Ben Twohig says he has come to terms with becoming a full-time cricket professional for the first time in his career this winter.
The highly promising spinner has been adapting to day to day life at New Road since the start of November and also away from Malvern College.
Twohig says he initially found it demanding adjusting to the expert training schedule of the County's Strengthening And Conditioning Coach Ross Dewar.
But the 17-year-old, who was on standby for England's Under-19 World Cup campaign, admits he is now reaping the benefits with his bowling.
Twohig said: "It's gone very well. It's been quite challenging with living away from home. I was living away with school but they put everything on a plate for you. You get your washing done, you get fed at certain times.
"It's been quite a challenge actually doing your washing, feeding yourself. It's been good and the training has been really tough but it's been challenging and I've really enjoyed it.
"You do get quite homesick especially as all my best mates are still at home and being a professional cricketer you are in the public eye quite a lot.
"You think sometimes you are not a normal 17-year-old, that you actually have to be an adult, and I think I've matured quite quickly."
In terms of the day to day training with Worcestershire, Academy product, Twohig said: "It is still really tough training.
"I did feel sick a few times before Christmas but I've got used to it a lot more and am enjoying it a lot.
"I hadn't really done much weight training and that intensity of training before so before Christmas it hit me.
"But I have definitely got a lot stronger. I've put on quite a lot of weight. It has helped my bowling really.
"I can bowl a lot quicker, put more revs on the ball. It has helped."
Twohig has combined his work at New Road with being part of a series of training camps with the England Development Programme during the winter along with Josh Tongue and Josh Dell.
He said: "It is a good group of players. It is quite modern cricket in there. There are not a lot of players that will bat time. There are a lot of players that can play reverse sweeps, switch hits, there is a lot of talent in there.
"It has been good. It is always good at Loughborough. It is long days. You wake up at half six, you do fitness before you start, and sometimes it is harder than training full-time because you are doing what we do here in three weeks in three or four days.
"By the end of it, you are shattered, you go home and sleep for a day because you are doing so much training.
"But the people they are getting in to talk have been great, like we've had Gary Keedy which was good for me. I spoke to him a lot and Gary Yates from Lancashire. I've worked with him quite a lot.
"Sometimes even if you are not on the shop floor hitting balls, talking and listening to people, you learn a lot from it."
*We will be featuring a full interview with Ben on the Worcestershire CCC website during the next few days.
