Many of you may not know that back before I became a therapist, I spent a couple years using the free time beyond my 9-to-5 getting involved with the greater fitness community to get a more formally recognized national holiday created out of National Fitness Day in the US.
Training for my first (ok, and only) half marathon in my 20’s had been such a powerful experience in opening my eyes to the impact of physical activity and the body mental health and well-being that I wanted to share it with anyone who would listen.
Today, I still believe in the inextricable connection between mind and body, physical and mental health, and between the types of growth and learning we attain through sport and athletics (catered to all bodies) with how to thrive emotionally and psychologically.
Of course this year The Olympics offered a monumental abundance of case studies in this very intersection (Simone Biles being one of the most significant examples), so in honor, I thought I’d share a few quotes I caught that personally inspired me:
“Iron sharpens iron.” - While perhaps I’ve always considered myself one of those people competitive only “with myself” (as I know many of my clients can relate), competition and competitive sport have never really felt like particular values of mine. That is, until they were reframed as less about winning, and more about a powerful tool for pushing and challenging our individual limits. And healthy competition really does just that - going toe-to-toe with someone better than you pushes us further than we might have gone otherwise. It hones us. And to witness the best in the world step onto a court or into an arena and be pushed beyond their previous limits - and often to personal bests - because of who is across from or beside them, to me is simply awe-inspiring.
“Pain is temporary. Glory is forever.” - This was a quote from Dr. Michael Gervais and Nastia Liukin’s interview with rowing duo Martin and Valent Sinkovic; however, I encourage you to swap “glory” with whatever fill-in-the-blank reflects your own why. It’s a reminder both that pain need not always be avoided, but also that resilience in spite of it relies on having a good why. When it’s the path to something truly important to us, we can endure more than we might realize.
“I'm telling myself always that I am enough.” - To say that when Novak Djokovic won the gold medal in men’s tennis was emotional would be a total understatement. But I was surprised by one of his interviews immediately after his win, in which Djokovic opens up about his tendency to be self-critical, and his battle to continuously remind himself that he is enough. Similarly, Sinkovic (above) reinforces how critical it is for striving and motivation to come from a place of enoughness in order to be sustainable, emphasizing: “I like myself. I’m happy with my life…If you’re trying to be the best just to be the best, for me it’s not a good reason.” Many of us operate from the idea that success must come from beating ourselves up, but perhaps rather than striving from lack, it is possible to find success when striving for something more.
So, what is your why? What to you is worth pushing for? What is your “sport”? And what continues to bring out your own personal best?
