#StudentAthleteProblems: Morning Runs

As a fall athlete, making it to the off-season seems like an accomplishment in itself. After all, the season is full of run tests, distant away games, and lots of practicing. By the time the season is over and the off-season rolls around it would seem like the hardest is over. Try again. The off-season means morning runs and that’s where the real student athlete problems begin.
 
10:30 seems like a great time to go to bed and get lots of sleep, but not when you have to wake up at 6:30 the next morning. Every Tuesday and Thursday, Cory Walt’s Speed and Quickness class begins at 7:00 am sharp in the gym. While everyone else may be yawning at the early morning wake up call, Cory seems completely awake. Which makes him all that much more enthusiastic with his whistle!
 
The morning will start with a few quick laps around the gym. And by that I mean five laps around the gym, during which you typically lose count because it’s too early to count that high. Shortly after, one student athlete each week is chosen to tell a joke. Because waking up before the sun rises is way easier when you get to hear a knock knock joke at 7 am. Ha ha.
 
After the daily joke, the stretching begins. Cory then patrols up and down the line checking to see who ate breakfast. No breakfast? Cory will not be very pleased. The rough thing about breakfast at this hour is that it usually consists of fruit or a breakfast bar. And to be completely honest, neither is all that appetizing at 6:30 in the morning.
 
After the pretty grueling hour and a half of exercises, the final “conditioning” portion of the week is thrown in. Sometimes they are shuttles, other days shorter circuits. Either way, they say that people save the best for last and Cory certainly holds true to this principle! All that being said, it is a nice feeling to have finished that final drill (all before 8:30 am).
 
So, as I sit here writing this post at 5 pm Wednesday night, I’m already planning out what I have to do to be in bed by 10:30. Pathetic, I know. But don’t worry. After our morning run, I have my massive DC breakfast and hour nap at 10 am to look forward to! By then, I will be one morning run down for the week, one to go.