PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Because You Can
Injuries suck. I’ve been babying a bad wrist and knee all summer. These injuries make everything hard to do, the chores and the fun stuff. My daughter has been rehabilitating a knee injury. This morning when we were working out together she said, “I can’t stand doing the elliptical machine, not playing basketball is killing me.” Boy, do I know what she means, there is nothing like playing a game of basketball or doing something that you love to get your workout in. And unfortunately, most people don’t truly understand this until the time comes when they can no longer play.
My husband hasn’t been able to play much basketball for quite some time because he has bad knees, but recently he hurt his back and he couldn’t do anything at all for about three months. Since his recovery, he has been working out like a madman. When someone asks him why, he replies, “Because I can.” He wakes up at 5:30am to go to the gym to lift, condition and play racquetball, and he has been doing something he once said he would NEVER do, riding hundreds of miles on his bike. This weekend he is even participating in the STP (Seattle to Portland) bike race. He is the picture health.
He is in the shape that I strive to be in. So, I’ve decided to adopt the “Because I Can” attitude. Too often I adopt the “If I workout I’ll have to take another shower” attitude or “I should do the bills” attitude or “I need to (fill in any excuse here)” attitude, but something tells me the “Because I Can” attitude would better serve me.
It was so nice to have my daughter ask me to workout today and it’s good to have […]
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Blocking Out
Yesterday morning when I was playing basketball a teammate of mine went flying by me to the hoop when a shot went up by the other team. I on the other hand was stepping toward my man to block him out (also known as boxing out). I was taught that it didn’t matter if I got a rebound only that my man should not get it. If everyone on your team has this mentality in the end, someone on your team will get the rebound, because by blocking out, the defense has control and have better position to get to the ball.
Blocking out consistently is not an easy task and not an easy skill to instill in players because the player generally has to move away from the basket and away from the action. It doesn’t seem right, but it can make all the difference in the world. I was a top rebounder at my college and I was only 5’9”. I blocked out. My daughter is one of the top rebounders at her college and she is 5’8”, she does the same. You don’t have to be tall to get rebounds (though it can help), but you do have to be tough and block out.
When you’re on the court remind yourself to block out, if you’re coaching make sure to spend time working on this skill, and if your watching basketball, watch closely and learn to appreciate this part of the game. Blocking out seems to go against the grain as it takes a player away from the action, but in the end it’s one of the best ways to help a team win.
More information on blocking out:
Boxing Out by ExtremeBasketballSkills
How to Block Out in Basketball by HoopSkills
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Court Dreams
Basketball has been a part of my life since I was a kid, and at forty-nine years old, I still can’t seem to get enough. Whether I’m playing, coaching or watching the game, when I’m near a ball, a court, or I hear the squeak of shoes on the hardwood, I feel at home.
The game has given me good times and bad times. It’s kept me in shape, it’s taught me life lessons, and once it even gave me a reason to live (read more about how basketball helped save my life after I lost my fiancé and was nearly killed, in Court Dreams: A Life Worth Living, at the Awesome Sports Project).
Find time to do the things that you love. Enjoy this life, it is truly worth living.
Book Reading: “Meet The Authors” @ Morgan Junction Community Festival in West Seattle
I’m excited to be a part of the Morgan Junction Community Festival in West Seattle this weekend, where local authors will be reading from their work!
“Meet the Authors”
Saturday, June 18, 2016
10 am to 5 pm
Morgan Junction, West Seattle
Northwest Corner of California Ave. SW and SW Beveridge Pl.
(Author booth located in Zeek’s Pizza parking lot)
Morgan Junction Community Festival Welcomes Local Authors
Where can you find Greek Gods, homicide detectives, and wanton boys all sharing one tent? This summer, they will be gathering under an awning at the Morgan Junction Community Festival. These are just a few of the dynamic characters that West Seattle authors bring to life in their novels and memoirs for your reading pleasure in genres as diverse as fantasy, young adult fiction, poetry, and memoir.
On Saturday, June 18, a group of fifteen West Seattle authors will present their work at the “Meet the Authors” booth located in the vendor area behind Zeek’s Pizza. Two tents will be for author presentations and a third will offer their books for sale through local bookseller, Merryweather Books.
Participating authors listed alphabetically by first name: Alice Ann Kuder, Allan Batchelder, Arleen Williams, Cherie Tucker, Christine Brant, Christopher Anderson, David Kannas, Gail Engebretson, Jeanette Chaplin, Lisa Richesson, Michael G. Hickey, Molly Ringle, Sonya Elliott, Theresa McCormick, Victoria Randall.
There will be an hourly free book drawing, as well as the grand prize basket at the end of the day, so stop by to hear some great stories and stock up on your summer reading options. I look forward to seeing you there!
Meet Sonya
Meet Sonya
Sonya Elliott’s memoir, Back on the Court: A Young Woman’s Triumphant Return to Life, Love & Basketball, is her story of finding hope in the wake of tragedy after she and her fiancé were hit by a train. She blogs about writing, basketball, and life and is currently working on a Young Adult Novel and a Non-Fiction Coaching book. Stories of her career as a fashion model are woven through her memoir, as both the Soloflex and Easy Spirit Shoes commercials were filmed during that time period, and this unique and intriguing business continues to be a part of her life.
Sonya played basketball at Eastern Washington University and was a starter for the Big Sky Champion team that went to the 1987 NCAA tournament. She coached for almost 25 years and was voted Seattle Times Coach of the Year, Seattle Officials Women’s Basketball Association Coach of the Year, and twice voted Metro League Coach of the Year. She loves the game of basketball and is thankful, not only for her husband and kids but for her ability to continue to get back on the court.
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Monday’s Pen to Paper: The Awesome Sports Writing Contest
Get your pen out and get writing and win up to $300 cash!
In the Awesome Sports Project’s continued efforts to inspire and promote voices in girls’ and women’s sports, they have launched their 2nd Annual Awesome Sports Writing Contest. Male and female writers of all ages and level of writing experience are welcome, but the submission must be nonfiction and about girls’ and women’s sports.
Submissions will be read by celebrity judge Rebecca Lowe (NBC Sports Anchor), Dennis Norris, Leisl Veach, and me, Sonya Elliott! There are both youth (18 & under) and adult categories and the entry deadline is February 15, 2018. For more information go to the Awesome Sports Project.
Write On!
Monday’s Pen to Paper: Is Meddling With Your Work Worth it
I’ve been editing the first few chapters of my young adult novel. It’s amazing to me how many things that I can find to change and rearrange. But all that meddling is good (within reason). My first draft was just that, a draft.
I write my drafts with my head down, with little thought to how the sentences read, I give more thought to the ideas I want to get down on paper. Often I will use parenthesis surrounding a question mark or surrounding a word that encompasses my thought, without really finishing out the sentence, and then keep writing.
For example I might write, Sandy set her (?) on the bench before she pushed Cameron in the back. Or, it was (extremely hot, smoldering, show this somehow) inside the subway station. Ben scanned the kitchen then (get character to basement here). Often I’m in a hurry, I […]
PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: Life Rules
A friend asked me to help coach a 6th grade boys basketball team this fall. A couple of years ago I stepped down as Varsity Head Coach of the West Seattle High School girl’s program and I wasn’t sure I wanted to coach again, but when I stepped onto the court and saw the boys hustling across the floor at tryouts, I knew it was the right decision. When I got home, I went straight to my office, pulled open my coaching file and started planning. I scanned the first three documents in my coaching notebook, Westside Big 5, West Seattle Practice Rules and “10 to Win” Westside Rules of Defense, two of the three have nothing to do with basketball skills, a reminder to me of what coaching is truly about, teaching […]
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