Coming onto the end of my season, I was having a conversation with my brother who is finishing his season as well. We were chatting about how nice it'll be to be done with the year; how we were both looking forward to the taper, less time on training, more time with other activities and interests. I even admit to skipping a workout this week for mental health reasons.
And then yesterday, I turned on the TV. Not sure who was watching what the night before, but some tele-preacher was on. I usually don't listen very long to TV Religion - about as long as it takes to find the remote and turn it to anything else. But this guy said something that struck me, so I listened for a few minutes, and even replayed it. He was talking about perspective.
It's easy to get stuck in a rut, with the 'woe is me' running rampant. Taxes are due, time for another turn at work, I gotta do a brick workout. My pool swims are lousy, the car is making funny noises, the family is trying to pull me away from a training session.
But look at it differently:
Taxes are due = I made enough money to have to pay taxes.
I gotta go to work = I have a job
Car making noises = I have a car
Family pulling me different directions = I have a wonderful family who supports me and wants to spend time with me
Workouts = I am healthy enough with family support to workout and compete in races
Amazing what a different perspective can do for you. Some call it a PMA (Positive Mental Attitude), others reframing. The simple answer, though, is if you are feeling down about something, not looking forward to an activity, look at it differently. Find the happiness in the situation, examine it from a different angle.
The best advice I have ever gotten when it comes to triathlon is to smile. This does the same thing as a change of perspective. You may be gutting out those last minutes (hours?) of a training session, or the last miles of a race, but having a goofy grin on your face makes them go faster, and it also lifts those around you. And instead of 'surviving those last miles', it turns into, 'I'm glad I am healthy enough to enjoy this activity and this day with my friends'.
It just takes a change of perspective.
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