Galveston, that's where. Hopefully you all recognized the Norah Jones song there.
This update is overdue - since camp ended about 3 days ago, and I head back to Dallas today. But no matter. It was another terrific Playtri camp, with lots of fun and training and lessons to be learned. Camps always inspire me to be a better coach. Having the opportunity to work with coaches like David and Jeanne really gives me something to aim for, and shows me specific ways that I can improve my coaching.
I still tend to be a little tentative in my instruction with athletes that I don't coach one-on-one. It's not because I doubt my ability, but more that I worry that others might doubt my credibility. Which is just silly. What a waste of knowledge. It's something that I need to continue to work on (or, as Ahmed would say, "sucking it up"), and this weekend was a good reminder of that. Hearing great lectures from the other coaches also reminded me that I need to start preparing some more lecture material myself. I gave my first lecture in Hawaii, and quite honestly, wasn't personally thrilled with it. I let my nerves get the better of me, especially towards the end. I don't want that to happen again... it's the same as with my coaching, I've got the knowledge, but I worry that I won't be taken seriously, and I let it affect my ability to deliver. Just so you know, this is very personal stuff for me, but I share it because it's a huge part of what I deal with as a coach, and it tends to seep into my struggles as an athlete.
Speaking of, those were made glaringly apparent this weekend as well. Camps, whether I am a coach or a participant, always remind me of my own deficiencies as an athlete - in a good way, of course. It is motivating for me to be around other athletes, and hear about their struggles and dilemmas, as well as their successes. This past weekend was no different, and it left me motivated to, once again, pick up the ball and keep on working towards my goal. There was a great article in The Yoga Journal recently about how to change bad habits (like, I don't know, missing workouts unnecessarily), and while it made a lot of great points, the most important one for myself was a reminder that, hey, I'm worth it. My goals and success are worth me sucking it up and getting ALL of my training in. It inspired me and, in keeping with Fat Tuesday and Mardi Gras, I decided to go ahead and honor Lent this year as well - I'm a rather fallen away Christian, but it's a time of year that always taught me a lot about self-discipline growing up, and that's something I need right now. So I am giving up slacking off on my workouts. Yep. I'm giving up on not doing something. We'll see how this goes - it starts today with a swim, and goes for the next 39 days. Hopefully by the time Lent is done, I'll be enough in the groove to just keep on the way I have been (though I might ask for one day off on Easter... just to celebrate).
Either way, I am, once again, giving myself a clean slate to work with - another point the article made as an important aspect of getting rid of bad habits. Don't be weighed down by mistakes - focus on what you can still do correctly.
Happy training, everybody
And a brief note: It came to my attention yesterday that via a post I made in October, it was implied that I write the training plans for some of Ahmed's clients. This is NOT correct. I occasionally do research on courses and timelines, and may work on schedules for practice, but all actual schedules and plans are written by Ahmed himself. Please feel free to contact either of us if this is a concern for you. Thank you for your understanding.
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