Overview

As I thought more and more about this, I finally decided to make another blog where I could post my race results, reports and training news on. I decided this because although triathlon is apart of My Messy Masterpiece, it deserves a different blog as it follows a totally different aspect of my life.

 

So, why title this 'Dig Deep, Margo?' When racing or training hard, some respond to the sound of a cowbell ringing or people clapping, but I am motivated to the two words 'Dig Deep.' When someone says it, they're reminding me to dig into my already hurting body, press down the negative thoughts and find that #beastmode within myself. Dig deep to overcome the pain and doubts and pull something amazing out of me. Success rate for 'Dig Deep' is pretty darn high. It goes back all the way to freshman year of high school when the basketball and volleyball player returned to swimming after two years off. Out of shape and swimming with the JC team, I was able to dig deep, enter #beastmode and go to Districts, earn a varsity letter and an attendance award. I did this because I tried everyday to be the best that I could be. This attitude continued all the way through college and into races today. But why Margo?

 

My high school was Division I, but there was a one girl team on a Division II school. Her dad being her coach, she found herself on the podium year after year at Ohio High School Swimming States. She was the best that there was (or we thought so, anyways). Her name? Margo. Margo Gear. She went to some Division I school out in California and has swum at the Olympic trials almost every year, getting closer and closer to actually qualifying. Margo sounds a lot like a nickname for Margaret, right? That's what my teammates thought. Opposed to telling me to 'Dig Deep,' my relay team nicknamed me Margo, and every time they said that name, it implied the same. They wanted to me to dig deep to the level that Margo Gear was on. Be as fast as Margo Gear. We went to states two years in a row and I swam the fastest splits of my life. The name carried on to a few on my college team, they knew the meaning, while others motivated in other ways.

 

If you see me in a race, head down, hurting, don't you dare yell, "You got this," or "You're almost there" because if I have enough energy, I may shoot you an awful glare or yell in truth that I'm not almost there. I'm an endurance athlete, I always have been. I have speed but I need distance in races. What better way for an endurance athlete to push through pain and doubts than hearing the words "Dig Deep?" All  the memories start flooding back of successes, and failures, all to motivate and deliver a message to me saying that I can do it. I can push. I can try my best and give it all I have and then push a little more. I'm an athlete, that's what we're trained to do. So let me be just that. Dig Deep, Margo!