An athlete's day...

Fancy waking up at 6am while picking up his favourite CD to energise his day. The pain in his calf and hamstring muscles is screaming for some attention but he just did not have another 15 minutes to catch up with the much needed recovery. A quick check on the Polar Heart Rate monitor indicated that he probably still lacked recovery from the hard training over the past few days. He just couldnt wait for the weekend.

"Guys, breakfast at 6.30am and review your training log!" He was busy burying his head in the workbooks the previous night as Ms Tan (lecturer) insisted that the assisnments were complete before the week was up. The athlete had to have a quick look through the training log and started down the common bath.

The 10 minute shower was a real blessing as the powerful gush of warm water numbed the pain while allowing the pleasant blood circulation through the sinews and muscles. All the clothes had to go into the laundry to be collected after training. Had to clean up to ensure that the 5' by 4' area alloted to the athlete was spick and span in case of a surprise visit by a VIP. The cotton training jerseys have slightly faded but they were still the best in the market.

Breakfast was quick and 2 glasses of juice and water was gulped up in the process to ensure that he does not develop cramps during training. He wished he didnt have replacement classes so that he could have gone for relaxation massage earlier.

The assistant coach checked to ensure that everyone was injury free and had their specific skill training for the day after the warming up run and stretching. The sprints after that was always interesting as he would work hard to ensure that he could beat others who were supposed to be faster than him. He could last longer as he has had several years of training on endurance and speed with his previous coach in the state team.

The chief coach then called for a short briefing on the days agenda to point out the purpose of the various drills during training. He was keen on trying out new tactics with the forwards and defenders. It was often tough to follow the pace of the coach but each athlete was expected to keep trying. Drink breaks were allowed in between to ensure that the athletes were well hydrated. 2 hours was up and the chief coach had a brief chat with his assistant followed by a discussion with the team. Training was up to the mark but there was more to be done. There would be another session of training in the pool in the evening followed by a session with the team psychologist at night.