Column: Hobbies making a comeback

I’ve been fortunate enough to have the confidence to join a team or take part in an activity which I’ve never tried before and stick with it. However, it’s not until recently I’ve realised that ,when it comes to taking part in one activity in particular, I have a huge regret about not getting involved sooner.

I took up dancing when I was just three years old and then some two years later I found myself falling in love with gymnastics. I took part in both sports until I went off to uni when , inevitably, my interests were swayed from a sporting lifestyle to a more social one. After taking two years out from any sort of physical activity, I eventually launched myself into cheerleading at the beginning of my third year. Finding a sport which combined both gymnastics and dancing was a dream come true and, despite being encouraged into it by my old dance teacher as a child, I’d never got round to picking it up as a hobby until I turned 20.

Not only have I found myself head over heels with the sport but I’ve developed a fantastic bond with the girls in my team. Being involved in a sport which is incredibly intense but so friendly is rare and I feel so privileged to be a part of that. Knowing I could’ve been involved with that sooner is upsetting which is why I’m drawing attention to it now.

The moral of the story is this: when someone tells you to give something a bash or even if you just want to try something new, I encourage you to pick it up sooner rather than later. Being a member of my cheer team has lifted my spirits in so many ways. I just wish I’d started sooner!