Nov. 2, 2004

Hey Everyone!

So, each year, Stanford Women's Gymnastics spends an entire week working out everywhere BUT the gym; a little something we like to call "Cross Training Week." Although this week provides some great variation in exercise for us, it has become clear to me that the primary function of Cross Training Week is probably just to reveal how uncoordinated we gymnasts really are (when not on a 4-inch wide balance beam, of course!). We started off Monday by designating two teams. My team, composed of Jessica, Stacy, Tabitha, Alex, Liz, and myself, decided to call ourselves "Team Arnold" (the stipulation being that every time you say "Team Arnold", you MUST do your best Schwarzenegger voice impression complete with muscle poses). The other team, "Team Hard-as-the-Rockness" (yeah, what a weird, funny name, right? Natalie came up with it, so that explains a lot!). Their team consisted of Natalie, Glyn, Stephanie, Lauren, and Aimee. The winning team of the various activities we performed this week earned us points, and the losing team at the end of the week had to cook dinner for the winners.

Monday's workout began with some tough fitness testing. Unfortunately for my group, Team Hard-as-the-Rockness dominated. Although Team Arnold had some incredible highlights, (Liz doing 38 V-Ups in 30 seconds, Stacy pulling off 8 press-to-handstands in a row, and more!), we were unable to match the incredible athletic prowess of the Rockness (Nat held a 92 second handstand, while Steph posted a 23-inch vertical jump, just to name a few!). It's really incredible to be surrounded by such amazing competitors! We finished out Monday's training with weights and cardio. Needless to say, we were all ready for a nap afterward.

On Tuesday, we made our way to the Avery Aquatic Center for some swimmin', Glynnie's FAVORITE activity in the whole world! (Just kidding, Glyn is NOT a fan of the water) The pool is truly where the ‘gymnast-should-stick-with-gymnastics factor really comes into play. I won't go into great detail, but just imagine about a dozen drowning gerbils, and you'll have a pretty good idea of what we looked like, with the exception of a few H20-lovers on the Cardinal gym squad. Evening up the week's competition, Team Arnold conquered the swimming relays. Next, we trooped over to the football stadium for some running, races, sprints, and then (you guessed it) stadiums. Yikes. It was rough. That's all I have to say.

Wednesday was a much-needed day of rest and Advil for us; those stadiums really killed me haha! Thursday, we were back in the weight room, pumping some iron and lookin’ large, heck yeah! We of Team Arnold were making our namesake proud, for sure. We finished Thursday with some team cardio on the bikes, then a little conditioning.

Friday, we got to finish out the week with a whole lot of fun. To start off, each class dressed up in their coordinating Halloween costumes! The coaches dressed up as crayons; each a different color. The freshmen were each a different flavor of Tootsie Pops; so cute! Stacy and I (the sophomores) dressed up as cavewomen: yay for animal print fabric! Finally, the juniors were a fork, knife, and spoon; SO creative and clever! After lots of pictures, we played an awesome three innings of in-the-gym baseball, in which Team Arnold came through with a Red Sox-inspired win, the final score being 12-6. A bit of open gym, a little more swimming, and Cross Training Week came to a close. Team Hard-as-the-Rockness ended up with the win. I'll be a good loser (just for today) and shout out a big congratulations to them! Everyone worked SO hard this week, and I know it will pay off this season!

That's it from me for now. I hope everybody out there is having a fantastic week! Happy Halloween, and GO CARD!

~Britt :-)