After working so hard on the CURVY GIRL WORKOUT VIDEO last week I decided to take a couple of days to do whatever I wanted to do. I decided to go see my family at the shore (New Jersey) this weekend and hang out. I contacted an old friend who is a tennis partner of mine and we set up a match to play that morning.

I play competitive tennis and see it as a personal challenge. I am very competitive and take the game seriously when I play. I was so happy to see Tina. It had been months since we played or even got together because she lives in Ocean City. We decided to meet that morning at 8:30 am for a match. Now, although we are friends and really like each other, we play to hit hard and win points and get in a good workout. Since we are evenly matched we really enjoy playing and hitting with each other.

So, I get to the courts and it was absolutely gorgeous out and I was really looking forward to the match. I got a cup of coffee and off I went. When I got to the courts she informed me that the courts had been resurfaced and they looked great. We began to warm up and we were getting loose and after 15 minutes we were ready. Now, although I am a very friendly and a good sport, when I play Tina I take our matches very seriously. As the game got underway, she began to kill me. I played the worst tennis. I can’t remember playing that badly and the more I wanted to catch up the worse I got. I could not figure out what was going on. I just knew I had to make some changes. What I was doing was not working and I was sinking fast.

Now, mind you, I came on the courts in good spirits, warmed up, with a good nights sleep, alive and vibrant, and still my performance was not looking good. I was down 5-0. That means she had 5 games and I had none. It was looking very ugly, but it was not over yet. In tennis, when one person gets to 6 games the set is over. Well, this was not sitting well with me. Nothing I tried physically was working; I could not hit a ball to save my soul. I had to re-group and get myself back in the game. And that is exactly what I did. I began to work on some positive feedback with myself and took a deep breath and got right back in the game. She could not believe it, but the next thing that happened was the game was tied up 5-5. She thought she had me beat and I put everything I had in that match and got myself moving and making my plan. Suddenly, it was looking good - I was back in the groove of the game. Did I want to win? I couldn’t have cared less but I wanted to do my best that is all that mattered to me. I was not performing at my best.

The next thing I knew, we were at 10-10,and then 12-12. Remember in tennis, you have to win by two games. The game finally ended at 16-14. Does it matter who won? Of course not. We are not pros. The only stake involved here was what was in our heads. It only mattered to Tina and me on a personal level as friends and competitive women. The only thing I will say is that she bought breakfast and we talked and laughed about how life sometimes is like a tennis match and how she could not believe how it ended.

I remember many years ago watching Andre Agassi getting ready to lose the French Open. One point and he was done. Well, being the champ he is, he turned it around and won the match and the championship. To this day, I have never forgotten that match and was amazed at his comeback. I do not think I need to tell anyone the POINT OF THIS STORY, you already know it. When things do not look good, as sometimes happens, take a deep breath, start over again, believe in yourself and keep moving forward.

Debra