You've got to pay up to stay up!
Which leads me to this post...
I've been struggling with this post mainly because I've been struggling with my anger toward a friend of mine who refused to admit....for years....even after watching my own steady progress from 'general wellness, but fat' toward 'overall fitness' during my last three years as a CrossFitter...that she was physically falling apart but continued to honestly avoid doing anything about it.
What this means:
"Oh, I can figure this out myself. I've researched__________ (fill in the myriad of treatments/reasons for being overweight/unfit) on the internet and this is all I need to do."
I heard that for years. For a while, like anything in the early stages of demise, things would work on a short term basis. Then BAM, something else would happen.So, even at the chance she'll read this post and feel betrayed, how do I stay quiet about this? My anger has been giving way to the reality that her situation is not mine to own. She asked for my help for a little while, but I couldn't make her do the work. I couldn't make her change her eating habits. I couldn't make her stick with anything. That is hers to own.
Part of the issue of not wanting to get to the bottom of things with outside help surrounded finances. Enter, update needed in the health care system of our country. Truth.
That said, let me just say, we all make choices on how we spend our money. Spending money on our health before spending money on unneeded consumer products SHOULD be a no-brainer.
Cut to now, life has irrevocably changed for my friend. Years of self-denial and fear of speaking the truth about just how bad things were inside her deteriorating body, life will now consist of adjusting to a world governed by a wheelchair. But more importantly, I'm still not seeing/hearing responsibility for this result.
This is what I struggle with more than anything for her.
The glaring lack of responsibility.
We all need to own our choices.
Do bad things happen? Yes.
Can all bad things be avoided? No, not always.
People can make all the right choices for themselves and still get sick, be in accidents, have setbacks. Ultimately, being responsible for the climb out of the 'setback' is choosing to fight for one's health, even if it's in a 'new normal' state, as opposed to just giving into it and expecting everyone else to be responsible for it.
But to repeat what everyone should have heard a zillion times, all we really have is our health. If we don't choose to be responsible for our health because we are afraid of changing what we know, what we are comfortable with, what might be hard work, then just know that those are your choices.
Own them.
I am forever grateful that I was willing to overcome my fear and self-consciousness about CrossFit.
That was three years ago this month. It changed my outlook about myself, my abilities, my joy of life....and I didn't think I could feel more joyous about life before I started being more intensely pro-active about my health!
Living well and in a healthful state allows me the freedom to just be in the present in such a richer way. Honestly, just knowing that being in a state of fitness (refer to chart!) sets me ahead of the curve should I have any sort of health setback. I love that. I also appreciate that I can live well until I die. Period. That makes each day so damned good!
For me, CrossFit has been my perfect choice toward my own health. Do I think CrossFit is for everyone? Yes. But not everyone feels the same way (visualize annie scratching her head here), so those people still need to find what works for them.
Just frickin' find it.
Do something. There is better than "wellness", there is "fitness".
Own your choices!!
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