Butterfingers on the Wagon

Bear with me while I paint a brief metaphorical picture, 

So there I was sitting on my wagon, polishing and tiding up some specific things I had in there, then next thing I know, my hands are empty, and my previously nearly clean objects are sitting 30 feet behind me caked in dust. 

I have been trying to work on my kicks, namely technique, speed, and my own stamina when throwing them. And since I stated practicing à la the fitness test I have seen my numbers slowly but steadily climb, and I can feel my stamina increase alongside as well. And I can see the results of this practice through my improvement from the first fitness assessment back in February, to the one we did just recently.

After the second fitness test happened, through one excuse or another (I'm still sore, I'm busy with friends tonight, I just did a huge physical assessment I deserve a break as a treat,) I stopped doing my kicks for 9 days. And it was obvious. 

It really sucks that I'm not at the place where I left off from. It feels like I have to do so much work just to get back to where I was, instead of using that time and energy to go even further. However I had two (highly contrasting) lines of thought that came out of this that I think will serve as important lessons for me moving forward.

1) Don't take such long pauses in your physical training!!! Things start to disappear WAY faster than you realize!!! You thought you would maybe be just slightly behind where you were but you were so so so wrong!!! And not only that but it's also insulting to yourself to waste all that effort you put in previously for the sake of a small break! Respect all the work you put in before, and honor that work by continuing to go further!!! 

-> this line of thought will help to serve as a motivator to continue to train even when I don't feel like it. Now that I realize how quickly things can slip away hopefully I will be less inclined to skip my kicks because now I know what's at stake. 

2) While the decrease in numbers is discouraging because it translates to a loss of speed and stamina, it's not necessarily a completely negative thing. We always talk about things "falling off the wagon" or having to take steps backward in order to move forward once we hit a wall, and I think that is part of what's happening here. We got lots of notes on our techniques (chambering, returning to a proper stance, striking with power, etc.) and what we are practicing in class (accelerating through the kick, and shifting your weight back into a proper stance, etc.) and I am definitely trying to keep those in the forefront of my mind while I'm doing my kicks which is definitely affecting my speed (both because I'm not used to moving in these new ways, but also the mental weight of remembering everything can distract from the cheering squad in my brain trying to yell "faster! faster! faster!".

-> since this year on the team stated I feel like my awareness regarding my training is the highest it's ever been so this is the first time I'm really aware those things falling off the wagon. So rather than just being discouraged by the absolute decrease in numbers, I am excited by them because that means everything will be so much better by the time I get them back onto the wagon this time around. 


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