Many people have something specific about them that has defined most of their life to this point. The one thing that I would say that has defined my life is sports: ballet, competitive gymnastics, and competitive cheerleading. I became an athlete at two and a half years old, so I obviously don't remember not being one. During my toddler years, I did both ballet and competitive gymnastics. By the time I was eight years old, my schedule was becoming too rigorous to keep up with both sports. I ended up choosing competitive gymnastics and stuck with it for a total of fourteen years. Most of my life was entirely consumed by gymnastics and near the end of my career, I was training twenty five hours a week. I absolutely loved the sport and how well it trained us both mentally and physically. My favorite event was the uneven bars. For two years straight, I was undefeated locally and regionally in my division. I absolutely loved gymnastics, but I could no longer handle it physically. After stress-fracturing my back for a second time and being put back into a brace, I had to "retire" from my career as a gymnast my junior year of high school. Even though I felt like I had lost a part of me, I knew I needed to fill that time with something else. I decided in October of my junior year to become a competitive cheerleader at the Stingray All-Stars. I was able to do some of the same things, like tumbling and choreography, while only training twelve hours a week. Competitive cheerleading was a whole new world for me between the uniforms, the crowds, the stage lighting, and the fans. It was a lot of fun to experience for two years, but now I am ready to find something, besides sports, to define my life.