For my sins…and I must have been really bad…I am taking part (I say taking part because as far as I see it, I’m not competing!) in the Virgin London Triathlon in just over a weeks’ time. I am dreading it. I’m under prepared and certainly under peak fitness. BUT my challenge is to attempt to overcome this through mental strength. I’ve been doing alot of this lately; trying to master mental strength and confidence to overcome inner insecurities. Ooh this feels a bit personal – but there again isn’t this what this is all about?!
So I’m writing this as a pre-cursor to the event in order to look back and see if I could do it. I also hope I can evoke a little inspiration for you to do something out of your comfort zone and just believe that you can do it.
[quote]DON’T QUIT.
YOU’RE ALREADY IN PAIN. YOU ALREADY HURT.
GET A REWARD FROM IT.
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[/quote]
Until the summer of 2012, the most physical exercise I had done was a few hours a week in PE lessons, some 18 years previous. Last summer I then started using exercise as a way of keeping mentally strong too.
After four years of being at home bringing up two children, I was beginning to lose a sense of self-worth and loss of identity. The commitment, dedication and physical (as well as mental) strength really surprised me. I realised that if I truly want to achieve something, I had to keep jolly well working at it. But after a year or so I also realised that this also represented how I needed to approach the rest of my life.
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I. Can. Do. This…
In a recent training session, all I wanted to do was stop. Give up. Puke in the bushes and just go home and sleep. But then the person I was training with gave me this mantra – “I. Can. Do. This.”. To finish the run (a further 2km) I blocked everything else out of my head and said this over and over and over again. It truly got me round to the finish. I felt physically drained at the end but the feeling of accomplishment and achievement was amazing.
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Since then, I have applied this mantra to so many smaller things in my life. To block out the bad voices that talk me out of going out of my comfort zone or talk me into having that extra chocolate. I just imagine that feeling I will have when I’ve achieved it.
So, we’ll see. Will my mental strength be enough to get me through?
I have done a lot of going out of my comfort zone recently…this blog being a huge one…so I would really love to know what you do to achieve your goals and move yourself out of your comfort zone.
Laura x
I can do this…I can do this…I can do this…I can do this…