So I’ve been wanting to write this post for a while now and have lacked the inspiration.
In walked that inspiration yesterday. In the form of a patient. Tired. Lacking motivation. Negative. Sad. “Kirsten I’m a mess”.
Just what I needed.
This patient of mine is a runner. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, during some good running form and training weeks, this massive wave of negativity has hit her. “Why do I do this? Why do I get up early, in the cold, to do this? My body is giving up on me and so is my mind”.
I’ve been through this (and I’m sure many of you have too). I have seen many patients who have been and are still in this bad place. It’s a dark place this. But it’s easy to escape it actually. It’s all in the mind. There’s just one simple question you have to ask yourself: why do you do it?
To lose weight? To train for a race? To be the best? To beat your friend? To place on podium? To race for your country? To get Strava segments 😉 ? To get fresh air? To escape reality? To feel the rush of endorphins? To get fit? To reach a goal? To see your friends? To make new friends? To start something new? To do it for someone? To do it for a charity? To get some fresh air? To burn off that excess energy? To have fun? To do it because others can’t? To see new places? To experience new things?
Whatever your reason, always remember WHY you do it. Why do you jump out of bed at those ghastly hours of the morning or why do you spend those last hours of daylight working a sweat. Why do you hit the turf after a long, stressful day at work or between work hours or why do you sacrifice your chill time on the weekends for hours on the road.
No one is forcing you to do these things. Most of you are not professionals. No one is paying you to train. Your coach, trainer, mom, dad, friend, husband, wife, they are not in charge of YOU and your time. So why at times do you feel this immense wave of pressure to impress and perform especially during training. You only have yourself to blame for those days of fatigue, muscle soreness, sickness, injury, negativity and sadness. Most of that happens because you over do it, you don’t listen to your body when it’s screaming to rest. The pressure is overwhelming. But where is it all coming from? YOU! You should do what you do because you want to do it because you have a purpose and a reason to. When there’s pressure…there will be pain. Simple.
When I was younger, I would drag myself out of bed into the kitchen where my Dad would be eating his breakfast cheerfully with so much positivity and zest for life. This irritated me. How on earth did he manage to get up, train, make breakfast and keep a smile on his face all in the time that I had been sleeping. One day I had the courage to ask…why do you do it? Why do you get out of bed when it is still dark and do all theses things? His simple answer changed my life. Because I can. Because Kirsten, I have 2 arms and 2 legs and because I can do it”!!
From that day on I have never looked back.
As most of you know I do a whole lot of sport. I am constantly questioned why. I have different reasons for different things. And whilst training for all these things I keep the “WHY” in the back of my mind. It’s the most fulfilling experience when you accomplish something for the pure reason as to why you started in the first place. That’s what keeps me going.
My advice: If you get stuck in routine or bored, CHANGE it up, don’t GIVE up! If you get tired, REST your body, don’t BREAK it! If you lacking motivation, SEEK IT! But most importantly remember your PURPOSE and your “WHY” , this must be powerful enough to keep you going. To keep you fighting through those cold winter mornings, to get you motivated to put your gear on after work or to get you through an injury of 9 weeks.
So back to my story. My patient left feeling good about herself again, what did it take? A chiropractic adjustment or three and 1 simple question. As soon as her body fails on her, so does life. She forgot her purpose, she forgot why she runs. Somehow she has found that a chiropractic realignment of her spine and body helps to get her back on track. Helps her to feel good about herself again, helps her to remember WHY.
kirstthechiro 