Summer training camp

After a nice long break from judo, practice restarted on Thursday. And I'm already exhausted! In the mornings we practiced for 3 hours! And then another hour in the afternoon. My body is aching everywhere: my neck, my back, my thighs, my legs, ...you get the picture. You can see me dragging myself up the stairs after practice. When I come back to the residence to eat lunch after practice, the others are just waking up. lol.

And it's not over! Tomorrow, I'm going to Tsumagoi (in the Gunma prefecture, located directly west of the Tochigi prefecture) along with the Tokai judo girls for a week-long training camp. We'll be running and practicing judo everyday. One good thing is that since it's a mountainous area, it'll be a lot cooler than here. It's unbelievably hot when we practice at the dojo in Tokai during the summer.

However, because it's a mountainous area, the air will also be less dense, making it harder to breathe. But since I'll be climbing Mt. Fuji in about two weeks, it'll be good practice : )

I won't have access to a computer during the whole week so I'll update as soon as I get back.

Ain't no mountain high enough

Since we have no school, we now train on the mountain at 7:30 in the morning. To get there on time, I have to leave the dorm at about 6:30. At this time of the year, it is preeeetty cold outside, especially in the morning. And the training is hard. We do countless sprints going uphill. And then, after my legs feel like mush and can barely support me, I still have to get back to the dorm, which usually takes at least another 30 minutes.

On our last training on the mountain on Monday, I took my camera with me. So through the pictures, you can make it to the top with me. But trust me, it's a lot harder than it looks ; )

The mountain, seen from afar

Watch your step here



Keep at it, you're almost there.



Just need to climb a few more flights of stairs and you're there

You did it! You made it to the top!

The cats who are always there to greet people at the top.

What a day

I have never been so tired in my life.

So this is how my day went: I first did a bit of homework this morning before the judo practice. At practice, we did 6 sets of 4 min newaza randoris. After that, we did 5 sets of 6 min tachiwaza (standup) randoris with no break in between. I was sure we were done after that but I was then told we had to do another 5 sets of 5 min tachiwaza randoris. I was pretty tired after that. I got back to the dorm, made myself a quesadilla and managed to lay down for maybe 15 minutes before it was time for running training. My hair was even still wet from the morning practice as I set out for the mountain, where we'd be doing our running. It's about a 20 min bike ride to get to the bottom of the mountain. From there, you have to climb up the steep path to get to the top of the mountain, which also takes about 20 minutes. Then, the real training starts. We did countless sprints uphill. That mountain is like a paradise for trainers. There are so many steps and paths that can serve for training purposes.

After that, the training was finally over. But then we had to make our way back down the mountain. Let me tell you, even if your legs are not exhausted from both the sprints and the judo practice earlier in the day, getting down the mountain is tiring and dangerous. The steps are very steep and there are branches and leaves everywhere. As I went down, I had to be overly careful so that my legs wouldn't give out under me. Then, another 20 min bike ride to get back to the dorm. Finally I was home!!!

But then, another challenge awaited me. I had to cook supper. Boy, was I tired. The last thing I wanted to do was cook. But I cooked up some ground beef with garlic and onions and some eggplant, green peppers and mushrooms, cooked some pasta and added some tomato sauce, and voilà, a delicious spaghetti! : )

The dishes I cook don't usually taste exactly the way I expect them too. There's still a lot I need to learn. But anyhow, there's a certain satisfaction you get from cooking something on your own. I love being able to create something new. Afterwards I enjoy eating it : ) And experimenting is fun, you never know exactly what you're going to get : p

This week is going to be tough. I'm so glad we don't have school so I can get to rest a bit between practices. But it's because we don't have classes that the practices are longer and more intense. It's exhausting but I'm glad to be training. After such hard trainings, I always get such a great feeling of accomplishment. Yes, just about every muscle in my body hurts, but I know that my body is strong and can take it. Whatever kind of stress is thrown at it, it's able to perform. And a certain confidence comes from that. To know that during a match, I don't have to worry about my body giving out on me. I also have to thank one of my coaches, Alim, for my performance at today's running in the mountain. Last summer, when my brother Vincent and me spent two weeks at his house to train, he made us run this little trail. The trail consists of about 15 minutes worth of steep stairs going up and down. So I was ready for today's training. I had already done this kind of training and I knew my body wouldn't let me down. Running is a great mental training. Because you have to push yourself. And only you have that power to decide to keep on going. That's the kind of spirit you need in a judo match. No matter how tired your body is or how little energy you think you have left, you have to stay strong and keep on fighting.

Tomorrow, we only have judo in the morning. Then I have the afternoon off. I'm planning to go check out the booths that have been installed for the student festival. Right now, I only have one plan for tonight: SLEEP!!!

Oyasumi! (Good night ; )