Allie Heizelman's Gymnastics Journal
9/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
Sept. 24, 2008
Hello Tiger Gymnastics fans! So, our team made it through the first week of official practices! Being a freshman, I had no idea what to expect. It was a bit of a shock, but we all made it. Coming for a month in the summer to meet the girls and the coaches really helped though. I am so glad I did. Gymnastics in high school is so different than doing it here at Mizzou, but I wouldn't want it any other way! I love it! Getting to know the team better and working out with them has been great. I am so excited to be here!
Although practice has been fun, it has been pretty tough. With all of the conditioning, we have been so sore! We have been doing conditioning in the gym, such as handstand push-ups, rope climbs, crunches, leg lifts, sprints, etc. which have been challenging. And we have also been doing some conditioning over at the Mizzou Athletics Training Complex as well -- Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays we have cardio and Tuesdays and Thursdays we have weight training. It has been a big adjustment, but we are beginning to get used to our new schedule and practice structure. We realize that all of the hard work we are putting in now will pay off when we compete this winter! One of our biggest goals this year is to make it to Nationals and I truly believe this team has the dedication and talent to do it!
We have been meeting with our sports psychologist Jeni, discussing our team goals and planning out how we are going to achieve those goals. We had a meeting with her on Sunday, which went really well. During the meeting we discussed some of the aspects of the mental side of gymnastics. We mainly talked about everyone's fears and how if we work through them using different visualization and breathing techniques we will be able to overcome them and be successful. Everyone has really come together; we have decided where we want to be and have been planning how we are going to get there. I feel like we have been doing a really good job and all the work we are putting in now is going to help us be successful this meet season!
I can't wait for my first season here at Mizzou! It is going to be great! I hope to get to meet and see all of you at our meets in January! GO TIGERS!!
--Allie
