Happy 2018 – Day 311 – Spend more time ignoring that inner-quitter

So… Jiu jitsu is my absolute passion.

When I was in the grips of major anxiety and depression – in part because I was in a work situation so toxic that it would make a Bhuddist monk commit harry carry, and also ‘because anxiety’ – it really was the thing that ‘saved’ me.

It’s so much more than a sport. It’s an obsession, a family, a calling.

Now as much as I love it; as much as it’s the greatest thing that I’ve ever done, and continue to do; it’s also by far the most challenging, most intense and most frustrating thing that I’ve ever done.

Yes, it’s physically demanding. I’m rarely without bumps and bruises, and injuries are very common. I frequently sweat to the point where my eyes sting, my clothes stick to me (in Winter… in England!) and of course, I hear that inner-voice… the one that tells me I’m too tired, too weak, too pathetic to go on.

I’ve actually signed for a competition on November 17th (eeeeeek!!!!!) and as such, I’ve had to really up my focus in my diet, in cross-training and in training-training. When I consider competition prep, I think that more than technique, what is potentially most beneficial to me is becoming more resilient to that inner-quitter.

But how do I do this? Applying a little common sense, I think it’s surely just a case of needing to spend a little more time together.

So I’ve had this in the back of my mind in pretty much every training session over the last month. I figure that if I’m not hearing that voice, I’m probably not working hard enough. When I do hear that voice, the inner-doubter, I know that the longer I can go on just ignoring her pathetic whines, without reacting, the longer it’ll take to hear her in the first place.

No matter how fit you get, or how much you enjoy working out, for most of us, part of it will always feel like something to complain about. But it really helps me to remember, that the more I work out; the more I get used to hearing that voice tell me to quit, and carrying on anyway, the stronger, braver and more capable I become.

Every time she tells me I can’t, I want to show to her that I can.

Unless it’s Burpees, and then I’m outta there! 

Do you have a hobby that challenges you emotionally, physically, mentally or spiritually? Could you look for one? Comments welcome: