An Athlete's Confidence

Bigger, faster, stronger! Who hasn't sized up an athlete based on these physical qualities?

What many overlook, is how fundamentally important the mental aspect of the game is.  It can make or break you as far as long-term success, or even day to day success.  Surprisingly, your mind is something you can train, just like your body.  No, no don't picture your cerebrum doing push-ups.. Training your mind comes down to a lot more than doing Sudoku and Crosswords.. it can be complex, but also as simple as repetition.

Technically, it's not what you do that makes you who are.  It boils down to our perceptions, which shape our thoughts, which shape our beliefs, which ultimately translate into our actions.  Realizing how you perceive yourself, those around you, your environment, and obstacles (whether those be the hurdles of daily life or the mountains we seek to climb to achieve a goal), can really impact a person's happiness and success... and for an athlete, their performance.

Think about it.

Some of the greatest athletes have been no bigger, faster, or stronger than the rest.  They simply believed they have something those athletes don't, whether that be grit, heart, preparation, passion, etc., they believe in what they are made of.  As sports psychologist Gary Mack puts it, "they believe in their 'stuff'."

Talent aside; if you believe in the right things, then you have potential.  If you then do the right things, you will be successful. 

Take for example Tyler Hansbrough.  Not only is this one good-looking guy, he was also one of my idols growing up watching college basketball.  He holds a series of accolades from his days at the University of North Carolina, including National Player of the Year with the retirement of his jersey, which now waves triumphantly up in the rafters at the Tar Heels stadium.  What earned him these things (not to mention kick ass bragging rights) though, was not the size of his talent, but how much harder he worked than his more talented competitors.  When the camera would zoom in on his face as he shot at the free throw line, you would of thought there wasn't enough air in the gym.  And no, he definitely was NOT out of shape, but he worked as hard as he possibly could..every..single..game.  He believed that his preparation, hard work, and heart could match up against anyone, which ultimately allowed him to have an outstanding college career and a National Championship his senior year.

The best athletes gain confidence from preparation so that a few early mistakes won't take them out of the game.

We can all hope for the best, but seldom does anything go just how we would like it to.  That's where the crucial task of planning and preparing comes in.  What many fans don't realize is how much preparation actually occurs before the ball is tossed into the air on game day.  

"Practice" is more than just doing drills for 2 hours... it's breaking down an opponents offense and how to defend it, it's learning how to properly box out and gain position for a rebound,  it's teaching people how to move and work together in a zone defense, and so much more. There's more to sports than that stereotypical meathead, Letterman-jacket wearing jock that used to bully the puny nerd in the hallways in high school.  There's a rhyme and reason behind the players who are running up and down the court, and oftentimes it comes from the coach's office as s/he breaks down film, analyzing what their team could do better and how the opposing team works then translating that into the practice plans for the week.  The infamous John Wooden was well-known for his preparation and attention to detail, all the way down to making sure your socks were properly put on to prevent blisters.  He earned so much respect in his lifetime and is so often quoted that the things he would say are now referred to as "Woodenisms".

Woodenism at it's finest:

"Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out." 

The best athletes, and all successful people for that matter, chase their dreams relentlessly. 

My amazing friend Torle joined the Peace Corp this past summer.  She is a rising star in the world of unsung heroes because she has believed in the beauty of her dreams through all the trials and tribulations that have tried to stand in her way.

I hope she doesn't mind me sharing the Cliffnotes version of her incredible story, but her and her family came to the United States when she was only 10 years old.  She worked to learn a new language and culture and eventually found herself pursuing college athletics at the University of Alaska Anchorage, with - you guessed it - this girl.  There I watched her silently struggle through the brutality of our coaches and the major set back of a torn ACL and meniscus.

All of that said, what amazes me most about Torle's story, is that through all the adversity she remained true to herself and always remembered what she was working for, which was not just to bring pride to her family by being the first to graduate from college, but to be back in Nigeria giving back to her people.  Her ultimate dream is to work for the United Nations and now she still relentlessly works towards that goal and is making a difference in Lesotho (South Africa) today.

Torle, if you're reading this, you're one of my heroes :) and I'm proud of you!

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."  - Eleanor Roosevelt 

Panther Update

In other news, we have narrowly won our last two games against Hannover and Wuppertal.  The league is shaping up, and it looks like their are a strong 8-10 teams that can compete with anyone.  Last year in the Bundesliga South, there were probably about 5 top teams and the rest weren't anywhere close.  Now we are battling to hold our first place spot, which we recently got knocked off from after our loss to Göttingen.  But, the heart of our team is strong and we are all working daily to pursue our one common goal: to be the best in the league! 

Last week, we also received our draw for the next Pokal game.  Turns out we will be playing (drum roll pleassseeeeee) HANNOVER! Again.  This time at their place on December 6th.  Our next game features Phoenix Hagen at home, who we beat earlier this season in our first Pokal game.  To see how the league is shaping up, click on this link! 

http://www.dbbl.de/de/meisterschaft/2-bundesliga-nord

Ball is in the Air

The leaves are starting to fall off the trees, the mornings feel a bit more crisp, and the season has gotten underway.  We've jumped out to a 3-0 start to our season, amassing a total of 93 points (double that of second place) to decisively take first place.  What points you say?  Well over here it's not just the W that matters, it can also come down to how many points you won or lost by (when taking into consideration league rankings).  Our first game of the season kicked off at home against Opladen, who we defeated by about 30 points.  Then we made the 5 hour road trip to Berlin (incidentally where the Spurs were playing later that week) and won by around 40 points.  Somewhere in between there, we also took down our first Pokal opponent, an in-league team by the name of Hagen.

Wondering what the Pokal is?  Pokal basically means "Cup Games", so think the World Cup or any other series.  I like to compare it to an extended NCAA tournament where you play to win and knock off teams throughout all of Germany.  The games are quite spread out throughout the year though, so if you continue to win you could be looking at more games in your schedule and less time on the weekends for Bier and Bratwurst competitions.  Our next game for the cup will be against another Osnabrück club, which is actually quite a lucky draw because they are a league lower than us and we don't have to take any long trips anywhere!

In other news, the weather is getting colder, my elderly neighbors are very rude, and I've lost hope on my game faces ever improving (those pictures will be conveniently left out of this blog).  Our next game is this weekend against Göttingen, who by the sounds of it should be a tough opponent.

All the best :) and bundle up!

Game Time

A long seven week preseason is finally coming to an end on Sunday with our first game against Opladen on our home court.  We've played four preseason exhibition games against first league competition, finding ourselves outmatched at nearly every position each time, but still fighting and never letting the odds best our minds.

A huge difference between European basketball and basketball in the states is the age range you can have on your team.  Some of our players are older than the coaches, some players are coaches, some are looking into colleges in the states next year, some do this after work, and some do this for work.  This is primarily due to the club format, where many of the Germans grow up in their town/city's club and play there from their youth well into their adult years.  Sometimes clubs lose players who go to the states to play in college and or who pack their bags and move towns to play for different clubs.  But, there are some who cherish their club and have pride in it as many of my teammates do.  In fact, we have a mom and daughter on our team (#14 and #8) who get to experience something very rare in the world of sports, playing with each other.  Good thing they don't play at the same position because  they are both extremely competitive, which could make things awkward at the dinner table.

Our team has several young, talented players, who sometimes I want to yell at for making rookie mistakes until I remember, oh yeah.. they are as old as my sister and haven't been playing as long as I have.  Then, we have four 20 year olds followed by our more seasoned players, who are 27, 28, 31, and 42 years old... and me, smack dab in the middle of the youth and the veterans at 24.  This combination makes for an interesting dynamic at times, but to me it just seems like we are one big estranged family reunited by basketball.

Introducing: the Dynamic Mom/Daughter -Duo!  Anna is only 17 and comes up to my shoulder, but she's an exact replica of her mom's toughness.  She went up against ex-Division 1 point guards the past few games without complaint and worked her butt off to take care of the ball and play defense.  Her mom, is the best rebounder on the team (yes I'll swallow my pride on this one, she even beats me out), and battles every game in all the toughness areas.  For 42 years old she is very fit and also gave ex-Division 1 small forwards a run for their money in the paint.

You may have noticed that the floor we are playing on in the pictures isn't an odd blue rubber like the one last year at Viernheim.  One thing I haven't been a fan of here in Germany are the rubber-floors as they are less forgiving than hardwood. By the end of last year I could definitely feel the impact they had on my feet, ankles, shins and knees.  Luckily, the club here in Osnabrück has two gyms with wooden floors, which isn't too common for the second league.  Only one team in the second league south had a wood floor last year, and that was Bad Aibling, who ended up winning the championship and moving up to the first league where wood floors are required anyway.  On the opposite end, last season Osnabrück struggled and found themselves battling to stay in the first league at the end of the season with Nördlingen (coincidentally Sid's current club and also the club of one of my former opponents in college from Simon Fraiser).  Therefore, we have a wood floor left over from their many years playing in the first league and we obviously hope to move back up at the end of this year.

Coming Sunday it will be back to the hardwood here in Osnabrück as we take on second division opponent Opladen in our season opening game!  I'm excited to see what our 7 weeks of hard work and preparation will amount to when we take on "someone our own size".  To see more about the team check out our website:

http://www.girolive-panthers.de/

...and as always, thank you for your support :) and all the best from Germany!

A City of Endless History - Berlin

Berlin

"All men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin.  And therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words 'Ich bin ein Berliner!'"  -  John F. Kennedy 

(Famous words of JFK announcing to millions of people across the world that he is a jelly donut)

The United States has Washington D.C., Japan has Tokyo, the United Kingdom has London, and Germany has Berlin.  Every great country has their city with its legacy.  Since Medieval times the region we now know as Germany has had a turbulent past, and at the heart of that is Berlin.  Once a royal residence and one of the largest cities in the Holy Roman Empire, it is now not only the capital but the largest city in Germany, triple the size of the second largest city, and home to 3 million people.  In recent history, Berlin is a term nearly synonymous with that of Hitler and WWII.  Even with this black mark on its history, Berlin has been a city of prosperity and perseverance, surviving disease, revolution, separation, and several major wars.

Before it hatched into a chicken, Berlin started as a little egg in the 13th century where settlers founded two cities (Berlin and Cölln) near today's Nikolaiviertel, which you see on the left.  For the next four centuries, it wasn't so bad to be a jelly donut, I mean Berliner, uh I mean resident of Berlin.
During the age of Prussia, under the rule of several great kings (and one weirdo), Berlin became known as Athens on the Spree (the Spree = the river that flows through Berlin)... I suppose you could equate this title to Berlin being the Michael Jordan of 17th century cities, no big deal or anything.  But once ruler at the time - Frederick II, or Frederick the Great as they called him, died.. Napolean swept in on Berlin like she was a poor helpless little widow, marching through the iconic Bradenburg Gate (seen on the right) and took over for the next 3 years. Berlin was quite embarrassed by this, and it didn't help that thousands of citizens had to allow smelly French soldiers to live in their homes, who were probably quite vulgar and had smelly cheese farts.

After Napolean, two more Freddies took the throne but Berlin and company had already gotten a taste of what it was like to be a more democratic region so the kings faced several political revolutions.  This eventually led to Prussian Prime Minister Otto von Bismark entering power in 1862.  Within a decade, Bismark was able to unify the Prussian region into the German Empire (known as the 'Deutches Reich') earning him the title of 'Iron Chancellor'.  Then in 1945, the Reich became what we know today as Germany.

Are you still awake?!?! (*Splashes water unassociated with the ALS ice bucket challenge*)

I suppose it's one thing to be interested in another country's history when you live there and can see it everyday, so I can't blame you if you were disinterested and skimmed through most of that!  Anyway, lets get on to some more pictures!

The Trabi, or Trabant, is a classic German automobile that was the more affordable automobile trending at the same time as the VW Beetle.  (This is for you dad) Most of the owners carried replacement parts around with them at all times, like a belt and spark plugs.. shabby trabi?  The first design, the P50, was powered by a two-stroke generator that maxed out at 18hp.  The P50 name for this little guy wasn't just a number pulled from that night's BINGO, but the P stood for "Plastic" and the 50 for the 500cc engine that used only 5 moving parts.  To purchase a new Trabi, whose lifespan was 28 years (coincidently the same amount of time the Berlin Wall stood), you had to wait a quick 10 years for it to be manufactured.  Unsurprisingly, that meant used Trabi's were cheaper than their brand new counterparts.

What makes these little Trabi's so historically significant, is that not only are they not on the market anymore (because a. they produce 9x the amount of emissions that the average European car does, and b. everyone wanted Western cars once the Berlin Wall fell and Germany was reunited), but it was in a Trabi that thousands of East Berliner's drove over the border when the Berlin Wall fell on Novemember 9, 1989.  With that, the Trabi became more than a cute little car, but a symbol of liberation and the fall of communism.

Entering American Territory

After WWII, Berlin was divided into four occupation zones: Britan, France, the Soviet Union, and of course - yours truly - the United States.  The area in which allied forces could go to and from zones was called Checkpoint Charlie.  Charlie comes from the military use of "C" and as such, the other Checkpoints built before this in Germany were Checkpoints Alpha and Bravo.

The checkpoint was active for 28 years and now is a popular tourist attraction in Berlin and in true tourist/American fashion, it is equipped with a McDonald's and Starbucks at the intersection

The Wall - A Solitary Symbol of the Cold War

Graffiti is typically sneered at and considered vandalism, but come to the hated Berlin Wall and it is revered as a powerful form of free expression and overcoming oppression.  The Eastside Gallery as it is known, is seen here to the left (why the wall says "chub" here, I have no idea) and stretches up a preserved mile or two of the wall on both sides.  The side we see here was once the West...maybe they ate more Schnitzel (hence the "chub").

The wall literally surfaced overnight, but evolved over the years into what we see now.  The East (Soviet/communist side) was like a giant leaky facet as around an astounding 3.5 million residents began packing their belongings and heading over to West Berlin for a better life.  To stop the "drip, drip, drip" of valuable workforce, Eastern guardsmen drove fenceposts into the ground during the night and strung up basically a high-tech fence right through the middle of Berlin.  79 miles of fencing, 300 guard towers, 20 bunkers, and 250 patrol dogs separated some people not only from their jobs, but their families as well.  Worst of all, no one knew how long the wall would stand.

Anyone attempting to flee the East was shot on site.... and 171 did end up dying in the attempt.

Somehow, against all odds 5,000 people were able to escape over the 28 year period the wall stood.  They dug tunnels, rammed the wall with vehicles, jumped out of buildings along the border, and even crossed in hot air balloons.  Sound crazy?  Then ask yourself this, what would you do to see your mother, father, and siblings if you were forcibly separated from them by the government.  Personally, I would be dressing in all black and hi-jacking the nearest hot air balloon!!

The fall of the wall came as the Cold War "began to thaw" and thousands of people gathered to celebrate and peck away the wall (later dubbed mauerspechte, or woodpeckers) in what one journalist called "the biggest street party in the history of the world."  

A Few More Monuments

The Victory Column, or Siegessäule in German, is one of several monuments across Europe that symbolizes a milestone of some sort in history.  Other examples include the Hall of Liberation near Sid's Oma (Bavaria), Sigismund Column in Poland, and Niederwald Monument on the Rhine River (Rüdesheim).

Sigismund Column

Niederwald Monument

Hall of Liberation

Holocaust Memorial

French Cathedral (German Cathedral of nearly exact design mirrors it across the square)

Theater house between the French and German Cathedrals

German Parliament building... called the Reich

Berlin's Dome (fairly new as it was built in the 1900's)

Preview on next blog post...
Exhibition games versus First League powerhouses Oberhausen and Herne.  Aka another tale of David vs. Goliath.

Read Me! This One's a Münster

I feel like as soon as I type "history" everyone is going to immediately open a different tab and open up Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram; nonetheless, I'm going to take the plunge and attempt to win you over with a little history!  *Pushes glasses back onto bridge of nose and clears throat*

30 Years War

Ring a bell? If not, either high school was too long ago or you fell asleep during your Western History class, as it is one of the most important (and longest, obviously) wars in European history.  Germany was especially effected, losing 20% of it's population and thereby constituting this war as the country's second biggest catastrophe, right behind (you guessed it) World War II.  And how do we suppose it all started? Your guess may fall short of the answer unless you are familiar with the Defenestration of Prague, a fancy way of saying someone was thrown out a window (defenestration = literally, the act of throwing someone or something out of a window) and into some poop.  If you think I'm joking - look it up!  

Oh S***!  Saved By Poop

On May 23rd of 1618, four Catholic Regents met with a group of Protestant Lords to discuss their involvement in ordering the cessation of churches on royal land.  Two were declared innocent and free to leave, but the other two weren't so lucky and were chucked from a 70 foot high window to fall to their deaths.  Luckily for them, angels swept from the sky to save them (or so everyone said), but really they fell into a heap of manure allowing them to stomp angrily back to the Catholic Hapsburgs and rally allies against the Protestant estates (who were also hastily calling friends to their cause).  

What a bunch of squares.. Seen below are pictures from Osnabrück.  The city's main church, it's courtyard, and the fanciest Fachwerkhaus I've seen!

As you can imagine, the war didn't last for 30 years because someone got poop on their Lederhosen, multiple countries eventually joined in and a series of wars were fought over the three decades that ultimately radically shifted the balance of power in Europe.  Eventually, everyone decided they'd had enough and 194 sovereign states emerged as a result of the Treaty of Westphalia, which was signed in.... Osnabrück and Münster!  The necessity of two cities was due to the thousands of ambassadors, diplomats, and supporting staff who needed to be fed and housed during the time it took to come into a peace agreement.  Since E-Mail, telephones, and text messages weren't available at this time, creating this agreement was not by any means quick, and took around 4 years to complete.  Fast forward ahead a few centuries and Münster was made to be the headquarters for 6th Military District of the German Wehrkreis in World War II.  It had a large military presence, making it an obvious target for Allied forces and was unsurprisingly badly bombed in 1943, destroying 63% of the city and 91% of the historic Altstadt (old city).  

"The target was a built-up section of Munster, and I thought it was rather inappropriate that this large set of steps to one big building in Munster was picked out as the aiming point. I'm not sure now whether it was a church or not, but it seemed to me that it was." - B17 American Pilot Keith E. Harris

Thankfully, the Münsterians (ha) have pride in their city and it's history and rebuilt everything we see today to match it's pre-war state.  And if you're wondering - NO! - cheese is not made here!  (I wondered this and every German I asked looked at me with an expression of "What the hell are you talking about?")  Come to find out, the muenster cheese we buy in the States is not only made in the U.S., but has nothing to do with this city!  Whoops. 

Muenster cheese

Münster city - Outdoor movie at a castle anyone?

One of Münster's center-most churches jutting into view along the main boardwalk. 

More Münster, still no cheese.

For a day of training we participated in running 11km of a 50km run from Osnabrück to Münster, called the Freidenslauf (Peace Run).  The Scottish fellah putting on the run (seen below in a kilt), was also raising funds for the 200 kidnapped young girls in Nigeria.  An amazing man and amazing people who ran the entire 50km in support of him and his cause!!

The team in Münster after the Friedenslauf.

A Phrase I Wish I Never Learned: "I'm Tired"

Tired? (Time I Re-Evaluate Dang it!)

"I'm tired."

I bet we've all heard or said this a few times this week, heck maybe even a few times today.  From the coffee drinker who needs a steaming hot cup of java in hand to the ER doctor who works from dawn till dusk saving lives.  And it's true, I'm sure you are/were/are going to be tired because hey, we are human and therefore need sleep to function.  But how often do we say this, not because we need sleep, but because we've decided that's how we're feeling. "I'm tired" holds us back more than we should let it and is probably one of the worst used excuses in the history of mankind.

The human body is capable of so much more than we give it credit for.  Only a few people unlock it's potential and show the rest of us what it can do.  What if the following people had said they were "too tired"?

Roger Bannister - First man to say "screw you" to the 4 minute mile
60 years ago running a sub 4-minute mile was "sports greatest goal" and something "as elusive and seemingly unattainable as Everest" but Sir Bannister (yes he is called "sir") shattered the preconceived limitations we put on the human body and broke the 4 minute mark on May 6th, 1954.  Four days before his 60th anniversary of this run he announced he had Parkinson's, and continues to be an inspiration in his fight against this difficult disease.

"Whatever barrier there had been was psychological rather than physical..." - Sir Roger Bannister

The Navy SEALS - Regarded as the most physically and mentally elite military personnel in the world
The SEALS go through likely the most mentally and physically arduous challenges of today's time.  But "tired" is redefined during the SEAL's infamous "Hell Week", where they are pushed to the limits while running on less than 4 hours of sleep for 5 and a half brutal days.

"I will never quit. I persevere and thrive on adversity. My Nation expects me to be physically harder and mentally stronger than my enemies. If knocked down, I will get back up, every time. I will draw on every remaining ounce of strength to protect my teammates and to accomplish our mission. I am never out of the fight." - from the SEAL Code

Alex Honnold - The "Michael Jordan" of free climbing
Bet you've never heard of this guy.  He is the best at what he does, and what he does most people would classify as insane.  Not only is it physically demanding, it's stupidly brave and mentally exhausting.  Climbing without a rope is like going "All In" in a high stakes game of poker, but instead of the chance of losing your money on a calculated gamble, you put your life at stake.  Some may call him crazy and reckless, some may call him bad ass, I call him inspiring.  Check him out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leCAy1v1fnI#t=87

Diana Nyad - Elite endurance swimmer...who is 62 years old 
In recent news, aka last fall, Diana Nyad finally conquered her life long dream of swimming from Cuba to Key West.  One sentence to summarize a hard fought, life-long struggle doesn't do her justice, because not only does she defy the odds of gender, but age as well.  An inspiration for all people, women especially, Diana swam 103 miles for 41 long hours to shame us all for thinking a 10 hour work day is long.  Hey Webster, why don't you put her name under "perseverance" in your next dictionary update?

''You can’t start to get into negative spaces…telling yourself it hurts too much, maybe another day… because even people with an iron will [can] talk themselves out of stuff and quit when things get tough.'' - Diana Nyad

So what brought all this on you may ask?  The phrase: eat, sleep, workout (repeat) may ring a bell with any athletes reading this, and there really isn't much of a truer statement for my past week in Deutschland.  I found out on Sunday that we were going to have 14 practices this week.  On the exterior I tried to be stoically professional, while on the inside I was crying a little (and if my coach reads this he now knows the truth - NOOO! haha).


Let's see here... doesn't take a genius to do this math... 7 days in the week, 2 practices a day... repeat the  next week.  My first thought, "I'm tired just thinking about this", my second thought "Shut up Alysa, what an opportunity to get better", and my third thought "thank you Wellspring for teaching me how to function without sleep/going all day, everyday".

Now that it's Friday evening and I'm 10 practices in, I can't help but want to go back and slap myself a bit for even having that first thought run through my mind.  Though sore, tired, and hurting a little now, it's all been (and will continue to be) worth it.  I'm incredibly lucky to have the push of my team and coaches to get me up and going in the direction I need to everyday, because without that I know "I'm tired" would win quite a bit of the time and I would miss so many opportunities to challenge myself and grow.


My challenge (not only to myself, but all of you), is when that feeling of "I'm tired" is creeping in..no matter what you've done that day or think you have tomorrow or later on, reevaluate, because life is too short to miss opportunities and we have too much to be grateful for (health, family, friends, etc.) to take it for granted.

The OSC (training center) front desk.

Training for (and with) basketball at the track. 

The preseason squad ready to work! (Except for Jewels who is probably wondering why I'm taking a picture instead of stretching and warming up).

The OSC gym where we practice and will play.  

Thanks for reading all, more to come soon! :)