Despite their worst fears of competitions being cancelled coming true, members of the Track and Field Interest Group not only did not give up, they adapted by hosting virtual training sessions instead.
While the Circuit Breaker period may seem like a good time for many to stay home and slack off, it was not the case for the athletes of the Track and Field Interest Group.
In order to maintain their fitness level, some of them continued to meet for group exercises on online platforms such as Zoom and Discord. These online sessions that took place on Tuesdays and Thursdays were no less heart-pumping, as participants worked out a good sweat doing strength-training and cardio exercises.
Natasha Yann Ganesaguru,18, from School of Hospitality and a regular member, shared: “We have a variation of both endurance and speed workouts. My coach has also added a 30-minute run outside on weekends.” Natasha added: “I’m very thankful that my coach provides workout routines and programmes for us to maintain our fitness. That way, we don’t have to start all over again to rebuild our fitness level since our rigorous training last year.”
While the remote training sessions were welcomed by most, some students did find it challenging to find the space and time for these virtual sessions.
Sherman Poh Hun Ting, 19, from the School of Hospitality, said that it was sometimes a challenge to join the workouts after a long day as off campus learning can be very draining. I might also be exhausted and unmotivated to work out,” he explained. Nevertheless, he did not give up and continued to work and trained hard.
On the cancellation of competitions, though disappointed, Sherman has hope for the competitions to resume soon. “Ever since the pandemic began, I knew that it was inevitable that events would be cancelled. I completely understand the decisions made by the government. There’s nothing we can do about it other than staying home and keeping everyone safe,” he added.
Another IG member, Ng Kai Li, 20, from the School of Info-Communication Technology is also disappointed that competitions had to be cancelled. “The Covid-19 outbreak really affected us a lot because we couldn’t have proper training. Every competition is very important to us because it’s the only time we get to compete against the other schools as well as amongst ourselves to achieve our goals” Kai Li said.
Nevertheless, the interviewees agreed that adopting a positive spirit is the way to go for the time-being. They also shared some simple exercises that everyone can do at home.
Jensen Lim Han Wei, 20, shared that bodyweight exercises such as crunches will be good enough. “Contrary to what most people think, you don’t need weights and dumbbells to stay fit. Doing some simple body exercises like push ups, crunches and squats will be just as helpful,” Jensen suggested.
There is really no excuse for not exercising when one is stuck at home. As a last word of encouragement to fellow student athletes who are facing the same situation, Natasha added: “‘Never think that you can’t do it, it’s more of whether you want to do it or not!”
