when it's serene and peaceful versus the organized chaos that usually exists out there. But when elements of my training require me to push myself to the max, I sometimes struggle to find the right kind of motivation when it's just practice. In competition, it comes easy. The atmosphere is buzzing, you have competitors there to push you, and your adrenaline is on overdrive. But at the end of practice today, I just had myself, my coach, and a laser beam to run my flying 20's through.

The first two were mediocre. They were fine for practice, but they definitely weren't lighting up the track. For the third one I tried a little self-talk just to see if I could get a little more out of myself and it worked. Not to shabby. My coach proceeded to tell me it was the fastest time he's ever had someone run at this time of the year. Well, he's coached at BYU for the past 30 years so while that may not hold much weight in my head looking at the big scheme of things, I am guessing it was supposed to make me feel satisfied with my effort. But he then followed up with that statement by telling me I was just a hair off of the best time he's ever had any of his athletes run. It was meant as a "job well done" but I didn't take it that way. I saw it as an immediate challenge.

And that was all I needed. My next run smashed his all-time coaching record. Unknowingly, he had given me my motivation to dig deeper. Because I hate. To. Lose. I create competition whenever possible and now that I had a specific challenge in front of me, I could rise to the occassion, so to speak. Sure, it existed only in my head...these athletes from the past 30 years aren't people I really know, nor do I consider them my competition, but they presented me the opportunity to make them my competition for the day.

Sometimes motivation comes in various forms. For me, when I can make something a competition and find someone to be a competitor, I am able to dig that much deeper to get the job done. I'm pretty sure I would have been the fastest gal ever to go to BYU had I gone there, but now I think it's official. :)

The Secrets of a Six-Pack

Day 8


I use 24 hour fitness facilities quite frequently when I'm not training at the Olympic Training Center. I always try to go incognito--meaning not head to toe spandex and definitely no midriff bearing tops. People stare. And then they ask questions. Many times they like to know how and what--how can they get their stomach muscles to appear and what exercises should they be doing. This past weekend I was at the gym and by the end of my core workout I was giving mini lessons. It wasn't planned, buy my ipod died on me and I happened to be in a sharing mood that day. And since I'm still in a sharing mood, I figured I would share with you as well...

Watch what you eat. I am constantly watching what I eat. I watch it sit on my plate and then find it's way to my mouth. Pizza...french fries...chocolate...you name it. But if you aren't working out hours a day and you don't have lightning fast metabolism, I would suggest you watch a little more carefully than I do.

Lower your body fat percentage. This is key. If you want a flatter looking stomach and for there to be an outline of muscles, you have to get rid of the fat that's on top of it. You can spend all the time in the world building up a strong core, but if it's hidden, the world will never see it. The main reason why people in my sport have six-packs is because our training usually creates athletes with low body fat percentage. It's also why it's easier for men than women--men just typically have lower body fat. So before you sit down to do a set of crunches, run some intervals and eat some broccoli.

Work a core routine into your your regular exercise routine. I have never been the person to do 5000 sit-ups before bed. I also don't believe in strapping some vibrating gadget to my midsection while I sit back and watch T.V. Sprinting and the type of explosive training I do engages my core and works my stomach muscles all the time. Beyond that, I just incorporate core work the same way I do flexibility and anything else that's going to help my overall training. I'm big on using the physioball, medicine balls, plates, hanging from a bar... basically I like variety. But if you're able to use a physioball and put yourself in an unstable environment that causes you to engage your core already, you're doing twice the work and getting more accomplished. Core work is part of my warm-up, cool-down, and work that I do in the weight room. That way I am always getting it in, but not feeling like it's a chore.

Blame your parents. You can either thank them or tell them it's their fault that you aren't walking around with ripped abs. I can't recall either of my parents ever having a six-pack, but I know that it has to be part of my genetics that I don't carry much fat around my midsection and I'm able to tone very easily.

Those are my secrets. If you want an actual routine to follow, try to catch me at the local 24-hour fitness with a dead ipod and a welcoming smile on my face.