Sports.... what should I join?

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

<p>errm. Ok. I was always involved in sports (you name it, i've played it.. basketball, softball, swimming, xcountry, tennis, soccer...) when I was younger and was always OK, but I never, ever practiced outside of the 2 official practice nights a week or whatever. i was always average on the team.. never the absolute loser, never the MVP. i haven't played in a while (wasnt offered at the last few schools and have become less motivated to be athletic), but i want to again. thing is, i would like to choose a sport which I can excel at, so that I can..eh, so I can achieve some sort of worthwhile rank.. the sports i'm good at, however, are sports that aren't usually interscholastic (horseback riding - lots of blue ribbons, competitive cheerleading - went to nationals. it's not available to me anymore). (i seem to be best w/ minimal contact sports.. ball sports aren't my thing. dad was all-around amazing ball-sports athlete, but i sadly didn't get the genes or w/e).. point is: i sort of need to choose a "real" sport (team/interscholastic) that i can become reasonably good at in a year and a half (mind you, i have experience and am not extremely short or weak)...what do i do? i have.. 22>18 months to attain a recognizable team spot/rank.. what sport would this be easiest to do w/? 5'6 female, athletically built but never trained or practiced other than recreationally so never really excelled. willing to do that now.</p>

<p>also note: i DO enjoy sports. in fact, i actually really like sports and being on a team and gradually improving.. the feeling and whatnot.</p>

<p>any suggestions?</p>

2

<p>Track!</p>

<p>I admit I'm a bit biased here.</p>

3

<p>If you're 135 or less, try lightweight rowing.
I know a girl who went from having zero experience in the spring of her freshman year to winning 1st place at the largest scholastic regatta a year later. Of course, she has crazy natural strength and there were three other people supporting her, so that's an unusual case. But it shows that anything is possible.</p>

<p>(I'm totally biased towards crew.)</p>

<p>On the other hand, at 5'6", it is VERY hard to achieve national ranking as a heavyweight. But it's totally possible to win States.</p>

<p>Good luck with whatever sport you choose to pursue.</p>

4

<p>Well if you want to choose a sport to excel at, while at the same time just beginning to practice now, that narrows it down. I would say the major sports include soccer, field hockey, basketball, lacrosse, swimming among others. Those sports are the most competetive nationwide, where the kids have been competing since they could walk. So, I would say try some new things, like are you good at running, because that's something that some people are naturally good at, and with a little runnign you could get those nice awards to put on your app or w/e. So basically i said a whole bunch of nothing, just stay away from the most competetive sports, and choose something you enjoy enough to practice in your free time.</p>

5

<p>Hey, doarkface, could you explain more about rowing? I've been thinking about joining a non-school officiated team (my school doesn't have a team, and I'm obviously not experienced enough to start one). I had no idea there were weight classes! :o Could you talk about that some more to? And I've been doing the row machine at the gym for a while, and I can feel my back muscles getting decently strong, but are there any other exercises that you suggest to get ready? And how long is a regatta (I can hardly do the row machine for more than 20 minutes, but my speed is decently good and I pack a lot of punch with each stroke!) I know this is a lot, but I don't have many crew friends and google pretty much sucks.</p>

6

<p>funny you mention crew.. that's what i was leaning towards. but i am 5'6.. i think that would be one sport that i might be very good at because it's about sheer strength.. and while i'm not Amazonian, i do have some strong muscles (even when i don't work out for long periods of time and get really lazy.. im still athletic.. who knows)...but again, most of those girls are 6'0, 175.. (jesus..) ad have 4 years on me.. oh well. whatever.</p>

<p>and running bores the crap out of me... i was on xcountry team since 4th grade (undefeated, regional champs)..but will never, ever be one of those 5k/20 min. people...just not in the cards.</p>

7

<p>princessbell - There are a couple of weight classes: heavyweight, lightweight, flyweight, and featherweight. For girls, featherweight is supposed to be somewhere around 96 lbs, and flyweight is 115 lbs (or 52.5 kg), but those two weight classes are so rare that there are only two regattas on this continent that I know have flyweight and featherweight classes. Women's lightweight is 135 lbs in the fall, and 130 in the spring. For men, flyweight is around 140 lbs, lightweight is 160 in the spring and 165 in the fall - however, in certain races they're lowering it to 155.</p>

<p>In the fall, races are generally around 5k (20ish minutes), though I know a 3.2k and a 12k that go on in my area. In the spring, races are 1500m if you're in the northeast, and 2000 m elsewhere. Times (for a high school-level boat) will range from 6 minutes to 8 minutes, and less for guys.</p>

<p>With regards to the rowing machine: What kind of splits are you pulling? 2:00-2:30 minutes/500m is great for a beginner. If you can row 2000m in less than 8 minutes, you're golden, and probably can be considered one of the stronger girls on a team, unless you're in an elite club. On a 5k, 21:00 is equally good.</p>

<p>When you're on an erg, make sure you have proper technique, or else you're training yourself in the wrong motions. Separate the legs, back and arms, but keep them connected. Also, while your back and abs are an important part, the most power in the rowing stroke comes from your legs - specifically, your quads. Do squats and jumpies to strengthen those. Make sure your hands don't hit your stomach at the finish - let them come extremely close to your body and send them straight out. Your recovery should be 2 times as long as your drive when you're not rowing full power...on the same note, don't lunge towards the catch.</p>

<p>Oh, you might want to Google some of this stuff. I'm using a bit of jargon and not explaining it fully because I'm short on time. If you can't find any information, I'd be happy to explain it all later.</p>

<p>blair - Crew is NOT sheer strength. There is a lot of technique involved, though strength helps a lot. However, if your oar isn't even in the water, that doesn't help you at all. Also, while elite youth rowers may be 6' tall and 175 lbs, you can be strong at a club-level without being quite so butch. In fact, I know a guy - not a girl - who was 6' and about 180, who made it to finals at nationa's in a single. Most girls are actually around your height.</p>

<p>...That's one mother of a post.</p>

8

<p>
[quote]
Track!</p>

<p>I admit I'm a bit biased here.

[/quote]
At my school in the spring, hald the school does track and the other half does swim.</p>

9

<p>Being tall helps a lot for crew. However, the idea that all really good crew girls are like huge, butch monsters is completely wrong. I do crew and know at least 3 girls that are over 6 feet, yet weigh between 135 and 150 pounds. If you want to do crew princessbell, I say you erg at a local gym and try it out. Princessbell, pm me if you want to know more or anything.</p>

10

<p>
[quote]
I do crew and know at least 3 girls that are over 6 feet, yet weigh between 135 and 150 pounds.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>That is almost gross, and almost unnatural.</p>

<p>Once, I saw a 6'3"ish guy weighing in, and he made girls' lightweight wearing soaked sweats and sneakers. THAT was gross and unnatural.</p>

11

<p>i'd recommend you do track or rowing or something like that.</p>

<p>sports like soccer, lacrosse, softball, etc. take much more time to excel at.</p>

<p>obviously i've never played softball.... but i played baseball for 2 years so that's close enough, haha</p>