Spring Break
Dull days
Olivia Vivian
Issue date: 2/27/09 Section: Sports
OK, so Corvallis is nice, but it isn't the most happening of places. It doesn't help any when you live in a dorm and have no car either.
The daily activities of an athlete can sometimes be very repetitive. A typically dull day might consist of waking up, eating, going to class, treating injuries, eating, class, practice, eating, homework, eating and sleep. Repeat the next day.
When days are like this, life gets really boring, and in my case, I lose track of what day it is. Last week I was just following the daily routine, and I went to one of my classes. It wasn't until a different professor walked in and started talking about Shakespeare that I realized I was in the wrong class and it wasn't the day I thought it was. Talk about embarrassing.
It helps if you have interesting and fun classes to look forward to. Some of my classes are so boring that they result in me texting, looking up something irrelevant online or falling asleep.
I have some really awesome professors whose classes I look forward to. But the second some other instructors start talking, I settle in for a nice 50-minute nap. If I do manage to stay awake, I go to practice once classes are over.
As an athlete, you schedule your classes around practice times. That's not to say that our sport is more important than our education; it's just a lot easier if we train as a team. It's easier for us gymnasts, because it's much more of a supportive environment when we are all there, and it's easier for the coaches in the sense that they don't have to be in a chalky gym all day.
Practice is definitely the most important part of the day. I could have got all A's on my tests, had a great lunch, met some wonderful people and won the lottery, but if a terrible practice followed, it would be a crappy day. OK, so maybe not the lottery part, but you get my point. A good, productive practice session equals a great day and an awful practice will turn the whole day sour.
Some athletes are different and can let it go, but I think about it for the rest of the day. In my mind, I'm only as good as my last training session. I tend to think about how bad practice went, but then turn my attention to what I have to do next time.
Lately, practice has been going really well. Not just for me, but for the whole team. At this point in season, we are fighting injuries, sickness and the mental drain of midterms. But it's our job to leave those issues at the door in order to get the most out of every session.
I think this team is really good at doing this, and by executing this skill on a regular basis we have become a lot stronger. We are prepared for any challenges that may arise.
Olivia Vivian, OSU gymnastics
sports@dailybarometer.com
The daily activities of an athlete can sometimes be very repetitive. A typically dull day might consist of waking up, eating, going to class, treating injuries, eating, class, practice, eating, homework, eating and sleep. Repeat the next day.
When days are like this, life gets really boring, and in my case, I lose track of what day it is. Last week I was just following the daily routine, and I went to one of my classes. It wasn't until a different professor walked in and started talking about Shakespeare that I realized I was in the wrong class and it wasn't the day I thought it was. Talk about embarrassing.
It helps if you have interesting and fun classes to look forward to. Some of my classes are so boring that they result in me texting, looking up something irrelevant online or falling asleep.
I have some really awesome professors whose classes I look forward to. But the second some other instructors start talking, I settle in for a nice 50-minute nap. If I do manage to stay awake, I go to practice once classes are over.
As an athlete, you schedule your classes around practice times. That's not to say that our sport is more important than our education; it's just a lot easier if we train as a team. It's easier for us gymnasts, because it's much more of a supportive environment when we are all there, and it's easier for the coaches in the sense that they don't have to be in a chalky gym all day.
Practice is definitely the most important part of the day. I could have got all A's on my tests, had a great lunch, met some wonderful people and won the lottery, but if a terrible practice followed, it would be a crappy day. OK, so maybe not the lottery part, but you get my point. A good, productive practice session equals a great day and an awful practice will turn the whole day sour.
Some athletes are different and can let it go, but I think about it for the rest of the day. In my mind, I'm only as good as my last training session. I tend to think about how bad practice went, but then turn my attention to what I have to do next time.
Lately, practice has been going really well. Not just for me, but for the whole team. At this point in season, we are fighting injuries, sickness and the mental drain of midterms. But it's our job to leave those issues at the door in order to get the most out of every session.
I think this team is really good at doing this, and by executing this skill on a regular basis we have become a lot stronger. We are prepared for any challenges that may arise.
Olivia Vivian, OSU gymnastics
sports@dailybarometer.com
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