Before I started running, I was playing badminton regularly. Twice a week the very least that is. Us workmates from my previous company have the badminton court in our boss’ place reserved those two slots every single week. Rain or shine, we put up a fight. It was simply a routine.
When I moved to my new company, everything just wouldn’t let me get back in that addiction. There was no court nearby, schedules get messed up and most of all, it’s hard to find playmates! When I started being at home in my new workplace, a couple of months ago, conversations about badminton just sprung out. I knew it, badminton is one of the most common sports around, it would be impossible not to find people who play. The rest was history.
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| badminton tourney at my previous company a year ago |
This Saturday is the second day of a four-day tournament at work. And yes, I registered right after I read the publicity on my mail weeks back. I’m always going to be competitive at what I do, when I know I can be good at it. Stan, my partner last week, and I won our first match. I can just remember how my lungs felt struggling for air then. We were on the same page when we said we should finish the game in two sets, or else, it’s a loss. But hell did we put up a fight. Each point in the third set was literally breathe taking. We’ve been playing before, but we both lost our shape. I’ve been running for a while now, but I must admit, sprinting to every corner of the court is a different story. While I was recovering from a smash, I would need to run to the other side of the court. Everything is unpredictable, you cannot maintain a pace. You have to get to that point before the shuttle lands on the ground. I was totally unprepared. I was out of my game, but I will come back. Fwahahahah!
I’m writing this here because training to be good at badminton feels like upping my game in running too. A couple of days after last Saturday, I can really feel that my legs got stronger, specially my upper leg. Most of the time, when you play, you have to squat a bit to get your body closer to ground. It helps to have longer strides and I just realized it has a certain principle same as in running. By keeping your body closer to the ground, you have more control over your center of gravity. It will help you save your energy, when you can use that control to your advantage. If you keep your center near the ground, it will conserve you energy. Lean forward, and you get more potential to sprint to your shuttle.
I call my badminton my cross training!