There's Always Light at the End of the Tunnel

I have to confess, when it comes to keeping resolutions I tend to be extremely motivated in the beginning and slowly but surly lose interest! That's not saying I have lost interest in blogging but I think my resolution to blog more was a bit optimistic seeing as its now been 3 weeks since my last post but moving swiftly on to the good news.... I have a new post for you, actually a number of new posts courtesy of a spark of inspiration I got when lying in bed feeling sorry for myself! Leinster Schools Competition 2012 Athletics has been a huge part of my life since a very young age, ever since I can remember I have been a member of Celbridge A.C, competing in track & field and believe it or not cross country too (I never competed in cross country by choice as such!) It has always been very much a family affair, for a time my dad was a coach, my mum was involved in fundraising and helping out anywhere she could and then there was my brothers and me, the athletes of the fam...

I have spent almost the past 14 years doing athletics, a sport I love, a sport I couldn’t imagine a life with out and a sport that has introduced me to a community, a community where I belong but somewhere along the way something changed and as I sit here writing I find myself fighting back the tears because a sport which I once could not imagine living with out is the sport that is causing me pain, mentally and physically. Athletics has always been apart of my life, the members of Celbridge Ac are my second family yet I feel I may have reached a point where I need to leave the nest, move on from athletics and say goodbye to my second family. Maybe I’m having a bad couple of days, maybe its my depression or maybe its just time to move on like so many others who were once apart of Celbridge Ac. Is it finally time to move over and make way for the next generation of athletes? People say why don’t you try coaching and I have, for the past year I have helped coaching a group of ...

Ever since I was young athletics has always had a huge part to play in my life and more importantly Celbridge athletic club has been a huge part of my life. I have been a member of Celbridge athletic club for the past 11/12 years. I was always up at the track training once I was old enough to join the club and despite being too young to compete in competitions I was always brought along to the competitions. During my childhood while things were a bit rocky and often uncertain athletics was the thing which I could always count on. Our trips to competitions during the weekends would be our family time, my two brothers, my mam and dad and me. Once I was old enough to compete in all the competitions I was at every competition be it track and field or cross country I was there. If I was a sub on a relay team I was there if it was raining I was there, If I was sick I was there. It took me a while to find the event for me and so for many many years of athletics I went to competitions and ...

Today I was my first night back to athletics in three months. I missed it so much. I would have gone back during the summer but I was an idiot and hurt my foot by missing a step going into my garden and ending up in a cast two weeks and crutches for another week but I slowly got better until I jumped off a bin. I know what you’re thinking why the hell would a person jump of a bin well it’s because I got locked out and me and emer wanted to go into my back garden to play with Lilo. I got over the gate onto the bin and that’s where I had trouble getting down and so I decided to jump and well I landed in the hospital that night. Get it, I jumped and landed in the hospital, yeah it’s a bad joke I know I’m tired and I’m in fifth year and struggling to find time to blog so I’m trying to catch up not but I really should be staring on my L.C.V.P homework..... Maybe I’ll just do it in the morning. We haven’t been told when it is due yet but I don’t have that L.C.V.P teacher again until Friday s...

Today was the second day of the Leinster championships in Santry. Before you could go to the Leinster you had to win a medal in the West Leinster. I came second in the discus and fourth in the shot put in the West Leinster so I was only able to compete today in the discus. I wasn't too disappointed with that because it meant that I had more time to focus on getting ready for the discus and meant that I only had to fit in time to throw the discus rasher than the discus and the shot put. I arrived at Santry early to see if I could get a chance to practice in the circle before the competition started but I didn’t so I was just waiting around for most of the morning. I watched the shot put that I would have been in if I had won a medal and it was no surprise when I seen the winners on the podium. I have competed against all three of them outside of school athletics at either county level or leinster level and they are amazing throwers and I knew when I saw them that even if I did...

For activity four of this week’s blog challenge we have to write a blog post about something that we are interested in and include links and images. I’m going to write about athletics because I love athletics. I have done athletics since I can remember it has been in my family four years. It’s not like I was expected to start it but I guess because my brothers were always talking about it made me want to start athletics. I have to say that I was never a good athlete. It has taken me years to find the event that I am good at. I tried everything when I was younger because I really only did it for the fun of it but now it’s a bit more competitive. I say it would have been about five or our years ago when I finally found the event for me. It was shot put. I took part in the league one year and that was the event that I had to do for my age group and it took to it and got on really well in it. I use to be really good at it but lately I have been going downhill in it and the people th...

Today was the second day of the west leinsters championships in sentry. I went on Tuesday as well but I wasn’t competing because they had to change the days. I was competing today in both the shot put and the discus. On Tuesday a total of 17 medals were won by the Wolstans girls. Today another few were won and not to mention the three awards that we won at the end…. :) I had a good day apart form my foul in the shot put that was on my best throw. It was so annoying I just couldn’t catch myself from going over the board. I did however came fourth and got points for the school so after a while I got over it. After that I still had to compete in the discus. I came second in this and I was very happy that I threw 20.80 meters. I would have liked to break 22 meters but I still have a chance in the leinsters which will be taking place next month. Everybody did great in Santry so well done.

Today a number of students from St wolstans travelled to Santry Stadium to compete in the Holy Faith school sports. There were ten schools there all together. People from all of the different years were competing today. There was some good competition I must say. We left school after break and seeing as how our class Amina had gone on retreat today Jessica and me spent the first two classes in the hall with Mr L’s P.E classes. We did a few little odd jobs here and there. We also ventured up the scary stairs to get the singlets for Mr L.  On the way back down Jessica tried to turn off the light by almost setting of the fire alarm, but it’s ok because she realised that it wasn’t a light switch. The scary stairs were fun weren’t they Jessica??? lol. When we got there we had about half an hour until the competition started. Jessica Zoe and me all went for a quick lap just to warm up. Our old Chaplin was there as well helping out with the events and the medal presentations so we got a...

Today I was my second training session after school for the West Leinster schools competition in Santry in April. I am hoping that I will get to go after the trials. I think this year I am going to try and do the hammer rather than the shot and I’m hoping that I will be able to keep doing the discus. So Mr L show me and another girl today how to do the hammer and let’s just say thats for me it was a disaster... :/   It wouldn’t go up and it wouldn’t go straight and it almost went over a fence. I’m surprised I didn’t hurt someone or even myself. I think it would be better if i was to go back to my shot put rather than the hammer. After a bit of hammer training it was time to move onto some discus. Now this I could do. I love the discus so much. I won the west Leinster last year so I’m hoping that if I get to go to Santry this year and I’m also hoping that I will be able to get into the top 5 and I’m aiming to be able to throw 22 meters and break my P.B of 21.40. Nothing to big but ...

Yesterday because we had double rugby we done it during lunch ad we then had our lunch when everybody was in class. Mr L was supervising us. Before the end of lunch he called Jessica and me over because he wanted to talk to us. I didn’t have a clue what he wanted to talk to us about. He told us that he wanted to start up and athletics committee in school. He said that there would be repersentives form each year on the committee and that he asked Jessica and me to be on it from T.Y because we had taken part in the track and field a lot during the years, I have done field event and Jessica has done track events. He told us that he wants to get lots of people involved in it this year and that he wanted Jessica and me to canvas form people to start doing athletics in school.