I love these little tidbits that I get everyday from SparkPeople.com in my email - they are almost always applicable to the personal emotional journey that I am on in addition to my weight loss journey. This showed up in my email this morning:
Be not afraid of going slowly; be afraid only of standing still.
- Chinese Proverb
A lot of you guys out there are what the horse world calls "re-riders" - which means you rode when you were younger and then life, family and/or career stopped you from riding for a period of time and you are now facing more free time, more free money, etc. A lot of you guys are here because you are both a re-rider and a plus sized rider.
It can be SO frustrating getting back into the saddle after some time off. Your body might not work the way you are used to it working - you could be heavier than you were when you rode before - you could be older, or have experienced medical/physical setbacks during your time away from the saddle. You may have your confidence shaken and all you can manage is a walk or a jog. It's frustrating. You want to be able to do the things you once did - or even if you've never ridden before, you want to be able to do everything right away.
I am a great one for getting some good steam going - a quick pace, and then burning out. I'm talking about various aspects of my life, really - weight loss, emotional issues, riding, career... Because going slow is scary. Being behind everyone is terrifying for me. I am used to excelling at life, being competitive and good at most things that I put my mind to.
When I graduated from high school, I decided to take a year off to work and then go back to university to complete my BSW specializing in Child Welfare. By the time I got back to university, I was already a year behind all of the friends I had graduated with - my mother graciously suggested, since I did not have enough of a student loan to both keep my apartment and pay my tuition and so would have to work through the school year, that I take part time courses. I didn't want to be any farther behind my friends, so I insisted on taking a full course load and working full time - to get to my goal faster.
The disadvantage to this is that I was so caught up in getting to my destination that I missed a lot of the journey. (For those wondering, student loan pulled all of my finding because I had worked too much and I ended up burning out and dropping out of university and haven't been back since - now I am way more than just 1 year behind my friends!).
If you want to ride horses, find a way to make it happen. Work toward your goal - even if you go slow, you are still going. As I have mentioned before, recognize your limitations and
Well said! Great post!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this. I am a larger rider with fibromyalgia and some other nerve pain problems caused by stenosis. Having been riding for approximately 15 years of my life (I'm 29, and there were some breaks in there...) it's hard sometimes to recognize that I'm not on anyone else's timeline, and that my pain may slow my progress, but it does not stop it. Thank you for understanding and for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAfter 2 kids I have struggled with keeping my weight in check. Horses keep me motivated, that and those darn white breeches! Keep up the great work! You've won an award over at my blog!
ReplyDeleteYou have an award at my blog!!!
ReplyDeleteHello! I just discovered your blog! I am looking forward to reading through your posts. Thank you for sharing!!
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