What a week it has been!
Last Sunday we departed Toronto International Airport for Bulgaria. It was quite a long trip but it is clearly well worth it. It’s good that we came 10 days before racing as each of us needed some time to adjust to the 7 hour time difference (ahead of Toronto). At first I thought I wasn’t affected, but then on Day 4 and 5 I felt like a truck ran me over…not once, but over and over and over…and over! This truck may have even dumped some concrete on my face, ha!
Fortunately that’s all passed and my body has somewhat adjusted. As a lightweight rower it’s especially important to adjust because you want your body to respond to food and sleep the same way as it does back home. Losing weight over night is a big deal, so it’s nice when it starts to line up normally.
(Our Quad on the race course: Lindsay, Erin, me and Liz)
We’ve had some really productive sessions on the water this week too. At this point it’s not so much about gaining speed with fitness, but it’s more about gaining extra milliseconds with improved technique and timing. Each of us is a perfectionist in our own way, and so it’s nice to know that each of us is committing to making the right changes to improve boat speed. It will all come together on Wednesday August 15th when we race in the Heat around 7:40pm (Bulgarian time).
Aside from always learning how to be a more efficient rower, I’ve learned a lot about “team”. In individual sports you can do your own thing…put headphones in, do your own warm up, race prep, etc. In a team sport, like crew, there needs to be a balance between doing your own thing and also adapting to what works for the crew. Whether it was track, cross-country or rowing, I’ve always been about everyone trying to do the same thing in warm-up, visualization, etc. But this doesn’t always work and I’ve learned that it’s okay that it doesn’t. Everybody has a different level of “excitedness” (is that a word?!) that they need to be at in order to perform in their Ideal Performance State (IPS). Where one person may need to be at the top of the chart with a high high high level of excitedness (like me), another may need to be more calm and relaxed before racing to get into their IPS.
IPS is definitely something that I’ve come to get a grasp on recently. It takes time to get to a point where you know what your IPS is. Get in some good and bad races, analyze them, and then evaluate what kind of environment needs to be created in order to get you to perform at your best. For me, I have to add that a pre-race snack can also add to my IPS. Having that delicious white pita with nutella and banana seems to do it everytime these days. Sadly enough I think I sometimes dream about itJ.
Now separate to rowing it’s been an emotional (in a good way) week because my mother completed her last chemo session on Wednesday! She was accompanied by family and friends at the hospital when she got to ring the bell to announce that she was done her chemotherapy treatments! Of course there will be quite a lot of discomfort felt in the upcoming days as the drugs kick in, but it’s reassuring to know that this will be the last time she has to go through it. Radiation will begin in September and she’ll be ready to tackle that obstacle with a strong mind and body! Love you mamaJ.
(My mom and sister with my two adorable nieces)
Today we are going to see the ruins and so I’m sure I will (try) give you a history lesson on Bulgaria when I write next time. No judging pleaseJ.
Ps. GOOD LUCK to everyone racing in the Finals this Henley week-end!!!
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