Anthem for the Injured
To say that I have had an eventful year would be an understatement. A little under one year ago, I was on top of my physical game. I was finishing up another successful Ultimate Frisbee season, coming off the best physique photo shoot I had ever done, and was prepping to run a small 5k tracking a sub 7 minute pace.
One month later, I couldn't stand up to pee without crutches.
This is not my typical article per se. It doesn't have much to do with Personal Training; nor with business, money, fitness, or secret dieting tips. However, it does have to do with something that many if not most of you have experienced.
It all changed in the blink of an eye; like a lightning bolt streaking down from the sky, everything went from full steam ahead to a crash landing (literally). All in an instant. The emotions that followed ranged from disbelief to outright rage; from apathy to depression; from acquiescence to finding someone ELSE to blame. And unfortunately, this was not like a movie. There was no mentor to swoop in with an inspirational speech, no musical montage to fix it, and no director to yell "CUT! Roll credits..." after an achieving victory! It was just me. And my torn Achilles Tendon.
When you sustain a life altering injury or situation, something strange happens. A war begins...
A war between the devil on your shoulder telling you that it's ok to quit; it's ok to lie down and take what comes; go ahead, feel sorry for yourself...
After all... The journey to recover is too long. It's too hard. It's not worth it. It's stupid. You're stupid. What do you get out of it anyway? You'll just hurt yourself again...
It's a fight between that inner demon and YOU. The real YOU. The SOUL of you. The part of you that believes there IS a purpose to all things. That all things mean something!
It's the part of you that says: to HELL with that! Do you think I am going to lay down and die because of some little set back in life? Ha!
I'm going to come back just because you don't think I can! I'm going to do it because I WANT to. No, because I NEED to! I'm going to come back even better than I was before. I'm going to work longer. I'm going to work harder. I'm going to do everything within my power to show the world that HANICAPPED is a state of mind.
I will get Better. Every. Day.
This war is not isolated to injury alone. It spans to include every situation in the human existence that causes us to struggle. Injury, sickness, cancer, emotional distress, divorce, losing a loved one, beating an addiction. This internal war comes to all that dare to live life.
So I put out a call to all those out there that have been knocked down. And knocked down again. To those who have been hurt and still pushed forward. To those that have struggled with no end in sight--but continued ANYWAY. Find someone who is dealing with adversity and give them hope that it does get better. Their struggle is not in vain. It has purpose. It has value. It matters.
When our own minds seem to fight against us, it's important to know that we all go through tough times. The war comes to us. Who wins that war, however, is always up to YOU.
