I Believe In…
I believe in the 250m hump. The first time I ever swam the 500m freestyle (the longest race), I realized after about halfway through the race that I had hit a brick wall. I swam as hard as I could but no matter how I tried to conserve or use energy I felt like there was no way to move through the water. When there was only about 75m left in the race I suddenly felt this “burst” of energy (it wasn’t really a burst but a physical need to finish this race).
I believe that in everything we do, we hit that infamous 250m hump that is just a brick wall in what we do. I have experienced it many times, not just in swimming. Most things worth doing are often difficult, I choose to defeat the 250m hump in these tasks because it not only builds character but prepares me for the future. If people could learn to defeat this hump, and not quit, life would be so much easier. While procrastination is very common, it only makes the hump worse and that much harder to get over.
Back to the swimming. The very next swim meet, I had to swim this event again! If you cant tell, I didn’t really like this event. As I swam the first 200m or so, I felt great! I thought I had practiced enough to not hit that hump but as I neared the 250m mark, suddenly, it hit me. All of a sudden I felt more tired than I did the last time. I decided that I wasn’t going to let this stop me. Once I put my mind to it, I finished the race hard. I realize that if we all learn to conquer that hump in our lives, it is a downhill race from there. I also bike, to train for triathlons and there are multiple “250m humps” along my bike route which includes a mile long bridge to Emerald Isle, and it is probably one of the hardest physical challenges that I have overcome in my life.
I wrote this essay to let people know that no matter what life throws at them, whether it be “brick walls” or teddy bears, we all need to see the downhill side of it and overcome these obstacles.