From Gray to Gold: Transitions
As an athlete, the toughest battles are fought from within yourself. This week, I will describe the transition periods that I had to go through, both high school to college, and college to the pro game. I will fill you in on all of the lessons I had to learn, and everything that I had to teach myself to cope with these changes.
High school Track and Field for most big time athletes is pretty smooth sailing. Typically during the regular season, you can show up in any mindset that you choose, and you'll still finish near the top. You find yourself with your eyes constantly on the post season, because there are always those one or two, maybe three athletes that you can't wait to beat at the State Championships in Columbus. That all changes once you enter the NCAA. Imagine a huge pile of athletes that are just as talented as you are, how do you break away from a pack of equal talent? There are three key things, from my experience, that every athlete MUST consider in order to stand out in the college track scene.
Number one is the coach. To me, a coach is a mentor, a psychologist, a motivator, and a technician all in one. Seek someone that you and your family believe can mentor you through the roller coaster ride that our sport is, that can get you mentally ready to compete, light a fire under you, and have your running, jumping, throwing events on point. Number two is the atmosphere that you surround yourself with. What is it like? Is it a positive training scene that enables you to stay focused, motivated, and to not get distracted? Trust me, if anybody knows how easy it is to get distracted in college, it's me, and it's a hard personal battle to break through. My challenge to every young athlete is to look in the mirror, and think about what you see yourself as. If you see yourself as a champion, you need to surround yourself with people that also see themselves that way. It's very inconvenient though, knowing that your friends can/will drag 
you down to a lower level if they are not on the same mission as you, but I've seen it happen too much. Number three is nutrition. What are you fueling yourself with? Seek a nutritionist, discuss your goals with them, and discipline yourself to follow their advice. So many freshmen/sophomores gain so much weight because of the unlimited cafeteria food that is at their disposal, be careful with that.
Another personal battle that I've had to tend to through my growth as an athlete is the difference between two words, Pride and Passion. At first glance, these two words look very similar, let me tell you what I see when I see them. When I think Pride, I think superiority. I think of someone running for their own personal glory, someone seeking the approval of others. If you make that your aim, it will eventually lead to you crumbling. I found that no matter how hard I would pound on my chest, my times weren't getting any faster, and my jumps weren't getting any higher. You must do this sport because you love it, because you have a Passion for what you do. A mark of someone who has Passion is that they can't wait for practice, they can't wait to improve in the weight room, and they are so focused on winning that Pride is an afterthought. Save your ego, and just have some fun.
The truth is, you never stop learning these lessons and you will always have personal battles, even at the professional level, which gets very complicated in this sport. The most important part of being a professional track athlete is having networking skills. Next week, I will discuss the networking that took me from Ohio, to The University of Florida, to Santa Barbara, California. Where I am currently running for the newly formed Santa Barbara Track Club. Have a good week everyone.