Feel the rhythm feel the ryhme......

School has started in Colorado Springs and with that comes a new group of kids at the Boys and Girls Club.  It was very difficult to say good bye to the summer campers, but I am getting to know and learning more about the new kids everyday.  It was exciting to meet two new girls who almost immediately remembered meeting me at the Olympic Training Center.  They recalled my sport and were very excited to share with their peers what I do.  I was heartbroken to hear that many of the kids had no idea what Bobsled was and did not watch any of the winter Olympics.  Of course, I asked them if they had seen the movie "Cool Runnings," which is how most people identify our sport, but none of them had.  I found the movie (which took a great deal of work!) and we all watched it together.  I got a chance to explain with the boys and girls what I do and answer any questions they had about my sport.  It was a lot of fun to see how focused they were watching the movie and trying to figure it all out.  I am glad they got to learn a little about me as I learn more about each of them. 

Superman .....or Woman!

The other day I was looking through a magazine and happened to stumble upon an article which highlighted a plus size model. I was completely astonished to see that this plus size model was 5’10’’ and weighed 150 pounds. If our society is claiming this size is plus size then what are we being told is ‘normal?’ Body Mass Index or BMI is a way to measure body fat based on height and weight and it assesses if individuals are at a healthy weight for their body height (obviously there are exceptions, as most athletes are considered to be out of range because of the increased muscle mass). This 5’10’’ 150 pound female has a BMI of 21.5, which is in her normal range of 18.5-24.9. It infuriated me to see a female that was within normal range, according to her BMI, be considered overweight.

I am 5’8’’ and weigh 175 pounds. I recognize that my size is not a normal size and is a bit extreme because of my sport, but I would hate for young woman or a female athlete to be looking at that same magazine and feel inadequate because they will never look ‘normal’ according to these images. In today’s society 5’10’’ and 95 pounds is considered to be an averaged sized model.  This is an unrealistic size for any healthy female to attempt to be. I have learned over the years that in order for me to be successful in my sport I have to be this size even if it is unorthodox and I hope that other females can follow suite.

This exact same day I went to the Boys and Girls Club where the project of the day was for the kids to imagine what super power they would have and to draw themselves as the super hero. Ironically, one of the girls, Niya, created herself as ‘Flex Girl.'  Flex Girl helps people out of trouble by flexing her strong muscles. I asked Niya where she got the idea for her superpower.  She told me that she saw my muscles and thought it would be cool to be strong like me!  I was incredibly moved that I inspired Niya to look beyond the unhealthy 95 pound model seen in the magazine and show her that any body type is beautiful.  This interaction helped to further motivated me and to push me to dream big and work hard in weight room or on the track.  Not only for myself, but also for young girls like Niya.  Every pound of muscle I have on my body is a direct reflection of my hard work.  I am proud of the body I have created regardless of if it is 'normal' or if I will ever find jeans to fit over my quads! 

Until next time, I am off to the gym to keep my super powers in tact!

STRIKE!

The past three years I have been very fortunate to have two time Olympian and 2010 Gold Medalist, Curt Tomasevicz, as my training partner. He is one of the hardest workers I know and has not only pushed me in the weight room and the track, but he has taught me valuable lessons about our sport. His advice helped prepare me mentally for the ups and downs of the Olympic season. As long as I have known Curt, he has talked of his love for two things: the Chicago Cubs and the band Pearl Jam.  I really had no clue about either of these two things and have gradually over the years learned to appreciate and understand his infatuation. A couple years ago, Curt shared with me three dreams he wanted to fulfill in his lifetime. 1. Win an Olympic Gold Medal 2. Throw out the first pitch at Wrigley Field 3. Play his bass guitar with Pearl Jam (which was completed this summer with the help of a family friend).

After last season when he and his team, ‘The Night Train,’ won Gold at the 2009 World Championships, I determined that Curt had the accompliments for me to help make his second dream happen and the talent to make his first happen. I was on a mission. I was somehow going to make his first pitch at Wrigley Field happen.  After many discouraging emails and phone calls I recruited the help of my teammate and Chicago native, 2010 Olympian, Jamie Moriarty. I asked Jamie if he had any ideas of how I could make this happen and coincidentally he was trained by a coach that had connections with many of the Cubs players and even the owner! Jamie and I sat down and composed an email to Todd Ricketts, the owner of the Cubs, expressing why we thought Curt, a long time Cubs fan, would be a perfect candidate for throwing out the first pitch at one of the games. A few days after the Opening Ceremony Jamie got an email back from Todd confirming that Curt was going to have the opportunity to throw out a first pitch. We were ecstatic and felt like little kids waiting for Christmas as we held in our secret and waited until after the final Bobsled runs to tell our teammate what his future held.

                          Jamie, Curt and I on Wrigley Field

Last week Curt and I (and about 60 of Curt’s family and friends) traveled to Jamie’s hometown, Chicago, for the much anticipated first pitch. It was amazing to watch a grown man, on the pitchers mound, in front of thousands of fans, realize a childhood dream. It is easy as athletes to forget that we get the opportunity to do incredible things daily. Every one of us may not have the opportunity to complete all the things we want to do in our life before the age of 30, like Curt has done, but we have accomplished more than many have dreamed of doing. After seeing Curt accomplish his three dreams I have realized that really anything is possible. Anything. Whether it is throwing out a first pitch, playing with your favorite band, or even winning an Olympic Gold Medal. These dreams are all attainable, it is just up to us to find a way to make them happen.

This week at the Boys and Girls Club, the girls and I talked about goals. I was able to share with them my goals and how I came about fulfilling them. Each girl was to create a project about their goals and what they wanted to be when they grow up. My favorite drawing was a little girl who wants to be a ‘polsewoman’ (policewoman) when she grows up. This really touched my heart because someday when I ‘grow up’ this may be an avenue that I want to pursue. Her drawing was incredible and I really wish I would have had my camera that day, so I could share it will all of you. My hope is that each one of the girls will post their projects on their walls to remind themselves daily of the direction they want their lives to go.

Stars, stripes... and Fashion Shows?

I have worked at the Boys and Girls Club over a handful of times and have easily falling into Sarah’s old role as art teacher. It is really exciting to go the club each day and have my group of girls who know when I arrive it is art time. Last week our project was to make masks out of paper plates. After we finished our masks the girls were so creative they used fabric in the art room to make matching outfits. We proceeded to have the very first Boys and Girls fashion show. It was a lot of fun to see how excited the girls were to show off what they created to the rest of the club.


Friday, we learned about the Fourth of July and made wind socks for the girls to hang outside on the fourth of July. I enjoyed watching them create their projects and I limited to only using the colors red, white and blue. I tried to express how much pride come with these colors and was able to share part of my experience at the Olympics with them. Many of them were so excited that they included the Olympic rings on their projects.

As far as training goes, I am happy to report that I did not lose much strength by ‘living the dream’ the last few months and I am working towards getting my conditioning back. I am in my fourth week of training and happy that the first month is behind me. I can now focus on making gains rather than trying to limit my soreness so that I can function. It is still hard to stay motivated as it feels like big goals are so far away, but I lucky to have an amazing strength coach and teammates to push me through each day.

ITA Summer Project

I am excited to finally start my summer project in Colorado Springs working with the Boys and Girls Club. Former ITA athlete, Sarah Groff, worked at this same location, so I know I have very big shoes to fill. I am looking forward it. Not only am I going to be working at the Boys and Girls club, but a friend and Women’s Wrestling World Team Member will be working with me. When I told her about my project she immediately jumped on board and wanted to do all she could to help out the youth in the Colorado Springs community as well. It was really amazing to me that just by talking about ITA and my project, I inspired someone else to volunteer. It will be fun to not only be working with the kids at the Boys and Girls Club, but also sharing the experience with a fellow athlete and friend.

Back To The Office...

After 3 months of being back home in Chico relaxing and sharing my Olympic story with local schools it is time to get down to business. I am now at my second home in Colorado Springs to begin training for the upcoming season. I have had a lot of fun the last few months allowing myself ‘rock star’ status. My definition of rock star status may be different than others, but to me it meant I was able to do the things I have not being able to in the past few years. This consisted of consuming whatever calories I wanted and eating as many burritos and cheese sticks as I could stand. I stayed up late, watched all my favorite T.V. shows and slept in as late as I wanted.

I have spent the last years so focused on one goal that I have not allowed myself to stray from my regimented plan. I have missed many events because the travel would affect my training. I have been sure to get as much rest as I could so my body could perform at the highest level possible. I ate foods that I enjoyed, but mostly used it as fuel. My days have been completely consumed by when I am going to train, what I am going to eat and how I am going to recover. I have done all of this because I love it and the chance to compete for Team USA is amazing, but there are times the sacrifice can be difficult. That is why I have been playing ‘catch up’ the last few months, but I am now finally ready to get back to work. I anticipate having a hard time walking after training in the next few days and weeks, but I sure enjoyed having no limitations the last few months.