Pepperdine sophomore Laura Gulbe gives us another update after the team's first tournament of the fall season:
What do you do when you are hurt, but want to keep playing? I guess one of the answers would be to try to learn how to take care of your body, that's for sure.All of us have to learn - every day. Nobody has a recipe what is the perfect amount of knowledge ... More is not always better, but there has to be balance in everything.
Between classes, practices, homework and other things it is easy to forget that sleep is also important, that nutrition is important, and that doing your injury prevention exercises is no less necessary than being out there running from side to side.
This past week has been hectic. Something kept coming up. Everyone has had some kind of struggle; however, I am positive that it's all going to get better as we get stronger and get some more experience under our belts. It is just the second week of practice, and the team has played two individual tournaments already.
Last weekend, Dzina and I played a tournament in San Francisco. Luisa, Matea and Christine competed at the Malibu Racquet Club. Both tournaments were a good experience us to get some matches, to compete and improve on something every match. Every single match was a battle and I think that tennis at the end is very much about willpower and confidence of how prepared you feel going into the match. Things can change, you can win a match after being down match-point,but before you even give yourself that chance to come back, you have to believe in yourself. It's always interesting, how everyone speaks about ''great comebacks.'' Actually, just doing ''your thing'' from the first ball takes about the same -- if not more -- concentration and effort.
After discussing with the team what drives each one of us, on the court, in the classroom and in everyday lives, we came along some really great values. There are desires to reach goals and to be the best people we can be, a lot of passion and determination to do something with our limited time. There are just 24 hours a day, and it's up to us to make them count (or not)! We can learn from yesterday's experiences, from each other's experiences, and just try our best to not step into the same paddle twice.
What really stuck out was how important the support system of family, friends and coaches are, how important it is to give that extra mile when your closest people are cheering you on either right by your side or in spirit. Sometimes just knowing that someone has your back is a feeling that gives you confidence and motivation!
During our busy everyday lives, it is human nature to often forget how grateful we should be for all that we have. Regardless of a situation, we should focus on the positives, and give a hundred percent in everything. That's our team goal.Most of the times, it will be enough, and sometimes maybe a little short, but if you gave it your all -- that's something that makes you satisfied at the end of the day and makes one hungry for more.
We all have that one little quiet moment before falling asleep, the moment of truth, when the only person you would be lying to is yourself. There is no point in that in doing that, however, because lying doesn't make you a better person. It limits your chances to grow as a person and mature as a human being.There are many things that can be powerful motivators, and it can be anything in the world. The choice is yours.
