Reflection on a Season in Philadelphia

Yes, dear readers, I have once again procrastinated writing. I don’t forget about you all; this blog is always at the back of my mind whenever I discover something new or think of great advice to share with my readers.  But it is true that time really flies and oftentimes my blog has been shoved to the side in favor of being with the real live people in my life who make things great. And I won’t apologize for that – if there has been one thing I learned this summer, it is that face-to-face time with the people you care about matters more than anything else in the world.

But now, unbelievably, it is fall. I have lived in my new apartment for a month and a half, and I have lived in the great city of Philadelphia for five months. I think one of the reasons I have put off blogging so long is because I feel like my life right now is a dream. Obviously, there are bad days and stressful days, but I can say with all honesty that I think my life right now is great. I am living in a city that I’ve always had kind of a romantic notion about – stemming from my high school regatta days and continuing through racing here during my collegiate years and the summers in between. I am a year-round member of Penn A.C., where I share a dock and a locker room with former Olympians. Former Olympians who say “hi” to me when I launch my boat as they are docking (and it takes every ounce of self control to not geek out). I have great teammates. I have a job at Drexel University where I have awesome co-workers. I teach classes at Rowzone Manayunk where I get PAID to make erg workouts and motivate clients through them. My new apartment is amazing – we don’t have a lot of furniture or fancy things, but it is finally a place that I can unpack all of my belongings without knowing I have to repack and move them eight months later.  I feel like I can finally settle myself in and discover who I am and what I want from life without all the chaos. I feel more focused than ever, even though most of the time I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off just trying to make it through the day.

At school, I was always told that rowing after college was way harder to manage. I assumed this was in reference to the time commitment of a full time job and a full training schedule. Personally, I think this is the least hard part of rowing now. I get up, I go rowing, I go to work, I go rowing, I go to bed. To me, this is simple.  I’ve woken up before 5:30am and gone to bed before 10pm since I was 14.  It’s the way I work well and it probably won’t ever change.

One of the hardest parts to adjust to is the volume of training.  In the past month, I have battled two fevers, multiple cold sores and been so sick that I missed my first on the water practice in over a year just because my body is adjusting to the load. But I would have to say that the harder part is explaining myself to people. In college it is acceptable to bend over backwards for your sport, because most people assume you’re getting a scholarship for it (in my case, that was still wrong). In real life, people are split into two camps. The first camp are the people who think that rowing is a “sport and social” club; that I go a couple times a week and it’s a grand old time. These people don’t understand that practice is mandatory and think that I skip Happy Hour because I’m antisocial. Trust me, when it’s pouring and freezing and all the muscles I didn’t know I had are burning, I wish I was eating nachos and drinking margaritas. Then there is the other camp of people who just think that I am crazy. They see how much time I put in at the boathouse and they wonder what kind of person would put so much energy into something that doesn’t involve a paycheck.

And I don’t even know if I could verbalize why I do it. Words can’t justify the way I feel on the good days. The 5 a.m. launch in complete darkness with perfect water where I am the only person on the river for an hour; feeling so invincible and realizing that to anyone passing by that I am just two blinking lights gliding across the surface of the water.  The Friday night row in rain so hard and so cold it takes my breath and my vision away and all I can do is feel my muscles continue to take each stroke as I wait for the downpour to stop. The feeling of freedom on the last hard stroke of a Saturday practice with the knowledge that I don’t have to begin to beat myself up again until Monday morning. Crossing a race finish line knowing that I gave it 110% of my best effort and no matter what the results say, I will be happy with that knowledge. And the fact that I never, ever have trouble falling asleep.

There are so many days that I wish I could attach a Go Pro camera to my head so that I could replay my day to my coworkers and friends to say, “See this is what I do; this is my way of life”.  But it’s not something that can be explained. I just hope that those who don’t understand know that what I do makes me truly happy and accomplished – a feeling that can’t be found through socialized drinking, retail therapy or any of the other “grown up” coping mechanisms out there. If someone had asked me in March if I thought I was going to still be rowing at this point in my life, I would have probably told them no. But I am and it is the best choice I have ever made.

Spicin’ It Up: Four Ingredient Cajun Sweet Potatoes!

One of the greatest food discoveries I have made in Philadelphia is Whole Foods’s “Six Dollar Box”. For six dollars, Whole Foods will let you pick a meat and two sides from the deli counter. Due to my diet, this is a great way for me to be able to go out to eat delicious, good quality food with friends on the cheap. My favorite side at Whole Foods is definitely the Cajun Sweet Potato fries. They are AMAZING! My only problem with them was that they are a tad too spicy for me. So of course I needed to find a way to make them at home so they will be just right (and I can have them all the time). After some experimenting, I think I’ve figured it out. Here’s the secret:

 Ingredients

7 medium sweet potatoes – I got mine at Trader Joe’s in a bag

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon Cajun spice (or more if you like it really spicy! Can be found in most spice sections)

3 packets of Wawa hot sauce (or about 3 tablespoons of another brand)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven for 400 degrees.

2. Wash the potatoes  

3.Cut into pieces -  here I experimented with round, cube, fry shaped etc.

4. Stir everything together.

5. Bake in the oven for 50 minutes, stirring halfway through. In order to make sure it's cooked, poke them with a fork...or taste test!

Serving Size: One potato (or about 160g)

Calories per serving: 145 calories

Makes seven servings and keeps well for about a week in the refrigerator, which makes them a great food to have around when you’re in a rush. These were great for my lightweight diet, with required that I have 200g of sweet potato for my dinner. The spice on the sweet potatoes amped up my meal from super boring to something normal people would eat!

Any nutrition expert will tell you that sweet potatoes are considered a superfood – good source of vitamin C and magnesium, sources of iron, magnesium and Vitamin D. They are also high in carotenoids, which help ward off cancer. This recipe has all of those things, plus a spicy kick! 

Independence Day Regatta: Year Two

It’s amazing to me that the last time I updated was the middle of June. This summer has flown by and it’s easy to see why – every single day is packed! With five hours of rowing a day, there really isn’t a lot of time for other things besides going to work, prepping and eating food and sleeping. 

Independence Day Regatta has come and gone. IDR marks the moment last year when I first started thinking about rowing for a summer program. My IDR experience last year – car-topping a single and crashing on a couch- was completely different from this year. Last year I raced the Intermediate 1x (unaffiliated), this year, the Intermediate Light 1x, Open 2x and Open 4x for Penn AC. I was originally supposed to be in the Intermediate Light 2x but the Tuesday before IDR, my double partner broke her hand in a biking accident and I was put in the single instead. Both of us were really disappointed because we had been working very hard in our double and planned on racing towards a good result. This change of plans meant that my race and therefore my weigh-in was two days earlier than expected. My first weigh in as a 130 lightweight was definitely a tough one, but I hit the mark exactly: 130.0! Can’t say I’m not accurate. 

 I had a fair race in the heat and was able to make top two without pushing my hardest. The final on Saturday was a completely different story. I knew I had tough girls to race and had to have a good race to even hang with the pack. Unfortunately, my nerves got the best of me and I overgripped my oars, giving me the worst forearm cramps I’ve ever experienced in my life…beginning at 1500m to go. I crossed the finish line in last place at 26spm barely able to hang on to the handles. I was very disappointed with this, not just because I got last, but because I felt I wasn’t able to row to my potential at all and test my skills against girls I feel like I could compete with. However, the bright side is that I did at least make the final and got more racing experience. Now I know what to work on and that I have a lot of room to improve!

On Sunday, I raced in the Open 2x and Open 4x. The 2x was a last minute entry in order to give me a race in a double after we had to scratch the lightweight double. We had an okay race, we were just racing people way, way faster than we were. Like World Championship medal faster. As someone who should not only be racing as a lightweight but also in the intermediate category, this was definitely intimidating. But once again I gained more racing experience. We encountered the same situation with the quad. We put together a good race but were just outclassed. But I have to say that even through all the last minute changes and tough racing, I learned a lot and was fairly pleased with the weekend. 

 I love rowing for Penn AC. Every single person comes to practice excited and ready to row, even when we’re exhausted. Rowing in Philadelphia has refueled and revitalized my love for the sport completely. As far as my transition to a lightweight rower, things have definitely been hard but not unmanageable. My diet has worked great and although it is challenging to pass on beer and burgers when I’m out socializing, the reward has been worth it. It also helps that most of the people I know here are rowers, former rowers or coaches and understand what I am going through. The support is amazing. I definitely have a lot of thoughts about my shift to a lightweight rower so there will be a whole post about that at some point! But for now, enjoy a picture of what I eat on a regular basis. 

This Wednesday begins Club Nationals, a race I have never participated in before. I will be racing in the Intermediate Light 2x, Intermediate Light 4+ and Intermediate Light 4x. I am very excited for lots of racing over five days with a great team! GO PENN AC!

It's Goal Time! My Fitness Bucket List

Having closed out my Division I athletic career, I’ve begun to think a lot about what comes after Penn AC's summer program. I’ve seen very fit people leave the collegiate playing field and come back to visit five months later unable to climb stairs without pausing to catch their breath. I don’t want to be one of those people. Athletics have been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember and I don’t plan on stopping just because college is over. I saw the Fitness Bucket List on Pinterest the other day and knew that I had to make one. There are so many activities that I’ve never tried because I was sore from practice or I didn’t want to injure myself and risk sacrificing a season. Now is the time for me to try all of those things. And who knows what I could discover about myself…maybe my athletic career is just beginning!

• Be able to do a one armed pull-up.
• Try a spin class.
• Be able to do a 1 minute handstand

• Be able to do a one-handed push-up
• Complete a half-Ironman triathlon
• Bench my body weight

• Try kickboxing
• Get a 2 minute "hang time"
• Run a sub six minute mile
  

• Try CrossFit
• Get over my fear of heights and try rock climbing
• Race in a lightweight double

• Try a kettle bell workout
• Learn self defense
• Try Wii Fit

• Hike to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
  
• Do a workout using the Exorcist stairs in DC
• Try a pole dancing class! (Yes, they exist for exercise!)

• Participate in Run for Your Lives
  
• Get around using a bike instead of using my car
• Do a Color Run 

• Race in a ridiculous costume
  
• Do 25 chin ups in a row
  
• Learn to ski!

 

A fitness bucket list can be great motivation to become more active or try things you've never even thought of before. Motivation is the number one trait that determines whether people stick with working out. By thinking of fun, active things to do, it won't feel like work! What's the number one thing on your fitness bucket list?


**Thanks to Angie for illustrating my bucket list. 

Ten Things in Ten Days: My First Take on Philadelphia

For me, the most exciting thing about summer is the feeling of possibility. This is the feeling that no matter what is going on right now, summer guarantees exciting new adventures. This summer that feeling of excitement is especially high as I have moved my fabulous self to a brand new city. For the next three months, I will blogging from the brotherly lovin’, cheese steak eatin’, Rocky Stairs runnin’ city of Philadelphia. I am not gainfully employed (yet) but I am rowing for Penn AC’s intermediate program. Practice hasn’t started yet so in between applying for real jobs and trying to keep my out-of-shape self from getting more out of shape, I have been exploring things this great city has to offer. This isn’t a traditional “Tory’s Top Ten” but here is a list of ten things I’ve done in the past ten days since I moved.

1. Run the Rocky Stairs. This was the first thing I had to do. Granted, I did it as a workout and not to re-enact that famous scene (as many tourists do). In the five or so other days that I’ve run them, it’s cool to see just how many different types of people pay homage to Rocky on the Art Museum Stairs. On top of running them at the end of each of my jogs, I’ve also done 3x8 sets with 3’ rest and 5x5’ of steps with 5’ rest. While it’s not as hard as a true 5x5’ workout, it was definitely not easy.

2. Eaten old fashioned ice cream at Franklin Fountain. These interestingly named sundaes were a little expensive, but worth the wait and the money. I had never had a banana split before so I tried “Banana Split for My Baby” which is a smaller version of a banana split with more peanut butter. So kind of like one of my shakes …only way, way unhealthier and way, way tastier.

3. Enjoyed healthy eats at The Couch Tomato. When I ventured to Manayunk, I was overwhelmed how many restaurants I wanted to eat at. The Couch Tomato stuck out because it was a funky looking spot off the main street. The food was great (I tried the Holy Chipotle and BBQ Chicken Chopped Salad). Even if the food had been so-so, they won me over when I was asked if I wanted my dressing on the side and I didn’t have to feel like a picky snob for ordering it that way. (Even though you can’t really tell from this list, I am dieting…yeah, I swear!) Any salad can be made into a wrap and they have a ton of vegetarian options, or you can make your own. The ingredients taste as fresh as they are guaranteed to be and if you sit outside, it’s a great place for people watching.

4. Partied at The Bike Race. The Philadelphia International Cycling Championship, known in Philly as The Bike Race, is a pro bicycling race that snakes its way through Philadelphia every June. I thought people only drank before 10 a.m. if they were being hazed but when we arrived at “The Wall” at 10:45 a.m., spectators were already slurring their commentary. It was like an outrageous day-long frat party to support the bikers. “The Wall”, one of the best places to watch, refers to a giant hill in Manayunk where the riders slow down enough that I could almost high five them. If they hadn’t been climbing a hill giant enough that walking up it just once made me need a nap.

5. Got a brain freeze at Philly Flavors. Anyone who knows me knows that I love Rita’s. This might be the better version of Rita’s…with more flavors, real ice cream as well as frozen yogurt and HUGE portions for about the same price (just don’t get a sundae because those will run your bill up). They will mix Italian ice with soft serve ice cream and it is so good. I highly recommend peach ice with vanilla soft serve. Just don’t eat it as fast as I did…brain freeze!

6. Used my college knowledge to crush Quizzo at North Star Bar. Ok, so maybe I only got one question right. But my team was really smart and that’s what counts. This trivia night, hosted by Johnny Goodtimes (who sometimes raps questions), was a low key pen-and-paper game with four rounds: easy, speed, themed and impossible, with some “guess-the-song” rounds in between. And no, the question I got right was not in the easy round. The wings were pretty good, the beers were better and the feeling of winning would have been the best. Guess I have to go back next Monday for that!

7. Had my first cheesesteak as a Philadelphia resident at Mama’s Pizzeria. While it might not be as famous as Pat’s or Geno’s, I could care less because it wasn’t crowded and the cheesesteaks were awesome. And by “cheesesteaks”, I have to confess that I could only eat half. But it was a fantastic half, with perfect roll and extra cheese and grilled onions and tasty steak. I will definitely be sampling a lot of cheesesteaks over the next three months but even if there is a better one out there, it probably won’t taste just as good microwaved for lunch the next day (but Mama’s did!)

8. Celebrated Beer Week at Memphis Taproom. If I had known that Beer Week existed, I probably would have moved here years ago. Who wouldn’t love a city that celebrates beer? Memphis Tap Room was a great place for me to go to kick off my first beer week. Not only did they have a no repeat beer week beer menu, they also have fried pickles (they taste WAY better than they sound) and delicious sandwiches for not too much money.

9. Devoured wings at PJ Wellihans. Thanks to Darby’s forty cent wing night, I discovered this year that I love wings, especially sweetly barbequed wings with a little bit of tang. I might not have had a long history of wing eating, but these wings are the best I have ever eaten. Ever. We ordered 30 Hot ‘n’ Honey wings for three of us, but I am pretty sure that I could have eaten all 30 by myself. And then wanted more. They were amazing.

10. Sampled my way through Whirled Peace. I went to this froyo place for the first time in March and I was totally in love. At that point, I didn’t know I was going to move to Philadelphia (perhaps subconsciously this is what made me chose) but I knew I loved this place. They have about ten flavors of frozen yogurt, from the typical chocolate and vanilla to some super weird sounding flavors that were actually kind of good. I don’t know because I’ve made ten trips, I know because they let you have free samples of every flavor. Actually, I'm not sure if they let you do this. I just know that there were sampling cups and I was in charge of getting my own. When you stop sampling, you can add a TON of different toppings for whatever craving you have that day. So delicious!

So what if three of my ten adventures were ice cream related? Clearly I have my priorities in order. While I have done these ten things, some highlights so far that didn’t make the Top Ten include getting a bike flat, falling off my bike, successfully parallel parking my car, erging in the Penn AC boathouse, riding my bike in the city at night, figuring out where I am (sometimes), going grocery shopping in a less than nice neighborhood and not getting any parking tickets (so far). I haven’t been on the water yet, which will make 22 days the longest amount of time I have not rowed (during rowing months) in the past three years. Other than that, I am enjoying myself immensely and look forward to a summer full of adventures! Do you have any adventure ideas for me? Leave a comment or send me an email!

Learning From the Best: A Thank You Note to Marist Crew

As this school year, marking the end of my collegiate rowing career, ends, I have definitely been reflecting back on the last four years. Rowing at Marist has been a great experience for me and I hope that my team has learned as much from me as I have from them. On a current varsity team with only eleven rowers and three coxswains, we have gotten very close with each other, forging friendships in unexpected places as well as strengthening friendships we’ve always had. Every person brings something special to the team and all of these parts have created a cohesive whole. I will definitely miss every single one of these people and I wanted to show what makes each of them so vital to our team. Every rower could learn from these thirteen girls. 

Every coxswain should take no prisoners, like Zoe. Zoe is one of the best coxswains I’ve had and that is because she will do everything in her power to get us ahead. She steers like a champ and very rarely, if ever, messes up a call in practice. She never lets us start behind, she always steals the flat water if she can, she docks with style and she can somehow read our coach’s mind, meaning we get yelled at less. As a sculler at heart, I can get frustrated with coxswains very easily, but I think Zoe and I are on the same wave length most of the time. And if we’re not, it’s because she’s three steps ahead of me.  

 

Every rower should be positive like Theresa. I am pretty sure that I have never heard a truly negative comment from come from Theresa’s mouth, ever. On the very rare days that she shows up to practice without a smile, I know that something is very wrong. After ending her spring season with a broken wrist in March, Theresa has never complained. She still shows up every morning with a smile to be our assistant coach from the launch.

Every rower should be competitive like Flavia. Flavia’s like the honey badger: she doesn’t give a shit what boat she’s in or who she’s racing, she’s going to give it her all to make sure her boat’s bowball is crossing the finish line first.  The happiest I’ve seen Flav is when 1) she PRs on her 2k and 2) when we have a good practice beating up on other boats and 3) when we win races. She is not afraid to push herself or others to compete at a higher level.

Every rower should be able to find humor in any situation, like Meg. This past year, I have spent a lot of time with Meg. She sits next to me when we erg and she’s my pair in the boat. And if I’m laughing in the middle of practice, it’s probably because Meg said some offhand remark that is making me almost pee my pants. From sassing our coaches to making fun of me, Meg always lightens the mood at practice, on the bus or at races. 

Every rower should believe in themselves like Sarah. Sarah, a former swimmer for Marist, was thrown into the V8 after rowing for three weeks. She had literally never touched an oar in her life at the end of February and then was put in our boat at the end of March. Despite dealing with the most yelling constructive criticism from our coach as he brought her up to speed, Sarah never seemed to get frustrated. She improved leaps and bounds and I think that’s due to her innate athletic confidence in her ability to perform when the time calls.

Every coxswain should be even tempered, like Jen G. Due to our lack of a true 2V this year, Jen was not been able to cox that much. Whenever we enter a 2V in a race, it’s usually some combination of freshmen that Jen gets to cox. Jen never gets frustrated with them and has an incredible teaching personality, which helps immensely in the beginning of this year.

Every rower should be enthusiastic like Eleni. When Eleni first joined the team as a freshman walk-on, it was easy to tell that she wanted to be all in for the team. A lot of freshmen walk-ons are there for the social aspect, but Eleni was enthusiastic about both the sport and the people she was working with. She enjoys being on the water and works hard to improve her rowing, even as an upperclassman.

Every rower should be determined like Jenn. At 5’1”, Jenn is one of the smallest rowers in our boathouse. Most people, including our coach, looked at her and didn’t think she could row well. Despite her size disadvantage, she now is consistently one of the fastest ergs on the team (and if we weight adjusted erg scores, she likely would be the fastest). This is due to her incredible work ethic as well as her phenomenal amount of mental toughness. Nobody tells Jenn what she can’t do.

Every rower should have the desire to improve their technique like Kelsey. Kelsey just wants to become a better rower. She’s sat behind me for two years now and her main complaint about our coach is that he doesn’t criticize her enough. Most rowers would be happy to stay under the radar, but not Kelsey. She’s not afraid to ask if she has corrected a mistake and is constantly asking Jenn, who sits behind her, to look out for her problems. When something is wrong in the boat, Kelsey is just as likely to blame herself as other people and works to make corrections on every stroke.

 

Every coxswain should be able to balance life and rowing, like Bree. This semester, Bree completed her student teaching while practicing every day and racing every weekend. Most college students I’ve met can barely handle one of these things, never mind both at the same time. Bree put her mind to it that she was going to do everything that she wanted to this semester and I believe that she has done a great job at both.

Every rower should be dedicated like Marissa. If you’re rigging or derigging a boat, Marissa is probably helping. If you’re launching for a race, Marissa has probably carried your oars to the dock and is about to carry your shoes away from it. She has never skipped a YOYO or missed a practice without a very legitimate reason, such as being near deathly sick. Marissa always gives 100% to practice and racing, as well as the little things (launch carrying, erg cleaning, trailer loading, boat moving and the like) that most rowers try to avoid. Without people like Marissa overseeing the details, crew teams everywhere would grind to a halt and I believe Marist is no different.

Every rower should be organized like Maggie. As co-captains, Maggie and I have had to deal with some tedious and detail oriented issues, such as ordering gear, planning formal for the men’s and women’s teams, organizing team gifts, etc. Between the two of us, we have managed to do some awesome things, things that I could not have done all by myself. Maggie is one of those people who you just know is going to be incredibly successful in her life and I would not doubt that I will see her on one of those Time Magazine People of the Year issues.

Every rower should be able to handle setbacks, like Angie. Angie had to take the first semester of our sophomore year off from college, something that would be hard for anyone, never mind a Division I athlete. She came back second semester light years behind the rest of our class in terms of technique, but with an attitude that said nothing was going to stop her from improving. She spent that spring mostly not boated, but when she came back the next year, she improved immensely, making the Varsity 8+ in the spring and having the fastest 2k in the boathouse. This year she has battled with recovering from getting her wisdom teeth removed as well as “confined” appendicitis, and her only complaint was that she couldn’t erg with the rest of us. And guess who was the stroke seat of the V8 for the spring season?  

 

My time at Marist has not just been shaped by the people who are on the team now, but almost anyone I’ve met through crew. Whether it was the seniors when we were freshmen, the alumni who I’ve met through other people, the coaches, or the freshmen on the team now, every single person has had some kind of impact on my life, whether they know it or not. Thanks for a great four years, Marist Crew!