I'm Glad That 2018 Was Hard
I keep seeing all these posts on social media talking about how horrible 2018 was, how nothing went right, on and on. In the articulate words of everyone’s favorite billionaire president: “Sad!”
I could certainly start ranting like that in this post, but that doesn’t help anyone. For example, this year I struggled with panic attacks and severe anxiety for the first time in my life. I dealt with (and am still dealing with) chronic back pain for months, which at its worst, kept me home from work in bed all day. We had to put one of our dogs down after a series of violent episodes between her and our other dog. I also dealt with a huge amount of other work and life stress.
These things made for a pretty crappy year by anyone’s standard. But struggles produce stronger people. Be grateful for your struggles.
A Few Things I’m Learning:
Whatever issues you’re dealing with DO NOT DEFINE YOU. It’s been so easy for me to think of myself as being “someone with chronic pain” or “an anxious person.” Those things may be true, but it’s been helpful to reframe these things as experiences I’m having, just like any other experience. Experiences come and go. They don’t define you. In those times, I’m a person experiencing anxiety, or a person currently experiencing pain. Everything comes and goes.
Acceptance goes a long way. This doesn’t mean that you settle for things as they are. It means you accept things as they are right now, and then work to improve them.
Sometimes the location services feature on my phone stops working (I need a new one). When I type in a destination in Maps, it can’t tell me how to get there because it doesn’t know where my starting point is. You can’t move toward a destination (goal) until you know where you are. Don’t fight whatever negative experience you’re having. Learn and accept where you are, then use that as a push toward improvement.
Training MUST adjust to your life. There is no such thing as a perfect training program, and even the best programs will need to be modified for you. Individual differences in training responses vary widely. Don’t beat yourself up if you can’t train like your heroes. Train like YOU can train.
That doesn’t mean you’re soft or that you’re falling behind everyone else. Life and work stress directly affects your training, and it’s not always a good idea to just power through. Sure, you may have to sometimes. Sometimes you do need to shut up, quit whining, and train. But if your performance is dropping workout after workout or you’re starting to experience real pain, modify training and take a break. I promise you aren’t falling behind.
Here’s to 2019. I hope that your struggles continue to make you stronger into the new year. Don’t wish for an easy life, but the strength to endure (and conquer) a difficult one.
Make 2019 your best year for fitness yet. If you’re looking for a fitness trainer in the Mt Juliet/Hermitage/Nashville TN area, online fitness training, or just need some advice to get your fitness program started, contact me