It is a feeling of strength and accomplishment. Nobody can buy the feeling of hard work and the accomplishments that result from it and I am fortunate enough to experience this feeling much more frequently than the average person. As a member of the UCLA Swim Team, “it” for me is being able to have the power to surge ahead of the swimmer next to me at the end of a race when I feel as if I do not have an ounce of energy left in my body, and out-touch her for the win. This is why I do what I do.
Waking up at 5:30am in the winter to go swimming outside may not seem fun‒ which is true because it is not. But standing behind the starting blocks at PAC-10s with my teammates lining the side of the pool cheering for me creates mixed feelings of nervousness and excitement. There is no feeling like putting 100% hard work and effort into finishing a race, looking up at the scoreboard and realizing that I have just qualified for the Olympic Trials. Trust me, that feeling does not arise often in everyday life. But in order to make it occur, I have to work out hours upon hours every week in the pool and weight room.
This summer, I swam in a meet, hoping to shed a few tenths of a second off of my best time in my 100 meter backstroke. During prelims in the morning, I was able to accomplish just that, which was quite exciting because I was pleasantly surprised with my time. I qualified for finals that evening and felt a little more pressure to do even better than my best time that morning at prelims. My teammates were behind the starting blocks cheering for me right before and during my race. When I touched the wall at the end, I looked up at the scoreboard and found that I had dropped over a second from my swim that morning. I had to take a second look at the scoreboard to check and make sure I read the scoreboard correctly. Not only was this an amazing feeling of accomplishment, but also, a qualifying time to compete at the Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska during the summer in 2012, to try to qualify for the Olympic Games. Upon climbing out of the pool after my swim, I was smothered with hugs and high-fives from my teammates.
Why do I do what I do? To achieve the benefits of self discipline, and the incredible feeling of accomplishment, knowing I have done my best.
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