Train with the best to be the best. If you are Sarah Bradford Seawright, these are the words you live by each and every day. As a busy athlete and student who participates in two varsity fall sports, Sarah Bradford always has something to do. From 6 am to 8 pm, Seawright is on the run – literally.

     “Usually, I set my alarm around 6 am to get up and get ready for a morning cross country run, and most of the time it takes me a while to actually get out of bed because I’m so tired,” Seawright said. “On some days I have to get up really early for a morning swim practice at 5 am.”

     Even with Seawright’s hectic schedule, she still finds time to fuel up with food and snacks on the go.

     “I eat breakfast, which is usually a protein shake, and then I eat a snack at break, which is usually some chips,” Seawright said. “Then I eat lunch, which is usually a sandwich, fruit, granola bar and some kind of dessert. After school, I have another snack – sometimes I go to Sonic or get something at my house. Then, I have dinner, which is some kind of meat with a vegetable.”

     After school, Seawright is still busy as a bee with afternoon cross-country and evening swim practice.

     “I either have swim from 5-7 with Makos, or I go to swim with SA from 6:30 to 8,” Seawright said. “If I go with Makos, I go straight from cross-country to swim, and then I stay at the pool to do homework because I have to get my brother from practice. Then, I go home and eat dinner, shower, and finish my homework. If I go to SA practice, I go home and do some homework or sit on my phone until I need to get ready for swim. Then, I go to practice, come home, eat dinner, shower, and do my homework.”

     Sarah Bradford still finds downtime for herself on a daily basis despite her engaged schedule.

     “I make downtime because I can’t do schoolwork 24/7,” Seawright said. “I need time to hang with people and talk on the phone and go on social media or read things so that I can relax and not be stressed all the time.”

     Seawright also consistently works on practicing time management to cope with her busy lifestyle.

     “I get as much work done as I can during my study hall so that I can relax when I get home,” Seawright said. “Obviously, there are days when I have too much to do in one study hall block, but it helps to get some of it done. I sit outside so that I don’t get distracted by my friends and can be productive.”

     If Sarah Bradford could change one thing about her current lifestyle, she would want to adjust her homework amount.

     “I wish that I didn’t have as much homework because I enjoy hanging out with my friends and going out to do things,” Seawright said. “With all the work we have, sometimes it is difficult to do without procrastinating a lot.”

     Along with the challenges of homework and rigorous workouts, Seawright has developed many goals for her future. Her short-term plans include breaking a record for swim, winning state, and running for the cross-country state team. Her long-term goals involve swimming in college, particularly at Richmond.

     Sarah Bradford reflects back to a year ago today and contemplates how she has further evolved as a person.

     “I have definitely gained a lot of confidence and am more outgoing than last year,

 Seawright said. “I used to be so shy, and I only talked to people I was close friends with, but I still have generally the same priorities – school, family, friends, and sports.”