Lifestyle
Simone Manuel returns from overtraining syndrome and focuses on the Olympic Games in Paris
ATLANTA (AP) – As Simone Manuel zigzags across a decent deck filled with swimmers, she reminds herself that there are still some things about her sport that irritate her.
“I’m not sure a crowded pool deck is always the most fun,” she jokes, smiling. “I don’t think any swimmer likes it very much.”
Not that she’s complaining.
Not after the whole lot she’s been through.
Manuel, the first Black swimmer to win a person Olympic gold medal, is coming off a devastating case of overtraining syndrome that has seen her body break down in the run-up to the 2021 Tokyo Games, following a starring role five years earlier in Rio de Janeiro, where she won two golds and two silver medals.
Manuel struggled to make the U.S. team in Japan and only won a bronze medal as anchor in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. As soon as the flame went out, she was forced to present up all activity – even something as mundane as a light-weight walk – for seven months to permit herself to heal each physically and mentally.
“These are probably the most boring months of my life,” she told The Associated Press. “I spent loads of time talking about my feelings, what happened, processing what happened, because I feel once you’re in that, you are type of in survival mode. I actually needed to work through it and come to terms with the whole lot.
Heading into the U.S. Olympic trials, which begin Saturday in Indianapolis, Manuel is in a a lot better place.
As at all times, she is set to win the Olympics for a 3rd time, but she knows that there are things way more essential than hitting the wall for the first time.
Like ensuring he takes care of himself.
It’s a lesson that a growing variety of top athletes – from swimmer Caeleb Dressel to gold medalist gymnast Simone Biles to tennis star Naomi Osaka – are heeding once they are overwhelmed by the demands of their sport.
“I always liked to dream big and set very aggressive goals for myself,” said Manuel, who won historic gold by tying for the 100-meter freestyle at the 2016 Rio Games. “It would be unfair of me to lower my standards. but at the same time, I have to give myself grace because this journey is unlike any other I have ever been on in this sport.”
After a protracted doctor-ordered break – accompanied by inevitable doubts about whether she would ever be a top-level swimmer again – Manuel looks like herself in the pool again.
The 27-year-old Texan posted her best time in the 100m freestyle since 2019 ultimately month’s meet, making her one in every of the top sprinters.
“I’m very happy with where she’s at,” said one in every of her coaches, Bob Bowman, who’s best known for working with the most decorated Olympian of all of them, Michael Phelps. “He’s pretty close to his highest level.”
Manuel transferred to Arizona State University in suburban Phoenix to work with Bowman and his chief assistant, Herbie Behm, which had a huge effect on her recovery.
“I just felt like when I met Bob, I had a really good connection with him,” Manuel said. “He really understood my experience with overtraining, which was extremely important to me. I wanted to be able to talk to my new coach about this experience, what it was like for me, mentally and physically, and have them want to talk to me about it, but also understand what it was like and how they can help me moving forward.”
Bowman’s acknowledgment of Manuel’s condition was in stark contrast to the lack of awareness – outside of sports and even at the pool – when she revealed her condition. Overtraining syndrome is a really real problem, but some felt she was simply making excuses for her underperformance ahead of Tokyo.
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She even considered giving up sports.
“I’ve achieved a lot in this sport and I think to some extent some of the reactions to what happened to me haven’t been entirely kind,” she said. “I suppose I believed, ‘I haven’t got to place myself in a position again where I’m vulnerable to the world simply to have them not accept the undeniable fact that what happened to me was real and that it isn’t. Excuse.'”
Experts say overtraining syndrome – also referred to as burnout – is a really major problem for all top-level athletes, who must walk a fantastic line between working harder than their competitors without reaching the point of diminishing returns.
Every body, even people who win gold medals, has its limitations.
“This does not give the body enough time to recover from intense training, which results in fatigue and lack of motivation,” said Dr. Paul Arciero, a professor in the Department of Sports Medicine and Nutrition at the University of Pittsburgh. “One of the telltale symptoms is a decline in performance.”
That’s what happened to Manuel, who at all times believed – like a lot of her fellow athletes and coaches – that the only strategy to continually improve was to push her body even harder. As the Tokyo Olympics approached, she couldn’t understand why her times were getting worse, though she felt like she was working harder than ever.
Dr. Robert Trasolini, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist at Northwell Health Orthopedic Institute in New York, said Olympic athletes, who devote countless hours to achieving a goal that may only be achieved every 4 years, are particularly prone to overtraining.
“When you start to push yourself beyond strength and you notice a drop in activity, that should be the wake-up call that says, ‘Hey, I need to stop,’” Trasolini said. “But it’s hard for an athlete who is working towards a goal, especially when it doesn’t give them immediate satisfaction.”
Proper nutrition and adequate recovery time are essential in stopping overtraining syndrome. It’s also essential to have coaching and support staff who can recognize the warning signs that may appear in the whole lot from resting heart rate to blood pressure.
Arciero also recommends that any top-level athlete who has gotten where they’re largely through single-minded focus hunt down activities that provide a way of purpose outside the arena.
“It could be knitting, reading or doing art,” he said.
To that end, Manuel began her own foundation to assist expand swimming to Black communities and other groups which have been largely excluded from the predominantly white sport in the U.S.
He’s not trying to seek out the next Simone Manuel. He just wants to reveal more people of color to the lifestyle and show them how much fun it’s to spend a day in the water.
“We won’t see more diversity in sports unless it starts from the grassroots,” Manuel said. “Swimming should be something really positive in the Black community, but historically it hasn’t been.”
Bowman, who left Arizona State in April to hitch the famed University of Texas swim program, continues to work with Manuel as she prepares for trials, though it is a more long-distance relationship lately. She remained in Tempe to do most of her training under Behm, who replaced Bowman as the Sun Devils’ head coach.
Manuel is in a a lot better situation than three years ago. She got married at the end of last 12 months. He swims fast again.
“When it comes to swimming, I have always taken care of my body, but I just learned that breathing is really important,” Manuel said. “It’s really important to not just tune into your body, but really listen to it.”
Lifestyle
What is GiveTuesday? The annual day of giving is approaching
Since it began as a hashtag in 2012, Giving on Tuesdaythe Tuesday after Thanksgiving, became one of the largest collection days yr for non-profit organizations within the USA
GivingTuesday estimates that the GivingTuesday initiative will raise $3.1 billion for charities in 2022 and 2023.
This yr, GivingTuesday falls on December 3.
How did GivingTuesday start?
The hashtag #GivingTuesday began as a project of the 92nd Street Y in New York City in 2012 and have become an independent organization in 2020. It has grown right into a worldwide network of local organizations that promote giving of their communities, often on various dates which have local significance. like a vacation.
Today, the nonprofit organization GivingTuesday also brings together researchers working on topics related to on a regular basis giving. This too collects data from a big selection of sources comparable to payment processors, crowdfunding sites, worker transfer software and offering institutions donor really helpful fundstype of charity account.
What is the aim of GivingTuesday?
The hashtag has been began promote generosity and this nonprofit organization continues to advertise giving within the fullest sense of the word.
For nonprofits, the goal of GivingTuesday is to boost money and have interaction supporters. Many individuals are aware of the flood of email and mail appeals that coincide on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. Essentially all major U.S. nonprofits will host fundraising campaigns, and plenty of smaller, local groups will participate as well.
Nonprofit organizations don’t have to be affiliated with GivingTuesday in any method to run a fundraising campaign. They can just do it, although GivingTuesday provides graphics and advice. In this manner, it stays a grassroots endeavor during which groups and donors participate as they please.
Was GivingTuesday a hit?
It will depend on the way you measure success, but it surely has definitely gone far beyond initial efforts to advertise giving on social media. The day has change into an everlasting and well-known event that focuses on charitable giving, volunteerism and civic participation within the U.S. and all over the world.
For years, GivingTuesday has been a serious fundraising goal for nonprofits, with many looking for to arrange pooled donations from major donors and leverage their network of supporters to contribute. This is the start year-end fundraising peakas nonprofits strive to fulfill their budget goals for next yr.
GivingTuesday giving in 2022 and 2023 totaled $3.1 billion, up from $2.7 billion in 2021. While that is loads to boost in a single day, the trend last yr was flat and with fewer donorswhich, in accordance with the organization, is a disturbing signal.
Lifestyle
BlaQue Community Cares is organizing a cash crowd for serious food
QNS reports that Queens, New York-based nonprofit BlaQue Community Cares is making an effort to assist raise awareness of Earnest Foods, an organic food market with the Cash Mob initiative.
The BlaQue Cash Mob program is a community-led event that goals to support local businesses, reminiscent of grocery stores in Jamaica, by encouraging shoppers to go to the shop and spend a certain quantity of cash, roughly $20. BlaQue founder Aleeia Abraham says cash drives are happening across New York City to extend support for local businesses. “I think it’s important to really encourage local shopping habits and strengthen the connections between residents and businesses and Black businesses, especially in Queens,” she said after hosting six events since 2021.
“We’ve been doing this for a while and we’ve found that it really helps the community discover new businesses that they may not have known existed.”
As a result, crowds increase sales and strengthen social bonds for independent businesses.
Earnest Foods opened in 2021 after recognizing the necessity for fresh produce in the world. As residents struggled to seek out fresh food, Abraham defines the shop as “an invaluable part of the southeast Queens community.” “There’s really nowhere to go in Queens, especially Black-owned businesses in Queens, to find something healthier to eat. We need to keep these businesses open,” she said.
“So someone just needs to make everyone aware that these companies exist and how to keep the dollars in our community. Organizing this cash crowd not only encourages people to buy, but also shows where our collective dollars stand, how it helps sustain businesses and directly serves and uplifts our community.”
The event will happen on November 24 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at 123-01 Merrick Blvd in St. Albans. According to the shop’s co-owner, Earnest Flowers, he has partnered with several other Black-owned brands in the world to sell his products at the shop. Flowers is comfortable that his neighbors can come to his supermarket to purchase organic food and goods from local vendors like Celeste Sassine, owner of Sassy Sweet Vegan Treats.
At the grand opening three years ago which was visited by over 350 viewersSassine stated that the collaboration was “super, super, super exciting” to the purpose that the majority of the products were off the shelves inside hours.
Lifestyle
Keke Palmer Recalls the Key Advice Will Smith Gave Her as a Child: “It’s Hard to Be First”
Like many young people, actress Keke Palmer went through a phase wherein she clashed along with her parents. Recently in a performance at “Toast” podcast.Palmer revealed that fellow actor Will Smith helped her take care of the situation along with her family.
As a child star who has appeared on Nickelodeon and Disney productions, the “Akeelah and the Bee” actress explained how juggling fame has affected her and her family relationships — a lot in order that she admits she once considered emancipating herself from her parents.
Although her lawyer tried to get her into counseling, Palmer said it was Smith’s words that ultimately modified her mind.
“A couple of weeks go by, I’m on the set of ‘True Jackson, Vice President’ and I get a call from a very, very unknown number. And I said, “What? If it was strange, I would not answer,” she said, mentioning that she simply went back to work. Later, while retrieving her phone, Palmer received a voicemail from the “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” star.
“Hey Keke. This is Will. We’re here filming ‘The Karate Kid’ with (my son) Jaden and I just want to let you understand that I’ve talked (to your lawyer),’ Palmer continued, impersonating Smith. “He let me know every little thing you are going through and I need you to know that sometimes it’s hard to be the first, but you may do it. Just stay focused, love your loved ones and every little thing shall be high-quality.
Palmer remembers struggling as a child with the attention and fame that got here with climbing the ladder in the entertainment industry. While trying to adjust to the demands of her burgeoning profession, the actress recalls feeling that fame meant she would have to “throw (her) family away.”
“It’s something that happens when you leave and you can become a child artist, you can be the first person in your family to go to college, or you can be the first person in your family to get married,” Palmer said: explaining her feelings at that moment. “There are so many firsts that can happen as the generations of your family grow and evolve.”
Ultimately deciding not to undergo the emancipation process, Palmer emphasized the importance of getting a healthy community when navigating the entertainment industry.
“I think I’ve always felt like a lot of people, whether they’re big names or whether they’re my lawyers, have been a good community,” she added. “Also, my parents made sure I was around (people) who would encourage community rather than discord and separation.”
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