In order to understand me, you must understand where I came from. I was born and raised in Windsor.
I always loved running.
Going out for random runs when I was younger wasn’t uncommon.
I lived 1-2 miles away from my friends. In order to spend as much time with them as possible and still make curfew I had to run there and back.
I was only in grade school at the time I found out I had a gift, but I was heavily into basketball because my uncles were great basketball players.
My only goal at first was to be as good as them.
At the time the High School WF Herman was a powerhouse in sports in general. Everyone talked about the athletes at Herman. There were a lot of fantastic athletes who came through Herman.
My dream was to simply make a team at Herman, and be a starter.
I remember being at the park, and kids telling me I would never be as good as my uncles. That I was pathetic, and would be lucky to even make the team.
I remember them telling me that if I was the future of Herman, Herman was going to be terrible for the years to come.
I was 11 years old at the time. They were all in high school. Kids can be very harsh around this age.
Honestly, I went home and cried.
Looking back though, this was a turning point for me. I had a decision to make.
Was I going to let the High School kids at the park be right? Or was I going to prove them wrong?
I spent the next two years improving my game (basketball). My parents wouldn’t let me play travel basketball because they wanted to me to focus on academics.
I remember spending hours at the park getting up shots, going for runs, doing leg exercises. There were times at the park that I would be doing my exercises while it was 40 degrees. Or just above 0 Celsius.
Hands burning and everything.
I was determined to be ready. Now that I look back, I’ve always had a crazy work ethic. It’s just how my mind is wired.
Getting better is like a craving to me. I laugh when I look back.
I was so busy trying to be like others that I looked up to,
I was ignoring my own gifts.
I’ve always had my fair share of success in Track and Field, but it was always on the back burner. Track and Field just wasn’t as popular as Basketball. I was determined to be a basketball player, and I was going to be ready when High School came along.
Brandon Mcbride, 800m Olympic Runner.
Part 1.
Anyone in sports and fitness who would like to share their voice, please submit to hank@hankfittraining.com.