At 5:45 a.m. on a school day, most Wayland High School students are fast asleep. However, sophomore Andy Carmichael is already in the weight room beginning his morning workout.
A three-season athlete, Carmichael works out every day before and after school in addition to practicing daily for school sports. He typically lifts weights in the morning, following a weight lifting workout recommended by football coach Sam Breslin, attends sports practice in the afternoon and jump ropes or sprints after practice.
Carmichael began using Breslin’s weight lifting workouts the summer before his freshman year. Since Carmichael was only a freshman, he did not get to know Breslin better until the summer before his sophomore year when they saw each other every day during workouts to prepare for the upcoming football season.
“I really started to get to know him after freshman year when I went into the weight room a lot more and started to understand what I was doing,” Carmichael said.
Carmichael has been working out before school since his freshman year. He credits his freshman football coach, Jason Montrose, for hooking him onto his morning workouts.
Carmichael, the third of four boys in his family, thinks that his love of competition began by playing with his brothers when he was young.
“I just like to try to work harder so that once I go home and play [my brothers], I beat them at things,” Carmichael said.
As a member of the football team in the fall, the basketball team in the winter and the track team in the spring, Carmichael constantly has to find a balance between school work and athletics after school. But for Carmichael, sports act as a motivation for him in school. He finds that his limited time after school helps him focus on getting his work done.
“I think that sports help me in school because I know that I need to do my work so that I can keep playing sports,” Carmichael said.
Carmichael also finds motivation from his athletic achievements such as being a football starter for the first time this fall, scoring 10 points in a basketball game against rival Waltham High School, and getting eighth place for the DCL Championship in hurdles for track.
Although his spring sports season just ended, Carmichael is already thinking about his goals for next year’s sports seasons.
“For football, my goal is to go back to the Super Bowl and win it. For basketball, my goal is to beat Danvers, and for track, my goal is to get the team back to where it once was and win a few meets,” Carmichael said.
Carmichael finds that sports are his favorite part of school and looks forward to the upcoming fall season with the WHS football team.
“It’s just fun to be with your friends playing sports. You get to meet a lot of other people, and it’s a good way to get to know people,” Carmichael said.