My name is Morgan Alfaro and I’m a junior for Southern Utah University’s gymnastics team. I’ve learned how to organize my time in order to meet the demands of being a student-athlete.
A normal day goes like this: I wake up at 6:00 a.m. for weightlifting, head to class for three hours and then have an hour break before gym. This gives me time to eat and go to the athletic trainers for treatment.
After treatment I have about 15 minutes to spare before practice starts at 1 p.m. and ends at 4 p.m.
From practice I rush to my last class of the day which ends at 5 p.m. From their I go back to see the athletic trainers again.
Wake up and do it again the next day.
Time management is critical for student athletes. It’s one of the first aspects you must learn in order to balance the lifestyle of academics and athletics.
Homework and studying adds up throughout the week. Whenever I get a chance to get ahead in a class I take advantage of it. I make sure that I am able to cross assignments off my to-do list every day.
It’s not all bad though.
I’ve learned how to maintain my social life by spacing out my assignments and not procrastinating until the last minute to finish them.
In gymnastics we have Wednesdays off. This day is the most relaxed but also the day where I get a lot of my homework done. These are the days that I get most work done. I meet with study groups, meet with professors and go grocery shopping.
Student athletes have the same obligations and errands to run as every other student, but have little or no time to do them.
Life can get crazy and sometimes I feel like I am nonstop running around, but staying organized is the most important factor I have learned as a student athlete.
We as student athletes know what we sign up for and are here to represent Southern Utah University for all the good it offers, and this is how I do it.
Story by: Morgan Alfaro
Photo: SUU Athletics
