By Amala Nath (Staff Writer)
“Running is a lifestyle, not just a sport.”
This is the mentality of Hofstra freshman cross country star Becky Celorio, a New York native who has been running for a total of six years.
“I love cross country because you get to see yourself improve day by day,” said Celorio.
So far, the freshman has led the Pride for five consecutive meets and recently broke a school record for her time in a 6K race.
“The sport itself is just mentally staying in the race. You don’t need a special coach to get better at running, you just do,” said Celorio. “However your physical performance plays an even bigger role than our desire to win a race.”
When it comes to running, obtaining an adequate amount of sleep is crucial in order to do well.
“Sleep is important, getting in your miles is what counts,” said Celorio. “You can definitely tell the difference in the way you run after you receive a good night’s rest.”
Although it is only her first year at Hofstra, Celorio recognizes that good time management is an important trait for any athlete to have to be successful on and off the track.
Like most athletes though Celorio finds it difficult to be involved with a sport and managing time, but it takes enough out of her and poses as an extra challenge.
Celorio is always looking for improvement. She consistently focuses on beating her times from her previous races. In the future, in order to better herself, Celorio plans to follow her coach’s diet and workout plans all year around instead of just the season.
“When it comes to running, knowing that it is a team sport makes it very competitive,” said Celorio.
For the remainder of her time here at Hofstra, Celorio’s goals consist of making it to the Colonial Athletic Association finals, which takes the top twelve runners and the All-Metropolitan Team, which takes the top sixteen runners.
She plans on being that the top of those races as well. Aside from cross-country, Celorio is an exercise science major. When she graduates, she hoped to work for a Division I university and coach cross-country to help runners like herself improve day by day.
