Another COVID outbreak: what does that mean for our ISB athletes? They either have their season ahead of them, or their season time got stolen. But how are they staying fit, so when they return to the sport that they love they will be fitter than ever? When wanting to be or stay good at a sport, athletes have to push themselves every day of the week. It doesn’t matter if it's working out before school or after, or running around the lake; playing sports is a commitment. Kevin Durant, a famous basketball player, said this in an interview with Tim Notke, his high school coach: “Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work hard.” He's saying that anyone that puts effort in getting or reaching their limits can get somewhere successful in their sport, which Kevin Durant did. So I will be going through the ways ISB athletes are staying fit, and asking for the type of exercises they do by interviewing people from different sports who either have a season ahead of them or the ones that got two weeks left when they got back on campus. So let's see these routines.
Jonah Cunney, the tennis captain, said this for his routine.
“Warm up for like 5-10 minutes which is like cardio or lifting light weights to warm up the muscles, then it depends on the day but for instance on chest and back days i'll do 3-4 workouts for both chest and back. For each workout I'll usually do 4 sets of 7 reps. And Then after I finish that, I'll do some body weight workouts to finish off."
Qasim Ali is trying out for track (400 meters, 800 meters and triple jump) and this is his training plan.
"Hill sprints 80 meters 4 sets of 8. Fartlek: 20 minutes, 1:30 minutes of mile pace, 1 minute fast pace (repeat till 20 minutes). Pyramids running: 100m 200m 300m 400m 400m 300m 200m 100m 2 sets (fast pace). Gym time: Arms, chest core legs for more power Practice block starts to have more efficient starts. Stretch every night so I don't get injured and stay flexible."
Olivia Bates (touch player) said this about how she is staying fit.
"In the mornings before school I go on a 1.5k to keep my endurance up, I try to go slow in the beginning and end fast, because in touch you need to finish strong and store your energy so that you don’t run out.
At night I do ab workouts to keep a strong core. I do Crunches, Plank, sit ups, side planks, leg raises and flutter kicks for 2 sets and every exercise 15 times.
Every other night I do leg workouts to have my hamstrings work even more and to keep my stabilitie. I do squats, lunges, side to side lunges and squat hold (30 seconds) I do 2 sets of 15.
Two times a week I go do yoga to stay flexible and it also engages the core."
Elias Fargervik, a swimmer, is staying fit by: "I go to the gym every day and switch from upper and lower body. At the end of each workouts I do abs as well. I bike to the gym to keep my cardio levels up and sometimes run after my workouts. I also do Muay Thai 3 times a week to change it up and it’s a great way to stay in shape for swimming."
Hajime Hinase, a rugby player, said this of how he is staying fit: “Obviously since rugby requires a lot of strength, when I go to the gym I tend to add a lot of “supper sets” in my workouts. I go to the gym 6 times a week, alternating different parts of my body to work on as well as different weights. Some days are heavy for strength, some days light to maintain my body shape. I've also changed my diet to match what my goal is. Now to keep fit, I go on runs 2-3 times a week, whether it'd be jogs, sprint training, or intervals. When I’m not in the gym I do a lot of body workouts at home to help other types of strengths, calisthenics."
So here, we can see how our athletes are staying fit and healthy ready for their season. And now, people who are not in season, can also know how to get fit and have an idea of what to do. Hard work pays off. Let's Go Panthers.