MANILA – Every time Filipina gymnast Haylee Garcia walks into the gym, she carries with her a rule that goes beyond perfecting her routines.
Garcia is preparing for her first appearance at the 20th Asian Games this month, armed with a philosophy she learned from her mother Wilma.
"I've been just really focusing on this Rule of 100. So it's if you spend 100 hours in a year in any discipline, then you will be better than 95% of the world in that discipline," Garcia told ABS-CBN News in an online interview.
"So it just reminds me that consistency and discipline is everything when it comes to training, especially now I'm training all four events and I'm focusing on hitting all my events," she added.
For Garcia, the 'Rule of 100' is more than just a number – it's the belief that consistency, discipline and trusting the work will translate into great performance and results.
"So I try to train as many hours as I can. And of course, rest and recovery is always factored in... And it's all part of training. And if I keep doing this, then I know that I will be able to hit my mark," she said.
Garcia is grateful to always have her mother supporting her through both her presence and her words of encouragement when she's not able to be there physically.
"I talk to my mom every day. And we talk about gymnastics a lot, especially when there are big competitions that I have coming up. And she actually sent me this rule and I read it. And that's just what I've been thinking about every day I come into the gym," she said.
"It's just always nice that I'm able to talk to her and call her whenever I need to, because she's really such an inspiration to me. And she just gives me so much comfort. And her support means so much to me. So I'm really happy that I have her," Garcia added.
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With the Asian Games on the horizon, Garcia is ready to put that philosophy to the test in all four events: vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise.
The 17-year-old is bringing with her the excitement of qualifying for the continental showcase and the lessons she learned from bagging silver at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games last December.
"I think my experience in the SEA Games is really helping me getting more experience on how training goes for international competitions," she said.
"You know making into finals, you have to train more days and just really keep your body healthy and competition ready for a longer period time instead of just one day. So it's a really good experience for me. And I'm ready to keep training more, and hopefully, I'll make it to finals in Asian Games," Garcia added.
Beyond her SEA Games experience, Garcia is also drawing from competing at the Senior Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championships and World Championships.
"I really got to work out or test out my new skills and some of my new routines. So now I know what I need to work on based on my performance from Asian Championships. And I'm working on just getting a little bit better in this next competition," she said.
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Ahead of the Asiad, Garcia got to train and bond with her fellow Filipina gymnasts for a brief but fruitful training camp in Utah.
Paris Olympian Levi Jung-Ruivivar, Kylee Kvamme, Chiara Andrew and Lauren Supnet will be carrying the flag alongside Garcia at the continental showcase.
"It was really nice having the training camp a couple of weeks ago. Just being able to train as a team and just knowing what to expect when we all come into Japan and train together, I think this was a really great exercise for us," she said.
"So I'm really looking forward to having this team when I compete. It's my first time being with all of these people at the same time. I'm usually in different competitions with each one of them, but I think this team is really strong and I think we really have a good chance," Garcia added.
FROM ASIAD TO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
Filipina gymnast Haylee Garcia. Photo courtesy of Garcia
After the Asian Games, Garcia will turn her focus to the 2026 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships happening in October at Rotterdam, Netherlands.
"Asian Games will be a really good one for me coming into World Championships. Last year, I also did World Championships. It was my first time, and I had a little bit of a struggle, but I think this year having a competition so close to it, it's going to give me a really great motivation and experience," Garcia shared.
"And coming into Worlds this year, I really know what to expect already. Last year, I was a little bit shocked and surprised with everything that's going on. So I definitely think I'm more prepared this year," she said.
With more experience and training under her belt, Garcia is more confident heading into major competitions such as the Asiad and Worlds, hoping to leap to greater heights.
"I definitely think with experience comes maturity. So I also just feel that I am more confident with myself and with my gymnastics now," she said.
"So just coming into competitions this year, I know what I'm going to do, and I know how it's going to feel, and I'm really happy that that's how my competitions have been going recently," Garcia added.