Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Do It Anyway....

Somebody is going to criticize what you do....Do it Anyway!

I ran across this quote today and thought how very appropriate it is. How often do we set out on a lifestyle change journey and well-meaning friends and family members and heck, even strangers sometimes, offer us advice on how we can do what they think needs to be done. They criticize our methods and our successes or failures. When I began my weight loss journey, I had friends tell me I was going to fail, others who insisted that lowering my carbs was not the answer and still others that insist I never had to do anything but lift weights for 30 minutes a few days a week. I even had friends and family members laugh when I told them I was training for my first half marathon. Personally, I am glad that I didn't listen. I did what I needed to do anyways.

Life is too short to listen to uninformed people telling you how you can live it best. And frankly, unless you have firsthand knowledge or schooling of what I am doing, I often don't find the advice to be anywhere near relevant!

One of the coaches I follow on Facebook posted this today....When others treat you with aggression and contempt, it is because they have realized that you possess certain qualities, which they are unable to attain in life. Keep on being you. Hatred meted out by others is just fuel to boost your success! (Coach Kendrick Ribiero)

I find this to be so true. I have decided to stop allowing others to make me feel bad about myself or cause me to second guess what I have going on because they are not able to do the same things. It does us no good in life to compare ourselves with other people. I could very easily try to compare my running with several friends of mine who run, but truthfully, we each come to the sport from different perspectives and different levels of expertise. So comparing myself to my friends will only result in frustration for me. Therefore, I use the same strategy that I do in my races....I take things at my pace. I do it anyways....in spite of the frustrations, irritations, naysayers. My success depends on me. In fact, I recently told Tripp that really the only acceptable failure is muscle failure. Of course, as a trainer, he LOVED that! But it's true. I use my fear and failures to fuel me to my successes. I use them as learning experiences. Am I perfect at this? No. But I keep moving forward. I keep striving. I do it anyways.

What are you letting get in the way of your successes? Who are you comparing yourself to? Are you letting criticism keep you from where you want to be? I urge you to stop allowing others to determine your success and failure. Seek out advice from people you trust who have been there before or have the knowledge and skills to help you in these areas. Don't allow other people's fears and negativities keep you from achieving or reaching out for your goals! Take all that negativity and frustration you are feeling and fuel your passion to achieve! You can do this!!




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