Christmas snow

Thank heavens for the indoor throwing net at Loughborough! With the plummeting temperatures and snow on the ground it has been really useful. I have got a feeling that my coach and I will be using the indoor throwing facilities quite a bit over the Christmas holiday period if the snow hangs around. I can cope with wind and rain whilst throwing but snow and ice are a little tricky!

Training has gone pretty well so far and my back is strengthening nicely. I have done a fair bit of throwing off a short approach which has gone well. It will be interesting to see how the back responds off a longer approach after Christmas. I think I will save that for the warmth of South Africa though!
As magical as Christmas is, it can sometimes pose a challenging time of year for athletes as local sport facilities (understandably) tend to close for the holiday period. In order to keep training and stay fit I sometimes find myself having to be quite creative to locate open training venues. I do give myself some time off though, and enjoy a hearty meal in front of a warm fire on Christmas day. I figure, I get one rest day a week, I might as well shift it around so that day falls on Christmas!

Last Thursday I went to see Avatar, the new 3D movie (it is fantastic, I highly recommend it!). In the 2+ hours from entering the cinema to the time we left about a 15cm of snow had fallen! The area outside was like a playful war zone with kids having their first snowball fights of the winter. I have to say there were a few talented throwers amongst the kids. Perhaps UKA should go talent-spotting around the snow laden parks of Great Britain to find the next Steve Backley! As I walked in the direction of home I took a direct hit from a little 10 year old, and I was itching to get involved! I turned and laughed and thought to myself, these days I think I would need to warm up before any 'impromptu' throwing!

I am now really looking forward to our upcoming training camp in South Africa in January. I am sure if the snow lingers we will be even more grateful for the sun.

I wish you all a very happy Christmas and fabulous 2010....

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Posted on 23 Dec 2009 by Goldie Sayers