Warrior athletes from different grades and sports find ways to stay physically and mentally active during the coronavirus stay-at-home. 

Freshman and golf athlete, Kara Tsai, turns the inconvenience of staying at home into an opportunity to workout.

“I’ve been running as well as doing workouts to stay in shape. I always run one mile daily,” Tsai said. 

Tsai emphasizes waking up early and being productive to stay positive. 

“I believe that if any athlete is struggling to practice or warm themselves up for their sports, a simple jog for just ten minutes will allow your legs to get their necessary exercise,” Tsai said. 

Sophomore and lacrosse athlete, Thomas Hwang, focuses on cardio and working on building muscles despite not being able to go to the gym. 

“Throughout quarantine, I run a mile or two around my block some days and others jump rope. When it comes to strength training, I usually bike to South Lake which has a pull up bar and other calisthenic equipment,” Hwang said. 

Hwang’s coach motivates him to stay active and helps teammates train by placing goals through the Woodbridge area in different middle schools. 

“Quarantine cancelled my season, which is greatly unfortunate as I’ve created a great bond with our seniors. Having my season taken is already tough, but I know it must be way worse for them,” Hwang said.

Junior and cross country and track athlete, Patrick McEwen stays encouraged despite challenges. 

“Typically I work out in the afternoon around three or four to stimulate what it would be like on a regular school day. I find this effective because I don’t want to wake up early to run and it is also good to wait a couple of hours after a meal so that you don’t cramp up,” McEwen said. 

McEwen fights through distractions such as social media and laziness during social distancing. 

“When I need motivation, I just think about my end goal of improving my 800 meter time, and I think about all of my competitors who are probably having the same struggles. I see this as a time to get a leg up on those who aren’t willing to self motivate and put in work on their own time,” McEwen said. 

He has been using this quarantine to spend more time with his family and develop new hobbies like teaching himself Japanese online. 

Senior and swim athlete, Jennifer Zhang finds ways to stay active without going to the pool. 

“To stay physically active, I try to do the dryland workouts my coach sends out. On days that he does not send out something, I find a workout on YouTube and try to be active for around 30 minutes,” Zhang said. 

Despite the difference of dryland workouts, Zhang finds the strength to keep on training. 

“Getting back into shape is very difficult because you don’t train the same muscles the same way that you would if you were swimming. Advice to other athletes: keep up that cardio and strength training,” Zhang said.