Track and Field is a sport that has a history dating back to 776 BCE, which is roughly 2,801 years ago. Track and Field started to emerge and become a popular sport during the mid-19th century in England as an organized sport. In modern times, track is a world-renowned sport with people of all genders and ages partaking in it. At Lakeside, even though we aren’t in the years before the common era, we still take pride in the sport of Track and Field!
Certain things have to be considered when trying to become great in track. Bad habits are a huge factor that needs to be taken into account. Diets can be a bad habit that can be hard to overcome, depending on what your diet consists of. Although for some it is easy to cut out foods that are bad for you, for others it’s a repeated cycle of using food to cope. For Blaire Griffiths, she states, “My diet during the season is solely dependent on my discipline. I limit the amount of processed food I consume daily, and I also take more time in the morning to make a nutritious breakfast and lunch.”
Perfection is a trait that everyone wants to master when it comes to how they perform during the season. For some, it is just perfecting mistakes made in past seasons or meets, while for others, they want to perfect every last thing they do, which eventually results in burnout.
Jordan Farley wants to “bring my times down and also not reserve my energy. My coaches say I reserve my energy when I run, so if I am able to stop reserving my energy, I can bring my running times down.
While records and times are important, you can argue that the friendships and family bonds that come along with track and field matter more.
Blaire says, “The track community and friendships you build along the way are what keep me going. Cons that can come with running track would definitely be the workouts and the constant stress you put on yourself to try and be great. You want to make a name for yourself.”
Having loved ones support you on and off the track is a key element to staying locked and thriving off the flowers given to you.
For Blaire, she states, “Having family there to support you can be beneficial because it gives you some comfort while also giving you motivation to do better. In the end, they’ll be there to build you up if you had a bad race, but also congratulate you if you did well.”
Some athletes balance multiple hobbies or sports, in addition to putting their time and energy into track. Jordan Farley states, “I balance cheer tryouts and track at the same time by doing one sport first and letting my coaches know I will not be there, and then the next day I show up to the other sport to make it up to myself and my team.”
Newcomers to track can feel nervous and out of place at times, although through communication and building bonds, they can eventually feel like they belong.
For Chris Williams, it is his first year running track, yet he states, “Being new to track is fun but also scary at times. You don’t really know what you are getting into or what type of events you want to run. It was fun for me to try out different events and find out what I like and do not like. At times, es I do feel excluded because everyone else has known each other for years, but I’ve slowly started to make new friends. If you’re thinking about joining, I recommend that you do, it’s really fun!”
In the end, track is a sport that all can enjoy, newcomer or not; there is a place for you in our Viking community!
