CHAPTER VI from Marti Soosaar’s e-book *A New Beginning*
I’m fairly certain that, at least until ninth grade, I wouldn’t have made it to school most days if it hadn’t been mandatory. Mare Toompere’s history classes would have been a pleasant exception. The fact that I’m not a complete blockhead today is thanks to the Ministry of Education of the Estonian SSR and Elsa Gretškina, who ensured that school attendance was mandatory for children even in the 1980s.
Time has passed, but I’ve finally come to realize that going to school was actually beneficial for me, and that the teachers at Tartu Miina Härma Gymnasium weren’t paid to torment me. By now, I’ve already forgiven them for making me sit through their classes against my will.
“If you can’t do the whole thing, just do half”—every now and then, situations arise where it feels like there are too many daily activities or a workout seems too intense, and it just seems easier to take a break altogether. So I’ve found a way that works for me: if I can’t manage or don’t feel like throwing discs for two hours, I’ll just do a little bit. Sometimes an hour, sometimes less. That way, I don’t skip my workout, and I can take it a little easier.
Albert Tamm
, Estonia’s best disc golfer
How can we also achieve in our training a moderate commitment to showing up—one for which we’ll later be grateful to ourselves and to those who put pressure on us?
The best way to do this is undoubtedly to join a training group. It would be best if it were a team sport, but dancing, for example, would work too. There, every missing hand or foot is keenly felt, and by the time the evening news broadcast rolls around at the latest, you’ll have received a public reprimand in the training group’s Messenger chat for your absence.
This reprimand is definitely much more disciplining than, say, simply having to pay for your workout pass or a €10 fine to the group’s fund. If you pay the fine, you get the feeling that missing the class was okay after all, because you’ve paid for it. So, instead of fines, I suggest that workout groups put those who miss class without a valid reason on a public “wall of shame.” Of course, this must be done in moderation and with the utmost caution, since too much pressure could otherwise lead to undesirable consequences—such as the person on the “wall of shame” leaving the group. Unfortunately, attending training sessions isn’t required by law (though perhaps the government should consider making it so?). Therefore, let’s be tactful but consistent when addressing absentees.
If ball games or dancing aren’t your thing, there are plenty of recreational groups for endurance athletes as well. Running clubs include Jooksupartner, Head Inimesed, Sparta, Elujooks, and others. For cross-country skiers, there’s Suusahullud in Tartu. There’s surely a group of recreational cyclists in your hometown that rides “out of town” for a few hours.
Oh, you don’t know of any groups like that? Really? In that case, no one’s stopping you from inviting your own friends to join you—and just like that, you’ve created a training group and, along with it, the necessary social pressure. Post on Facebook that you’re going for a run tonight and invite anyone interested to join you.
This was Chapter 6 of Marti Soosaar’s e-book “A New Beginning.” If you’d like to download the entire book, do so HERE, and you can read previous posts on our blog.
