Long term readers of my blog know that I’ve worked hard to have a positive mindset about myself and my abilities to reclaim my health. I’ve read and learned a lot and really strive to live mindfully, despite serious injuries and setbacks along the way. I’ve rebuilt my base more than I care to think about, yet here I am rebuilding it once again. It’s just the cycle of my life, which flows in ebbs and tides and I’ve learned to ride the waves.
Along this journey, I’ve shared many of my mindset struggles – negative self talk, wallowing in pity following injury, why me mentality, and the list goes on and on. It’s once again time to pull myself up by my bootstraps and get focused on what I am trying to accomplish. It has been a life goal to complete the NYC Marathon and I am once again working towards this goal. I am way behind where I was this time last year in my training, but my mindset is in a good space. I am most definitely NOT pushing myself to do more than my body is ready for and will NOT suffer another injury doing so. I will admit to thinking about how I should be running longer by now, but won’t allow myself to go there. I know that my body is NOT ready for the work and if I push beyond my ability right now I will get injured again. I also know that my goal is to finish the marathon, no matter how long it takes!
I’ve dialed in my nutrition and really taken the time to learn about the role nutrition plays in reclaiming my health. I’ve taken an online course to learn about different types of eating (tracking macros, KETO, plant based) to see which best meets my body’s current needs and my goals. I highly recommend going through this online course at least one time to experiment and track your body’s responses. I learned a lot about myself in the process and not only related to diet. Here is the link to this community for anyone interested in learning more – One 3 One Now that I’ve cycled through this course twice, I am moving on to my next steps. I signed up for a cooking course to learn how to cook more plant based dishes. As you know, I love to cook but have been a self proclaimed vegetable hater for far too long. I hope to learn more about cooking plant based meals to expand my menu planning. Here is the link to this online platform – Rouxbe Online Platform You will find many options there for cooking courses that may appeal more to you. I signed up for the Rouxbe Membership which will allow me to work through these courses at my own pace.
Working at my own pace is where I’d like to end today. As an educator, I know that children come to us at all different stages of development. I know that there are modifications available to meet the needs of each of them. I also know that sometimes people have implicit bias that shape how they plan and react to certain individuals. Sometimes, as educators, we offer modifications before we allow students to try the unmodified task. Sometimes we predetermine and decide that the student needs the modification. What that does, in my humble opinion, is send the message that we don’t believe in their ability to complete the task as is. What that does is take away the opportunity for the student to engage in the given task with feedback and modification AS NEEDED along the way. Truly, it’s the same thing when we engage in exercise. As a middle aged woman, I know that I am not seen as someone who can do most athletic challenges and I likely can’t at this point in time. But, there is nothing more disheartening than someone else predetermining that you can’t, before you even try. I’d like to publicly thank my CrossFit Freshkills coaches, for believing in me and not making me ever feel like I can’t. Today I’d like to thank Coach Libby Elias, a fellow educator, for her belief that I could indeed complete the four rounds required without a modification. Her belief was inspirational as I worked through the tough workout. So, in the spirit of mindset moves, I’d like to ask that we all adopt the mindset of “maybe they can” and not rush to provide a modification before allowing them to try. Perhaps our students, including middle aged women like me, might just surprise you. What we say and do matter so much and can have lasting implications on other people’s mindsets, so let’s try to be more mindful of that.
Here’s the link to a few posts I’ve written on this topic:
Always happy to connect with readers, so feel free to drop me a line in the comments below.
Reclaiming My Health 
Mind & body is key! Very informative!
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Thanks for reading and taking time to comment. It surely is the key, but it is work.
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