It’s hard to believe that the end of the road is almost here. In just two short weeks, I’ll be stepping into the ring for the first time. And shortly after that, fight camp will be over.

Where did the time go?

In some ways, I’m ready for a break. I’ve been noticing that it’s harder to drag my body to the gym these days–there were at least two days this week when I was really tempted to play hooky. But once I’m there, I always have a great time and feel so much better.

I’m tired of lugging my sixty pound bag of gear everywhere, and monitoring my weight and every single thing I eat to make sure I’m still on track. I dearly miss my boyfriend and friends, not to mention free time to do whatever the heck I want without feeling guilty. And writing…yes, I kind of miss that, too.

But there will also be a lot to miss about fight camp. I’ll miss being that driven towards a fitness goal. In the past, if I was feeling lazy, there was nothing to stop me from taking a day off. These days, no matter how I feel, skipping a workout is not an option. I’ve developed tons of discipline.

I’ll miss the high level of our training (Level 1 will definitely not be the same after this), and all the specialized attention. In some ways, fight camp is like having a personal training session almost every day. I’ll miss the camaraderie of a group of people who are just as dedicated, just as determined, and just as tired and injured. There’s comfort to be taken in knowing others are in the same boat along with you, that someone besides you cares whether or not you succeed. I’ve learned to separate the emotion from the training, and recognize that when someone is being hard on me, it means they care–not that they hate my guts or have had a bad day.

I’ll also miss the excitement. I’ve never been good with boring ol’ routine, and even though fight camp means working out almost everyday, there’s always something new to learn, always some scary drill I haven’t tried (Olivia made me practice my footwork while moving backwards on a treadmill the other day), and of course, the excitement and trepidation of the upcoming fight always on the horizon. It’s kept life interesting and challenging. Don’t be surprised if I immediately come up with another goal to keep me busy once fight camp is over. Pushing yourself can become addictive if you let it.

No matter what happens on November 5th, I know I will look back on this experience with pride and be very happy I went for it. It was worth the aches and pains, the bruises, and the fear. It was worth sacrificing every other interest I have for a year.

In many ways, I will miss it when it’s over.