Passion

I have a passion for a sport. A passion so strong that I wish I could spend every second of my life working harder to get me to the top. Volleyball is what I live for, and I will always work my hardest to reach my goals. I would train for hours every single day, go days without sleeping and eating, just to reach my goals and get to the top. I do not really understand how much I get made fun of for having this blog, laying my life out, getting myself where I want to go. I have a passion that has made me so determined to do my best in everything I do! Having passion is so strong. It makes you feel great and makes you realize that you really do have something worth living for. I cannot even explain how many people laugh at me for trying in school, doing a ton of extra practice, loving volleyball so much that I would spend days working my hardest at, and to set goals and stretch my arms up so high to reach the top! I love having the feeling of trying. Having something to work for, even if it might take weeks to years. I love having to fight everyday, because I know that in the end, it will bring me what I have always wanted. I cannot even explain how upset it makes me because I hear people saying "She's so weird because she has a blog talking about her life, what a nerd" or "you're so tough because you lift weights" in a completely sarcastic tone. It makes me so disturbed how people do not realize that I am trying to go somewhere, hence how I spend 40+ hours a week working my butt off to achieve my life goals. I am an athlete and leader and I will keep pushing myself to the limit, past the limit, and miles beyond the limit. Volleyball is my lifestyle. I spend hours on end playing it and thinking it. I am completely capable of achieving my goals, anyone is if they put their time and mind on it. Working out is my drug, I am addicted to the rush I get when I  light and complete it or make a PR. I bleed, I sweat, I ache, I work hard. I do not see how my life is affecting you, I'm driving myself the way I want to go! I love having volleyball as my passion, it gives me a warm feeling everytime I think about it because I want to achieve so much more with the sport. Motivation has gotten me started on my journey, the habit of working hard to achieve my goals is what keeps me going. People play sports for the thrill of having fun with a team who shares the same interest. We play sports because we are competitive athletes. The feelings of stress, pressure and nervousness is a part of being an athlete. These feelings stem from the challenge of taking part in something you love and have to work hard for, pumping you up, providing healthy adrenaline that turns into the best practice ever or an amazing game. It is so important to feel the continuous struggles with outcomes of failure and success. Without this, you will not develop and grow as an athlete of a team. How do I handle this stress, pressure, and/or nervousness? Easy!  1. Accept. Accept rather than fight these feelings. It is a normal feeling of adrenaline pumping through your veins. 2. Visualize. Visualize yourself performing well on the court or field. Tell yourself, "I can do this!" 3. Play like you only care for you and your teams effort, not the outcome. 

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10100702175501528

This little video is of me dead lifting 213 pounds for 5 sets of 3! It was a PR and man, did if feel amazing! Just a little inch closer to my goal!

Everyone experiences what it feels like to win. Winning is such an awesome feeling! It rewards you that with that rush of happiness and adrenaline. But there is a way on how to win with Sportsmanship: Win with grace and have respect for your opponents. The most respectful thing you could possibly do towards your opponents is compete fully. Never play down or defeated, treat every point with care and focus. After a game, it is not cool to walk and congratulate your opponents with a snotty look on your face that screams, "I'm better than you" or "You guys suck". Be that person/team that wins with a great attitude! Win with generosity and congratulate on how well they played. It is really not that hard.

Losing is no different! Lose with grace and respect for our opponents and especially, your teammates. How you react to a loss is a true example of your character. As hard as it is to lose, your reaction needs to be humbling, mature, and dignified. When you have a hard loss, remember that feeling and use it to motivate you and your teammates. Having the feeling of disappointment and separation in your team is a completely stuck up way to loose. Do not be that player, be happy! Every athlete experiences loss.

Having good sportsmanship is such a great quality to have. It is a lifestyle and an attitude that cannot go wrong.  I would like to tell you something funny that had happened yesterday in my softball game against Watsonville High School. My team was up 8-1 when I got up to bat and I hit a triple, driving in 2 runs, making it 10-1. On the pitch right after, there was a pass ball and I could not hold myself back from running after my coach had told me to go. I slid into the pitcher who had not yet received the ball but who had covered up the whole plate, and I slightly pushed her to try and get to the plate. I start trying to find the plate, and the umpire calls me out. I start getting up and the pitcher decides to push me back down and punch me straight in the chest. The umpire yells at her and pushes her back as her coaches run over to her. I was completely fine and reacted as if nothing had happened, but that was a completely unsportsmanlike thing for her to do. In that situation, the best thing I could have done was to not fight back. I got up as if nothing had happened and jogged my way to the dug out.

However, there is no need in any situation of talking negatively about teammates, coaches, and/or opponents. That is never acceptable. This behavior serves on no ones part. Support your team at all times and encourage everyone else to do the same. You are a team, a family. 

"I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career, lost almost 300 games, and misses the game-winning shot 26 times. I've failed over and over again in my life. That is why I succeed."


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHXZgoqokKk


Please watch this video I have attatched above. This video is so inspirational in every perspective. Train hard everyday and you will get somewhere. I promise. How bad do you want it?

When Life Gives You Lemons

This last weekend was the Presidents Day Tournament at the San Jose Convention Center! It was a three day tournament that my team worked their hardest to win! And guess what, we got 1st :)

This weekend, I had no intentions to give up. I went out, worked my hardest, went for every ball, and served/set/hit/passed every ball with heart. I do not regret any one play or any game played this weekend. We played many teams that gave up a huge fight. There was not a 17's division so we played in the 18's division along with many 16's teams. I loved this tournament, it was put together so well.

It was also really funny at one point of the tournaments. I played my best friends team! Most of the girls on that team go to SLV high school, a school in my hometown, where most of my best friends go! It felt so weird playing them because I've only played against them in school. The coach of this team has always tried to recruit me for his club but his club just is not competitive enough for me. I am trying to go somewhere people! He always talks bad about Shoreline, and I hate hearing it, but it is what it is. But just to let you know, Santa Cruz Shoreline 17's has DEFEATED the Santa Cruz Crush by loads of points. That was a great start to the day!

Today, I did not go to school due to a Cardiologist appointment. This was my first day with a new Cardiologist, for I have had my last one for 2 years, and I absolutely love him! His name is Dr. Tran and he is a Pediatric Cardiologist. I honestly have never felt so honored to be in a doctors office. He was hilarious! He made me laugh so many times, I felt so comfortable. I have been diagnosed as a Tachycardiac, which is me having rapid heart beats at random moments (they usually happen once every two months or less). It is not severe in any case, but it keeps me aware of everything I do. Since they do not have anything on file of my heart palpitating, I will have a 30 day heart monitor that will catch my heart having an episode. I am very excited to see what will happen!

Having a new Cardiologist has opened me up to so many new things. I myself has always wanted to be a Cardiologist, but now, I have a life changing decision I need to make. Yes, I am only a sophomore and have a few more years till I really have to decide what I want to be, but I do so many medical researches on my own time that it should be time for me to decide. Dr. Tran had told me if I want to be a Cardiologist, it takes years of being committed and having patience. He went to school for 14 years, all around, starting at UC Irvine, going to a small medical school in Virginia, Utah State, and all the way to Nevada State. He told me he never knew what a Pediatric Cardiologist or that there was even such a thing until he discovered that being a General Nutritionist was way to boring to spend a lifetime on. I had know clue there was a HUGE difference between Pediatric Cardiology and Adult Cardiology. Pediatric is mostly birth defects, imaging, and preventive cardiology where as Adult Cardiology is heart failures/transplants, heart disease, and ongoing birth defects. He said it is a huge decision followed by a huge committment. And boy, am I ready to spend 14 years of my life studying Cardiology.

People always ask me why am I such a happy person. Easy: I live a great, blessed life. I love everything I do, I love everyone I am around, and I enjoy every second of it. I spend 100% of my life in school and playing sports. I try my hardest at everything I can, making my life worth living! I set smalls goals, little by little, to finally some day reach my highest goal and maybe even farther! There is always the good days and bad days. You just have to overcome the bad days by thinking about what you really have in life! I always think about my supportive family, my friends, my teachers taking the time to teach me to get me somewhere in life, my coaches motivating me and making me the best I can be, and my teammates. I live everyday for a reason and that reason motivates me to reach my goals. Everyday is a good day, and I think we all take that for granted once in a while. So stay positive, realize what you have, and be happy, it's so worth it!

"When life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life that you have a thousand reasons to smile."

Never Give Up

What a long weekend.

This last weekend was the Power League Qualifier up in Sacramento, CA. This was such a huge and important tournament to every team because it depends on where your team is placed by how well you place. For my team, we did not do as well as we had hoped.

We started out as seed 112 on the first day and luckily ended up as seed 62 at the end of it. Everyone was nervous, not mentally ready, and did not seem as if we were ready to do our best. We came out with fire and passion, but had very nervous looks on all of our faces. Since it was the first tournament of the year, that is expected but to get over the feeling of being nervous was needed. Saturday was one of the longest days of volleyball I've ever came across. We woke up at 6:30 to get in a good, healthy breakfast and drove to the gym. Our first game began at 7:45. Our schedule was so confusing! They would say how are next game would be delayed till 4:30 when it would really start at 12:30. So we were basically running in circles figureing out what our real schedule was. Because our schedule was so confusing, our last game ended at 10:30. They literally had to kick us out of the gym because it was so late. But hey, it was worth it!

The second day also didn't go as planned. We had long breaks that turned out into us playing back to back to back without it even being on our schedule. Our last game ended at 8:30,  concluding the log weekend of volleyball.

I wish the qualifier wasn't our first tournament. We were all nervous and we did not seem well prepared. We all had our off moments but mine just happened to be so uncommon...

I am a setter. I am a team leader. I am the play maker. This weekend, I barely set. I actually only set one whole game. In every other game, I played all around as a right side. I got to pass serve receive, hit front row and back row, and got to play defense without worrying where I have to run and get the ball and make a decent play out of it. I felt free. I love setting so much, but playing right side was awesome. I started off Saturday with 15 kills in the first full match. I never even practiced right side in practice! I had great serving runs and great digs in defense. But I still cannot connect why my setting was not on like it usually is. Was it mental? Was it physically? Was I just flat out nervous? I'm not sure, but I'm ready to go into my next tournament and kill it. My next tournament is this weekend at the San Jose Convention Center on February 16th through the 18th. It'll be a good one!

I guess I can fit this into a "Never Give Up" sort of way. I did not put myself to the challenge that I always put myself too. I cannot say I quit, because I didn't. I went and played a new position with confidence, putting more points on our scoreboard then I expected. When things go wrong, and they sometimes will, don't give up even though it feels as if nothing is going to work. Success is only failure that is turned inside out. It is when things seem worst that you must not quit. We have many journeys throughout our lifetime and we get to parts of those journeys where we feel like we should give up. You are stronger than you think. Having one little setback is just not enough to stop you from achieving your goals. Go out there and prove yourself to the world. Who wants to be known as someone who is weak and gives up? I sure don't. If someone has been able to go out there and do it, I am sure as heck you are completely capable of anything you put your mind too. Never sell yourself short. There is always going to be those people that try and bring you down and tell you that what you're trying to accomplish is not possible, (I know plenty of those people), but then there is the motivation: Your friends, family, and coaches. Let the people you love be your inspiration to persist and persevere! Do you know that feeling of when your goal is only an inch away and you can't wait to come across it and out do it? That is the best feeling ever. Never ever give up, push yourself! I know you can do it! :) This next tournament, I am going to walk onto the court and take over. I am going to feel the greatest amount of confidence I have ever felt when stepping onto the court and use it to my advantage. This is going to be a great oppurtunity for me and a great tournament. I can't wait!

"A champion is someone who gets up, even when he can't."

Mental Preparation

Today was such a strange day. I started off by waking up at 6:00 AM and going to school. It is CASHEE testing week so all the sophomores have to take this stupid test that is literally 5th grade level. SO easy. I felt so unbelievably tired after testing and I do not understand why. I started off with a great breakfast (like always) and just felt too exhausted! After long hours of testing, I had a few more hours of school until softball began.

Softball started at 3:30 and felt like it went on for days. We did a great amount of warming up then went straight into infield. We did loads of buckets then would get some water then do more. Right after infield, we did some outfield! I love outfield, it is my favorite position because I love running. Running for the ball then having to dive and catch the ball is such a great feeling. Standing up with the ball in your glove, having the crowd praise you... That is what I like. I love the feeling of my metal spikes picking up the dirt and throwing it behind me while I am running my heart off, trying to help my pitcher. Outfield was made for people like me. Athletes who are not afraid to run for a ball and go all out trying to catch it, flying through the air. Anyway, we went through probably 20 more buckets of outfield work then went to hitting. Hitting was okay. It was not what I would of liked it to be, but it is what it is! That took a little while then we went into running the bases. We went from home to 1st twice then when from home to home once, all getting timed. I love hearing the times cause it makes me feel like I have to compete against every single person. I finally hit a solid 3.0    running from home to 1st and only a 12.3 running from home to home. I am hoping that I can increase my speed and lower those times, even if it is only a little bit!

Right after softball, I went home quickly and changed into workout clothes to go to training. I started off with my normal dynamic stretches and I felt some sort of anger building up in me and I had absolutely no clue why. So, I decided I really needed to work off all the steam, built up inside me, wanting to burst itself out. I started with deadlifts, doing sets of 5 at 203 lbs. I concluded those with 3 sets of 8 lateral lunges with 25 lbs. Then, I did Death by 10 meters. Hearing it from Kyle Haynes, Jocelyn's husband and a gnarly weightlifter, did not sound so bad for someone who likes to sprint. But man, I was tired. It starts off by having one minute to complete a 10 meter sprint. After that, you have one minute to complete 2 10 meter sprints. One minute to complete 3 10 meter sprints and so on... By 10, I definitely started to feel it. He said I only had to go to 16 but I think I could have completed 25 easily. It felt good to get some good conditioning in while angry, I feel like it helps motivate me more. I guess you could say this topic brings me to Mental Readiness.

I have a huge tournament coming up this weekend that is at the Sacramento Convention Center on February 9th and 10th. It is the Power League Qualifier and Shoreline is coming out to do our very best. I always take advantage of my learning and performance oppurtunities and always taking that extra step. If there's an open gym, I will always be there, asking any coach or player to help me improve my game whether it is volleyball or softball but in this case, it is volleyball. I plan ahead, practice to my very best, and prepare as effectively as I can. Mental Readiness is such a key point in any sport. For me, whenever I step onto the court, field, gym floor.. I always turn into a new mentally, physically, and committed athlete. I always go into my best mental zone for quality performance. What I have learned most is that you NEED to follow a path that brings out the best in you. Stuck in the wrong crowd of friends that do not support you in what you love? Find people who appreciate what you want to do and where you want to go, someone who is right by your side giving you the support you should be seeing out of a friend/friends. That was my position earlier this year, I had friends who had no interest about how my tournaments went or how my training goes. I made the smart decision of changing friends to people who love hearing what I have to say. Go down the path you really do want to make, but be sure it is what you want. Lastly: RELAX AND STAY FOCUSED. So important! Tournament anxiety used to be one of my biggest problems. I would have questions racing through my mind like the fastest racecar out of the track. I got over that so quickly by sitting myself down and saying "You can do this, you're going to set every ball so perfectly." Images in your brain are such a great thing. You see you and your team doing the actions you wish, imaging them can put them into reality. I have a few girls on my team that I go up to and say, "I'm going to set this ball and you're going to reach so high and crush the ball, sending it to the ground on the other side of the net, having no defender even get close to getting it up" and oh man, does that work. Everyone makes mistakes, just don't let one have such a bad effect on you. Relax, focus, and do what you gotta do! ;) "Mental preparation is training the mind for successful performance."