Dear Me,
Hello Me! It’s been a while since we’ve had a good, honest conversation, and since there is no time like the present, I thought I would open the dialogue.
We’ve been doing some pretty awesome stuff lately. Our workouts are going well, our diet is as good as it has ever been and I think we are just about to see some results. I am almost sure of it. Sort of. (I mean, we have to notice a difference soon, I would think.)
But, Me, there is something we really need to talk about. We are really hard on our self. For as much good as we do for ourselves, we really are our own worst enemy. And oddly, I think it is holding us back.
Take today for example. We had a great workout. We pushed ourselves, we did the prescribed weight, we did every repetition, it hurt but we pressed through…and yet, all said and done, we thought we could have done better. I think the real flaw in our thinking isn’t that we thought we could have done better; we should always strive to be better, faster, and stronger – it’s the only way we improve. But rather, when we finish a workout and have those thoughts, we get frustrated and get down on ourself. That’s just unnecessary.
It’s not like we threw our hands up and quit. It’s not like we didn’t try. And do we really have to be the best at everything? Of course we should strive to be our best. How does that saying go? “Shoot for the moon because even if you miss you will end up among the stars.” But we need to be realistic and realize that we will not be the best at everything.
I mean, we’ve already accepted that about our coordination, inability to take a good picture and our singing ability (or distinct lack thereof), so we should learn to apply that acceptance to the rest of our life, too.
We didn’t even do that badly in the workout. Looking back, I think we did quite well actually! And why should it matter if we did have a bad workout? We are human, after all. And really, how bad is it that we haven’t perfected Kipping pull-ups yet? We’ve only been trying them for a month – Rome wasn’t built in a day!
(I realize I just compared our body to Rome. That’s not to say we are ancient or Ruined (get it? Ancient Ruins…ruined? (Ba-doom-doom-(*symbol clash*)) But there isn’t a clichéd saying that goes like “but a perfect Kipping Pull-up wasn’t accomplished in twenty-four hours”. I guess I could have said that, but it doesn’t have the same ring, does it?)
Anyway, Me, I am setting a new precedent for us to follow (and I don’t want to get resistance from you about this!)
We need to give ourselves a break.
We do more for us in a week than most people do in a year. And I think if we are patient and just enjoy the ride, things will start to happen organically. Of course we need to keep pushing ourselves, eating right and finding new challenges…but no more beating ourselves up about things, OK?
Cool. I feel a lot better since we’ve had this conversation, don’t you? So, let’s keep up the good work, keep pushing ourself and accept our flaws.
Just remember, flaws are good…all the cool kids have them.
Love,
Shannon
Hello Me! It’s been a while since we’ve had a good, honest conversation, and since there is no time like the present, I thought I would open the dialogue.
We’ve been doing some pretty awesome stuff lately. Our workouts are going well, our diet is as good as it has ever been and I think we are just about to see some results. I am almost sure of it. Sort of. (I mean, we have to notice a difference soon, I would think.)
But, Me, there is something we really need to talk about. We are really hard on our self. For as much good as we do for ourselves, we really are our own worst enemy. And oddly, I think it is holding us back.
Take today for example. We had a great workout. We pushed ourselves, we did the prescribed weight, we did every repetition, it hurt but we pressed through…and yet, all said and done, we thought we could have done better. I think the real flaw in our thinking isn’t that we thought we could have done better; we should always strive to be better, faster, and stronger – it’s the only way we improve. But rather, when we finish a workout and have those thoughts, we get frustrated and get down on ourself. That’s just unnecessary.
It’s not like we threw our hands up and quit. It’s not like we didn’t try. And do we really have to be the best at everything? Of course we should strive to be our best. How does that saying go? “Shoot for the moon because even if you miss you will end up among the stars.” But we need to be realistic and realize that we will not be the best at everything.
I mean, we’ve already accepted that about our coordination, inability to take a good picture and our singing ability (or distinct lack thereof), so we should learn to apply that acceptance to the rest of our life, too.
We didn’t even do that badly in the workout. Looking back, I think we did quite well actually! And why should it matter if we did have a bad workout? We are human, after all. And really, how bad is it that we haven’t perfected Kipping pull-ups yet? We’ve only been trying them for a month – Rome wasn’t built in a day!
(I realize I just compared our body to Rome. That’s not to say we are ancient or Ruined (get it? Ancient Ruins…ruined? (Ba-doom-doom-(*symbol clash*)) But there isn’t a clichéd saying that goes like “but a perfect Kipping Pull-up wasn’t accomplished in twenty-four hours”. I guess I could have said that, but it doesn’t have the same ring, does it?)
Anyway, Me, I am setting a new precedent for us to follow (and I don’t want to get resistance from you about this!)
We need to give ourselves a break.
We do more for us in a week than most people do in a year. And I think if we are patient and just enjoy the ride, things will start to happen organically. Of course we need to keep pushing ourselves, eating right and finding new challenges…but no more beating ourselves up about things, OK?
Cool. I feel a lot better since we’ve had this conversation, don’t you? So, let’s keep up the good work, keep pushing ourself and accept our flaws.
Just remember, flaws are good…all the cool kids have them.
Love,
Shannon
Amen, sister. I had a similar experience last Friday at my indoor workout... most people are still sleeping, and I'm flogging myself because I can't do a kipping pullup while completely ignoring the bajillion other cool things I did in that workout.
ReplyDeleteYeesh.