INPUT ARTICLE: Article: A breakfast that is rich in carbs is ideal. This will give you a vital energy boost and prevent you from going hungry later in the day. A donut is a carb, but you can do better than that. Avoid a lot of sugar and high fat proteins. Cereal, milk, and a banana would be a good option. You don’t want to show up to the tournament with a growling stomach and realize you don’t have anything to eat. Pack something like a sandwich and fruit for lunch. For a snack, things like nuts, bananas, granola bars, and dried fruit are ideal. Keep snacking up until right before the tournament, but don’t get too full. All of this food and drink will keep you energized during the tournament, and will help you play the best you can. Make sure to bring a refillable water bottle. Nap for about two hours before you leave for the tournament, and make sure to set an alarm. You definitely don’t want to wake up and realize the tournament has already passed. A nap time of about 20 minutes would be ideal, though you can adjust the time to your liking. A short nap will give you an extra energy and performance while you play. Accidents and traffic are impossible to control, but it would be a good idea to do everything you can to prevent showing up late. Map the location of the tournament before you leave. It wouldn’t hurt to plan a few alternative routes as well. Leave for the tournament with so much time to spare that not even a fallen tree, traffic accident, or stop for gas could make you late. Being nervous will only hinder your performance, even if it is normal and expected. Take a moment to step aside and sit back. Reflect on all of the hard work that led you to this moment. Close your eyes and meditate. When your thoughts have steadied, get up and get prepared to win this game. Your mind might be racing before the game—thinking of past and future games. Resist the temptation to dwell on anything except the present moment. Don’t think about what this tournament means for your future in the sport. Just think about how you can be the best you can be. It’s okay if your mind drifts. Recognize you’re doing it and refocus. You shouldn’t overdo it, but it is important that your body is prepared for what its about to endure. Run a few laps. Stretch your muscles out. Do whatever you have to do for your particular sport. Then all that’s left to do is have fun.

SUMMARY: Have a big, healthy breakfast on the day of the tournament. Pack a healthy lunch and snack. Take a short nap. Arrive on time at the venue. Relax. Don’t get distracted. Warm up your body.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: If you’ve always dreamed of visiting the Louvre, you’re in luck! It’s one of several museums that are offering virtual tours of their collections during the coronavirus pandemic. Visit your favorite museum’s website to see if they’re offering tours or other special online content, or explore material from 500 museums all over the world with the Google Arts and Culture app!  If you’ve got kids at home, the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s MetKids website is a great way for them to explore the museum’s collection and learn about art history: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/online-features/metkids/. If you love museums but you’re more into the sciences, try taking a virtual tour of the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of Natural History: https://naturalhistory.si.edu/visit/virtual-tour. If you love wildlife, check out some of the virtual tours and animal cams that have popped up at zoos around the world! You might even get some behind-the-scenes and up close glimpses at your favorite animals that you wouldn’t experience during a regular zoo visit.  For example, the Cincinnati Zoo offers a daily virtual safari on their Facebook page.  The San Diego Zoo has live cams of several of their animals, including their elephants, polar bears, penguins, tigers, and burrowing owls.  Visit Explore.org to see live cams of animals in the wild or at rescues and sanctuaries around the world! Even if you’re missing out on a tropical diving expedition right now, you can still visit the reef virtually from the comfort of your home. Check out live cams from the Monterey or Georgia Aquariums, or visit a wild reef cam at Explore.org. Some aquariums, like the New England Aquarium, also have live presentations from their researchers and staff! If you’re longing to go hiking in the wilderness, try exploring some of the world’s natural wonders in 360° on Google Arts & Culture. You can get started by visiting the National Park Service page: https://artsandculture.google.com/project/national-park-service.  Some of the parks you can explore include Yosemite National Park, the Redwood National and State Parks, and the Grand Canyon. You can find other parks to visit online at https://www.nationalparks.org/connect/blog/take-virtual-visit-national-park. Don’t feel restricted to visiting places you can see on Earth. Take a virtual trip to space with NASA’s ISS live stream: https://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/iss_ustream.html.  You can see stunning views of Earth from space using the ISS’s Earth Views from the Space Station channel or the ISS HD Earth Viewing Experiment. If you have kids, let them join an astronaut on the space station for Story Time from Space: https://storytimefromspace.com/.

SUMMARY: Take a virtual walk through a museum if you’re an art lover. Visit your favorite zoo online for a digital safari experience. Have an underwater adventure with a reef or aquarium live cam. Stroll around a national park via Google Arts & Culture if you love nature. Go into orbit using the International Space Station livestream.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: It’s most common to use acrylic paint on soles, which works as long as you add a sealant afterwards. There are also paints designed specifically for rubber or leather.  PlastiDip is the most popular paint choice for rubber and comes in many different colors. Angelus paints are popular when painting on leather. Let the first coat of paint you applied dry. How long you wait will depend on the type of paint you used, but waiting at least an hour is a good rule of thumb. This will give the shoes time to completely dry. Place the soles on a piece of newspaper, soles up, so that they can dry more efficiently. Leaving the shoes indoors in a cooler environment will allow them to dry faster.

SUMMARY:
Choose a paint that’s appropriate for the material of your soles. Wait at least an hour before doing another coat of paint. Allow the shoes to dry overnight.