A Humorous Take: The 5 Layers of Morning Practice
By Morgan Pestorius
No one understands the pain of morning practice unless they’ve experienced it themselves. And anyone who has been through morning practice knows there are five clear stages.
1. Dread/Anxiety
Lying in bed the night before morning practice is pure torture. You know no matter how early you go to bed, you will never get enough sleep. You want to cry just thinking about how soon you have to wake up again.
2. Pain/Avoidance
Personally, the sound of my alarm going off at 5:00 a.m. makes me feel physical pain. It’s cold and dark outside. Is practice really necessary? You find yourself thinking that you would give anything just to be able to stay in your warm, cozy bed.
3. Fear/Second-Thoughts
As you arrive at the pool, you wonder what terrible set your coach must be planning. You try to stall in the locker room, but you find yourself on deck. You realize there’s no turning back now, so you jump in the water.
4. Motivation/Dedication
Once you get through warmup, you start to feel pretty good. Look at you, you’re getting in a full workout before your friends are even awake! You’re in such a good mood, you decide you might even tackle that extra credit project after school this afternoon.
5. Exhaustion/Pride
That motivation you had this morning has worn off quickly and now you’re so tired you can barely stand. It’s only 9 a.m. and you are desperately in need of a nap. Maybe no one will notice if you just put your head down on your desk during class for a few minutes.
All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.
