Thinking Like an Athlete

In one of the fitness magazines that I like to read, there was a feature about an athlete named Kristin Armstrong. I really like her story. She was a triathlete but she developed osteoarthritis and couldn't run anymore. She was tempted to give up on competing altogether. Instead, she focused on what she could do. She could still bike and eventually ended up winning a gold medal in Beijing in cycling!

Even though I haven't been on a bicycle in years, I think that there is a strong parallel between my story and Krisitin's. For a long time, I focused on what I couldn't do. I also focused a lot on my failures. SA has impacted me and I have to take it into account with the things that I decide to do. I do think, however, that I was previously selling myself way short and now I am starting to believe that more is possible for me.

The feature also speaks of Kristin's philosophy of the importance of focus and goal-setting. She stated that you have to focus on what you can do and not what the person next to you is doing. I really need to hear that! I was so focused on the accomplishments of my classmates that I wasn't paying attention to what I could do! As far as goal-setting, she advocates breaking goals down monthly, weekly, and daily so you can monitor your progress. I really like this because I realize that I have to start doing some things daily, monthly, or weekly in order to improve my life so that these things become a habit. I plan to start small so that I am not overwhelmed.