Drool

Sometimes when I am really tired I have this small fear: I am afraid of drooling on the desk during class! I have figured out that it takes me about 11 hours to really feel energized and 'ready' to get up in the morning; and I don't get 11 hours a night. Between school and sports and work and homework and a social life... well you get the picture, sleep is hard to get! So how do I combat the fatigue? I do three simple things to help me throughout the day.

1. I get at least 8 hours of sleep a night.
To get about 8 hours of sleep, I set a bed-time. It is easy to stay up late, but it is hard to get to bed on time. I like taking the hard route in simple tasks, it prepares me for competition, where things are almost always hard to do.

2. I eat several meals.
The important thing about food is to start with breakfast, move to a morning snack, have a good lunch, eat an afternoon snack, and then have a 1st dinner followed a few hours latter by 2nd dinner. That means eating 6 times a day! It is important that your metabolism is working to keep you at the top of your game. When athletes work out they need to re-fuel... and do that with healthy choices.

3. I make time for exercise.
Exercise can be a great wake up call due to endorphins. Endorphins are natural opiate like substances the body produces when it is performing strenuous exercise. These substances help give people a sense of well being and it produces analgesia or pain relief.

These three things help me stay awake and not drool on my desk.

School... arg!

Whenever some one asks me how school is I want to let out a nice loud... arg! Class is long and stressful but learning is good. I am just so busy and what does class have to do with sports anyway?

Plenty!

Without good grades you can’t compete. High schools require that athletes maintain certain grades to stay eligible. Each class period is like a period in a game. You compete with yourself to do better every day and to make the grade. As an example lets look at alcohol. How are choices like drinking alcohol going to help you stay in bounds during the school day? Or even after the school day when you are doing homework? Alcohol affects your cognitive functions in different ways. One way it affects you is by decreasing your ability to retain information. When you aren’t able to remember information from the classroom you may be placed out of bounds.

Key ways to stay in bounds in the classroom:

Design a homework plan similar to a plan to get in shape.

Stick to your own homework schedule like you stick to your workouts.

Eat a balanced diet that will help you in school and in sports.

And as my mom would say “Make good choices ”

These things may sound lame but without them I wouldn’t have made it to where I am today. The old adage that time management is key is true! Without a plan of attack or goals set in place, managing your time is a concept and not something applied to life. I wish people had said “manage your time wisely by doing this…” Just telling me was no to manage my time was no good, figuring out a way to manage time saved me time and prevented stress!

Sideline.

Are you in bounds or out of bounds?

As an athlete there are choices you have to make so you can stay in the game and not on the sideline. Everyday you make the choice to come to practice and work hard, to play safe and prevent injuries, and to be a part of a team. You make the choice everyday to make sure you are a part of the action; to be a competitor.

No one wants to be on the sidelines watching the team. You want to be out there making a difference. Your choices decide what side of the line you are on…in bounds or out of bounds. The choice to drink alcohol can decide for you which side of the line you are on. How does alcohol affect performance? I'll be blogging about that over the next two months.