Upcoming Season Thoughts

I love this post from Edith MyRant on lessons she learned during her rookie season of Dead Girl Derby.

While I've certainly learned a lot myself over the last year of coming back from knee surgery, skating practices and reffing games, as of today I'm officially looking forward to the 2012 season. In an attempt to keep myself accountable by making my goals public, here are some things I want to do:

1. Train like an athlete. I've been skating five days a week, walking my dog on off-days and doing yoga a couple times a month, but I want to add some cross-training like more jogging or weightlifting.
2. Fuel my body (aka eat) like an athlete. Too often I excuse indulgences in cupcakes or beer because I've been skating a lot and "deserve" it. To get my body ready for next season, I need to more consistently feed it good things. I wouldn't put old cooking oil in a sports car, even though it could run on that for a while.
3. Learn T-stops on the left side. My right-side stops are decent, but I want to even out. So while some people are learning T-stops for the first time, I'm going to try to join in on the opposite leg.
4. Participate in most fundraisers. For the 2011 season, I wasn't sure how I fit into the league as an injured skater, ref or Horde. Now I have no excuse not to give it my all. I don't know yet if I'll skate one season or many, but I know I can do my best this year.
5. Say yes to social events. Whenever someone asks me if I want to go out for a beer or sushi after practice, I say no. I always intend to attend after-parties but wimp out at the last moment. Occasionally, I need to say yes and get to know people off the track.
6. Learn hockey stops. These look so cool. I want to do them.
7. Jam or pivot by midseason. I want my skating and other skills to be strong enough that I can be the one scoring for my team.
8. Learn all the MADE rules really well. As a ref, I felt shaky on my rule knowledge and I never liked that. This is something I should have done sooner for OSDA, but better late than never, right?
9. Keep focusing on my non-derby life. Sadly, derby can't last forever. I need to make sure not to neglect my other family or friends now.
10. Know when to say no. For some people, "sorry" is the hardest word. For me, that's "no." While I do want to say "yes" to things I'm unsure about sometimes, I'm still learning to listen to my own body and know when I need to step back and take some time off, whether mentally or physically.

What are your goals for the next year, either in derby or life?