Junior Sierra Williams has found herself through the sport of gymnastics. It has carved a path for her throughout high school, and it will continue to do so through the one year she has left at Forest Hills Central.
Sierra has been doing gymnastics for the better part of her life. It is the one sport she has been doing throughout her life and high school. She wanted to join the high school gymnastics team to experience what it would be like to have her own little community in school.
“I joined the gymnastics team because I had done it growing up and my club team was coming to an end,” Sierra said.
Sierra has also made special friendships with people through gymnastics. This includes other upperclassmen, as well as underclassmen. When she started gymnastics, the opportunity for friendship opened up everywhere.
When Sierra started high school, she decided to quit club gymnastics. She figured doing club and being on a team in high school was too much, so she wanted to focus on one team.
“I used to do club gymnastics,” Sierra said. “Not while I’ve been in high school, though, there would be too much pressure to excel on both teams.”
Although Sierra loves gymnastics, it has definitely presented its fair share of struggles and challenges. Not only mentally, but physically, it has affected her.
Sierra now has an injury that is tolerable, but it takes a lot to continue to do any sport. Every sport comes with some sort of physical challenge, and this is Sierra’s.
“I get shin splints a lot at the beginning of the year,” Sierra said. “So, I’ve started running before the season to help with that. I definitely psych myself out sometimes out of fear of getting injured more.”
While the physical injuries that come with gymnastics can be intense, the mental things that come with it can be even more intense. It is such a mental sport, and Sierra has to overcome the negative part of the sport, which is what’s inside her head.
To make matters worse, it is very hard to balance gymnastics with academics. Fortunately, Sierra continues to excel in school and in her sport.
“It gets a little rough at the end of first semester because of exams, and [gymnastics] is a winter sport,” Sierra said. “Getting homework done can get stressful; you have to make sure you plan ahead for sure.”
Sierra thinks that it is essential to be in a good mindset for gymnastics—not only for gymnastics, but for any sport. It is all about the mental aspect of things and keeping yourself in a good headspace.
Gymnastics is a sport where progress is not made constantly. Sometimes it takes a ton of work to learn something new, and it could be effortless for others.
“In my experience, you do not get skills linearly, sometimes you’ll get three new skills in a week or none in a whole month,” Sierra says. “The most important thing is not to get too upset and in your head. Gymnastics is as much of a physical sport as a mental [sport].”
Sierra has gained a lot of knowledge through the sport of gymnastics. Some are things she can only apply directly in her athletics, but some of the other life lessons can be used for her whole life.
Sierra attempts to keep herself in a good mental spot at all times during gymnastics and any other obstacles she has to overcome in life. Some days she feels like she has it all, and others she feels like she will never make progress.
“Despite everything you are told, do not take yourself too seriously or be afraid of judgment,” Sierra says. “We are all at different levels, and having fun is the most important thing.”
