Category Archives: Motivation
The Athlete’s Comparison Trap
Well hello, lover.
Fruity salads have been calling my name lately. As I’ve been eating more raw foods, I’ve been seeing my energy levels skyrocket! A high-raw diet isn’t in the cards for me, but I certainly have been enjoying the benefits of a few extra raw greens here and there.
This variation: strawberries, gorgonzola, chickpeas, broccoli and carrots, drizzled with a creamy ranch.
I need to start stocking my kitchen with more creative salad toppings – this Eden’s habit is getting a little out of control!
The Athlete’s Comparison Trap
As a fledgling runner, I’ve been struggling with a lot of insecurity about my athletic ability. I’ve chronicled it a bit here, here and here, but it’s something that continues to bother me every time I lace up my sneakers or think about my upcoming Memorial Day 8k.
Just like insecurity with your body or appearance, insecurity with your athletic ability isn’t something that magically disappears. Whatever your sport may be, it becomes part of your identity. If you feel as though you don’t measure up, it’s a lot to process and quite the emotional – and sometimes physical – blow.
Athletes are driven by numbers. We love tracking miles, splits, minutes, reps, sets and any other measurable figure we can get our hands on. It’s awesome for measuring our own progress, but it also lends itself far too well to comparison.
Get a group of runners together, and naturally, PR’s start flying. When you hear numbers that seem to get progressively lower and lower than yours, it’s easy to feel tinges of inadequacy. It can delude you into dismissing your own efforts and feeling “unworthy” of calling yourself an athlete.
I deflate a bit when I hear other runners talking about completing full marathons at a pace that I can’t even maintain for a 5k. Over time, it eats at me, makes me doubt my own abilities and replaces the joy I get from running with anxiety about my performance. Is it worth it? Not in the slightest. Especially when I know that what I’m comparing myself to is something that simply isn’t realistic for me at this point in my running journey.
Part of digging your way out of the comparison trap is realizing that in time, you’ll be where you want to be. It may not be next week, and it may seem impossible, but if you’re willing to work like a manic, it’ll happen. It takes an insane level of mental commitment, and you may need several fires lit under your ass, but it can happen.
The other part is realizing that running isn’t everything. If it makes up a huge percentage of what you think about and what you hope to be, it’s not an easy realization. At the end of my life, though, I want to be remembered as more than just a runner. I want to have a marathon under my belt before I kick it (and some days I think that it could be a marathon that would kill me), but there are far more important things I’d rather be remembered for. If someone were to remember anything about me and running, I’d rather it be that I had a passion for it – not that I dragged myself through each run kicking and screaming.
Do you struggle with the athlete’s comparison trap?
How Much Happiness are you Cheating Yourself Out Of?
Yesterday was one of the easiest Mondays of all time. Work felt more like eight minutes than eight hours – all of my article assignments were about yoga and alternative medicine, and I was totally in my element.
I didn’t feel like breaking for a regimented lunch, so instead I just snacked on a spread throughout the day.
I’ve really been loving Heini’s cheeses, made from hormone-free milk sourced from Amish farms. The flavors are downright gourmet – the unique Amish Bermuda Onion cheese absolutely rocks in omlettes and faux-meat rollups!
How Much Happiness are You Cheating Yourself Out Of?
All afternoon, I stared down a mantra on my Lululemon lunch bag.
“The pursuit of happiness is the source of all unhappiness.”
I agree with a lot of their inspirational sayings, but the more I thought about it, the more this one registered as a big fat “no” for me.
If you wanted a new career, would you wait for the phone to ring with a job offer? If you wanted a new place to live, would you stay in your apartment until your dream home magically built itself around you? If you want to feel happier, why not pursue it?
You get one life to fill up with as many experiences as you can. In the real world, you have to fill it with nitty-gritty day to day stuff and squeeze in crazy monkey adventures where you can. Realistically, every day isn’t designed to be ZOMG AMAZING, but should that be any reason that we can’t be blissfully happy at the end of them? If we aren’t looking for the tiny, seemingly irrelevant things that actually make our lives rich and satisfying, aren’t we cheating ourselves out of insane amounts of happiness?
Pursuing and looking for happiness: is it really the source of all unhappiness?
A Life with Fingerprints All Over It
I’ve been living a Talbot’s version of a life. It’s been bland and uninspired. It’s been as devoid of personality and flair as a rumpled pair of chinos and a pastel cable-knit.
When I stepped outside yesterday to pick up my lunch, I stood outside for a minute, just soaking up the setting to my day, seeing the courtyard in a new light.
When I first moved to Orlando, I was infatuated with the city. I got crazy tourist eyes every time I went somewhere. I was itching to settle in to this fantastic new place where I could assemble my life any which way I wanted.
Somewhere along the line, I busted my give-a-damn. I just wanted to get through the days – much less put any effort into living them.
My life stopped being distinctly mine. It turned into this vague amalgamation of oatmeal and Netflix and planners and rent checks and even I didn’t find it interesting. Any of you who have been reading this blog for any amount of time {my condolences} would be lying if you said you found anything I wrote in 2011 remotely entertaining.
There hasn’t been heart. There haven’t been fingerprints.
I want my life to add up to something.
I want it to be so smudged with my grubby fingerprints that every minute of it is unmistakably mine.
I want it to be big.
I want it to be a life that couldn’t happen to anyone else.
From Podium to Pavement
Did anyone else watch the draft last night?
Even though I cherish draft day as the sole bright spot in the depressive void that is the NFL off-season, I’d forgotten that the draft was yesterday until about 10 minutes before it started. Thank God for internet streaming!
While watching the announcers make their predictions, I made myself a quick plate to enjoy during the first round.
{Sautéed asparagus + lemon, steamed spinach + stoneground mustard, smoky macaroni}
The recipe I followed for the white cheddar and gruyere macaroni wasn’t the best, but it was easily salvaged by a few drops of liquid smoke. If you’ve never splashed liquid smoke in your mac and cheese – you’re missing out!
The first round began right as I sat down to my first bite.
I know that a lot of you aren’t as football-crazed as I am, but stick with me for a second. This night was the culmination of everything those kids have worked for throughout their high school and college careers. It was their hopes, their dreams, their dedication and their luck {not of the Andrew persuasion} all paying off. It was everything the players had worked their tail off for, written all over their faces as they heard their new NFL team call their name.
I had chills just thinking about how proud these men {and their families} must be and how athletes can achieve great things when they bust butt.
The motivation was enough to convince myself to take on a short 6 AM run. I may not be a pro-caliber athlete, but I hope to one day stand on the pavement at the end of a marathon finish line, feeling some of the same emotions the now-NFL’ers must have felt last night at the Radio City Music Hall podium.
…Less sappy ramblings, more breakfast.
{Chocolate protein smoothie + toasted coconut + toasted walnuts}
Let the countdown to the weekend {and the second round of draft picks} begin!
Do professional athletes motivate you to push harder or go further in your own sport?
The Barney Stinson Abs Workout
Bending over to get a carton of yogurt from the bottom of your fridge probably shouldn’t make you wince.
Then again, the pumpkin pie style Chobani was worth it.
{1 cup Chobani plain yogurt + 1/2 cup canned pumpkin + maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice to taste}.
Legen – wait for it – Dary.
In my defense, it wasn’t the bending over bit that got me – it was the “engaging the core to lift back into an upright position” bit. I’ll take that as a sign of a great abdominal workout!
Last night, I had my second sub-par run in two days. In retrospect, I don’t think my system had enough carbs to draw energy for a run. However, when it happened, I was bummed. Hugely bummed. I-just-wanna-head-home-and-forget-this-workout-happened kind of bummed.
And then…Barney Stinson’s voice popped into my head.
What, that’s never happened to you?
That man may be the farthest thing ever from a good role model, but I jacked his mentality to redeem what could have been a really pathetic workout. I was determined to leave the gym feeling good about myself, so I powered through an impromptu circuit of my favorite ab workouts.
Move over, discouragement, time to get awesome!
The Barney Stinson Abs Workout
(Circuit through 3x)
- Weighted exercise ball crunches x 25
- Bicycle crunches x 10 each side
- Plank x 30 seconds
- Mountain climbers x 10 each side
- Knee-to-nose contractions (from plank pose) x 10 each side
- Boat pose crunches x 10
- Flat bench abdominal leg raises x 15
Once I’d finished, I’d let go of the discouragement from the run to make room for Stinson-style awesomeness. After all, the amazing part about working out is that any effort you put in makes you that much fitter than you were the day before. If that’s not awesome, I don’t know what is!
Any odd inspirations for your workouts lately?
I Choose to Believe We Can
Dear philosophical graffiti artist:
Can we do this?
I choose to believe we can.
I don’t know what your own personal “this” is referring to, but we all have one. For some of us, it’s a personal goal, like running a marathon or applying for a new job. For others, it’s toughing out a less than ideal situation. It can be standing up and facing down your demons. It can be committing to something you’ve been avoiding committing to.
There are a billion scenarios this question could refer to, but each of us are facing our own “this”.
We instinctually look for reasons why we can’t do “this”.
I’m tired. It’s hard. It’s too hard. I’m not strong enough. I’m not smart enough. I’m not worthy/capable enough.
Whatever your version of “this” is, take the leap of faith.
It’s scary. It’s going to require work. It’s probably going to require more strength than you knew you had and more sacrifices than you want to take on. It’s going to mean stepping out on a limb and finding faith you didn’t know you had…but if you choose to believe that you can, than that’s all you need to get you through it.
What do you choose to believe you can do today?
Sub-Eight
When what you want is your first sub-eight-minute mile, what you have to do is dig down deep, commit 120 percent to the next eight minutes and just run. Focus on your breathing. Focus on your music. Focus on your stride. Focus on how badly you want to crack your record and don’t worry about what it takes to get there – just do it!
I’ll take that new PR, thank you very much!
In between the short, speedy run and my 6 pm yoga class, I assembled a super quick sandwich that rocked my world:
This combination may very well be my new favorite panini. With grilled eggplant, spinach, basil pesto and little slivers of fresh mozzerella melted onto a ciabatta, I was in heaven!
Normally, it’s helpful to avoid eating for an hour or two before a hot yoga class. I’ve learned from experience though that my body flips out if I try to do a back-to-back run/yoga class, and I had absolutely no issues with the vinyasa-laden hot flow after my hefty sandwich. These things are all a matter of listening from your body and learning from it – what works for me may not work for you, and even more importantly, what works for you on day A may not work on day B. Enjoy the process of learning what makes you feel your best!*
{*Note to self: in the process of achieving it, a sub-eight minute mile definitely does not feel the best, but the endorphins afterward rock. SO worth it.}
What’s a goal you’ve nailed lately – in or out of the gym?
Sometimes the Hardest Thing and the Right Thing are the Same
Who else was super excited for the Fray’s new album to drop yesterday?
Scars and Stories was the first thing I wanted to check out on Spotify yesterday, and it fit perfectly with the overcast, foggy day we were having in Orlando. Is it just me, or does their music seem to be a rainy day soundtrack? Overall, I didn’t like the album as much as I liked their previous CD, but The Fighter is a good song to check out if you’re a Fray fan.
Come gym time, I was definitely pulling on The Fray lyrics to get my butt moving. A nap sounded so much more appealing than exercise, but I knew a workout was the right choice.
Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same…
A quick snack while I procrastinated:
Followed by a half hour on the elliptical and a mini triceps circuit, three times through:
| Triceps dips | 15 |
| Triangle pushups (on knees) | 12 |
| Wide-grip bench press | 15 |
Even though it was a short, not-too-intense workout, it got my blood pumping, my energy levels back up and my appetite re-charged. Snacks were necessary as I decided on dinner!
A giant egg, provolone and tempeh bacon scramble sounded perfect. I’m definitely a salty sweater, and my body tends to crave salt, salt and more salt after a workout.
I’m tellin ya, the TB is where it’s at! Breakfast may not be too much different from last night’s dinner…
Are you looking forward to any new music? Any new musical discoveries? I’m so excited for new albums by Cavo and Shinedown to drop in the next few months.
Resolution Bandwagon and Social Reality
Boo – workday breakfasts are never as fun as free day breakfasts.
Get enough sleep to function, de-stink/dress yourself for the office or make an elaborate breakfast: pick two and welcome to the real world!
Shower and sleep are the winners for me (you’re welcome, coworkers) – so breakfast needed to be speedy! Vans frozen waffles made a reappearance – it’s been quite a while since I’ve had one – topped with peanut butter, maple syrup and chia seeds. An uncharacteristically juicy out of season peach gave me some fruit action on the side.
Resolution Bandwagon and Social Reality
I was a hard-core resolutioner as a kid. I loved writing up all sorts of challenges or myself, then placing them in a bottle for an entire year and opening the bottle on the following New Year’s Eve to see which ones I’d accomplished.
The past several years have been resolution-less, but this year I’m hopping on the bandwagon! I’ve got some vague personality goals and some specific accomplishments that I’d like to focus on in 2012.
| MORE | LESS |
| Organized | Frazzled and scatterbrained |
| Adventurous | Reserved |
| Diplomatic | Critical |
| Assertive with my own needs | Expectant that others fulfill them for me |
Specifically, I’m also looking to complete a sub-30 minute 5k within the first quarter of the year; double my blog readership; find a local volunteer opportunity; create a mini security net in my savings account; pay off my car; delve back into photography and take at least three {short} vacations/trips.
As I was setting these goals, I came across an interesting Today Show article about a resolutions-related phenomenon called “social reality.” The article discussed how sharing resolutions can actually backfire and make people less likely to achieve them.
Essentially, the social reality phenomenon works like this: someone posts on Facebook/blogs/tweets about a new goal, and they are instantly inundated with congratulations from their friends. The feedback is premature, however, since the person hasn’t yet taken the steps necessary to achieve their goal. The instantaneous pats on the back for simply setting the goal can make the satisfaction of actually achieving the goal less motivating, since the person has already been congratulated for their plans.
I do love the encouragement (and inspiration) aspects of sharing goals with friends, hence why I choose to share many of my goals on the blog. However, I do see the validity of the social reality phenomenon – I’ve definitely taken it easy on some of my own goals (like 31 mile December) because I’ve already gotten the satisfaction of the social pat on the back.
Have you ever fallen victim to social reality? What do you feel about sharing goals/resolutions before you actually achieve them?
Not Another 2011 Recap
2011 recaps have been the blog post de jour over the past couple days. It’s a good thing I find them really fascinating – I must have read at least five of them during yesterday’s lunch hour alone. Trust me – I was way more interested in the posts than the terribly overpriced panini from Nature’s Table:
I started mentally assembling my own recap for 2011, and my highlight reel was shaping up with some pretty huge events, like starting my career as a writer, moving (SOLO!) to Orlando and adopting my puppy. As I was going through the months of my 2011, I felt like it paled in comparison to my 2010.
2011 was nowhere near the year 2010 was. It wasn’t as adventurous, as life-changing, or as inspired as 2010. I grew professionally, but not so much personally. I don’t have major accomplishments to share, and I don’t feel like I’m heading into 2012 like a better person.
As I was mulling over what seemed to be a wasted year, I stumbled across an article a friend posted on Facebook.
In a rundown of “30 things you should stop doing to yourself,” one line in particular jumped out:
“You cant start another chapter of your life when you keep re-reading your last one.”
I’ve definitely been a re-reader. I kept turning back to that chapter because I loved the characters and the plot, but in doing so, I failed to develop the current chapter. I missed out on a lot because I got caught up in “but I used to have…” and “I’m so used to doing…”
I’ve got to accept that I’ll never be able to get those moments back. As much as I try, I’ll probably never get to experience the level of freedom that comes with being a kid, the depth of friendships that comes with seeing your friends every single day, the intensity of romance that comes with a brand new relationship, or all of the other fleeting feelings that I spent a massive portion of my year chasing. Just because that chapter is closed, though, doesn’t mean I can’t write a new one that holds just as much happiness.
Here’s to a year of taking life as it is instead of fighting it; a year of gratitude and adventure, and a chapter that’s so amazing it outshines any other chapter that I’ve written so far.
Here’s to 2012!
Have you had any realizations looking back over your 2011?
also…
Do you read any inspirational blogs that fall outside the realm of healthy living/fitness? I’d love to add some new positive perspective-themed blogs to my Google reader!
