Tuesday Tip--Don't Worry About Sucking

Last week, we explored why the hell we do things we don't actually enjoy doing. This week, we're going to acknowledge that not everything is going to come easy, especially when you are new at something. You might actually suck at it.

Imagine what your life would be like if you quit everything that you sucked at the first few times you did it. Remember the first time you tied your shoes, rode a bike, or copied a sentence off the chalkboard in first grade? You probably fell off the bike a million times, knotted your shoes into a complex puzzle, and your penmanship was probably terrible (for the record, my penmanship is still terrible). Learning to exercise is very much like learning a new language with your body--like proper grammar, there is proper form, but it also takes practice and commitment just like anything else.  Chances are, just like everything else in life, when you start something, you will suck.

So, you suck? Now what?

Acknowledging you suck at something is the first step to building strength and getting better. How else are you supposed to know what you need to focus on? Knowing your weaknesses is key; this knowledge gives you a base--a startline for how to set realistic goals that can propel you to success. When I first started running, I sucked. I could barely run a mile without wanting to vomit everywhere afterwards. So my first goal was really just to run a mile without wanting to puke afterwards.

What if I don't achieve even my small, humble goal(s)?

So what? Exercise is not all about achievement. You will not always be able to achieve all of your workout or fitness goals, and the sooner you accept that fact, the happier you'll be with your workouts. In fact, in a given week, I might achieve one (yes, ONE) fitness-related goal for the week. Shit happens. You might want to run outside three days a week, but out of those three days, it might be raining so hard you can't even see. You might promise to do it the next day, and wake up with a million pressing emails from your boss. You might just feel lazy and prefer watching Bravo all day. Bam--you missed your goal for the week. There's no use crying over a missed goal (though I am guilty of doing this). It takes a lot of willpower to move on and try for next week/tomorrow, or whatever, but move on. If you don't move on from failure, then you will never learn from it, and you'll never succeed. Remember that. Identify things that hold you back and do your best to control the ones you are capable of controlling (example: rain=you can't control, Real Housewives addiction=controllable).
Don't let your suckiness stop you. Use it as ammo. Use it as what it is--knowledge to make you better.

Yes, Sometimes I Hate Running

There. I said it.
I'm a personal trainer in NYC, a running tour guide, marathoner, etc., and yes--sometimes I think the unthinkable when I'm out on the streets, pounding the pavement: "Why am I doing this? This effing sucks."
Masochists, we runners are, with our toenails falling off and chaffing happening everywhere (yes, everywhere).
After reviewing all the "bad" thoughts I've been having this summer about running, not running, trying to run after taking time off from a bum ankle and totally sucking, a conversation with my friend got me thinking. She asked me, "Why doesn't anyone talk about the struggle?" She meant the struggle to stay active or "fit", whatever that means to you and your relationship with society's view of the word (which is a little messed up right now, to be honest).
She's right, though. Why not talk about the struggle? When we say "struggle", it implies that we won't give up. It implies a certain stubbornness, and a fight that we go into knowing that we won't give in easily, not like a cleanse you go on for a day or two, seeing the light at the end of a tunnel (or a bathroom toilet). Running, weightloss, fatloss, whatever your goal is, staying active--period--is a struggle.
I want to explore that reality in the next few months, as I train my way to the NYC Marathon in November. Not every training run is going to go as planned, and I will be lucky if I finish, in my opinion. So stay tuned for this blog's future (which has been sporadic, I admit), and look for not only posts highlighting tips, workouts, and pats-on-the-back, but posts that also hopefully provide a little empathy for the fellow man and woman, no matter what figurative wall you're trying to pole vault over in your own life.
To the Mattresses!
Angie