The Bridge between Inspiration & Action

"You cannot stay on the summit forever; you have to come down again. So why bother in the first place ? Just this: What is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen. There is an art of conducting oneself in the lower regions by the memory of what one saw higher up. When one can no longer see, one can at least still know." -- René Daumal.

The words accompanying the picture are: "Challenge: Winners must have two things; definite goals and a burning to desire to achieve them."

To be frank, at the moment I have no definite goals and there's no burning desire to achieve them. It's a total turnaround to the last 18 months. Don't get me wrong, I still have goals, but they seem to be floating around in my head, with no definite direction. Nothing too concerning...just a phase I've realised. I'm happy toying with alot of ideas for the moment.

I think I'm just tired, ready for a break from pushing myself relentlessly. My body is in need of some TLC and it's time to capitalise on this time of rehabilitation and recuperation. I'm not too sure exactly what I'm going to do for the remainder of the year. What I do know is that I want to give myself some time to just chill, have a little fun and sought of go with the flow for the next couple of months. I keep thinking back to a recent post of LizN's, where she talks about not actually planning anything and feeling good about it. I think that's where I'm at.

I know that I still need to keep control of my eating, and in the exercise department I need to challenge myself enough to get the heart rate up, to prevent myself turning into a blimp, so that's why I've decided to do a bit more swimming for now to give my body a break. I've accepted that I'm not going to be as lean as I've been, however, I need to determine a safe limit as far as weight is concerned. I don't want to lose what I've trained so hard to achieve. And I don't want to use this period as an excuse to turn into a fat slob again.

So, I'm going to get back on track nutritionally, but I'm not going to get anal about it. I'm going to approach my fitness on a week-by-week basis, until my body is feeling a little stronger (especially the RHS) and I've eliminated the tension in my muscles, and fatigue I'm still experiencing.

Meanwhile, I'm going to think about what it is that I really want next year, in relation to my fitness goals, and what path I'm going to take to reach those goals. I'm still going to return to martial arts and possibly Crossfit, depending on whether my body tells me I'm ready, but until I return to these things on a regular basis, I'm not going to set any firm goals. Not this year anyway.

All that talk about putting on the 'Wonder Woman' training wheels is just that...talk. Well, for now anyway. It's only a matter of time. I'll keep dreaming and pondering about what it is that I want to achieve, and I know that eventually, once I've set those definite goals that the burning desire that I've had, will return.

I'm still excited by the possibilities. I feel different somehow. It's as the first quote says..."One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen". You could say, that I've descended. It's time to rebuild, renew and once done, then refocus, set another major goal, and ready myself to ascend the next mountain and reach the next summit. Once you've set a goal and achieved it, you're no longer the same person. In that achieving, there's a great sense of peace and contentment. You know what can be done, and so you set forth to scale the next mountain, metaphorically speaking.

On another note, it's nice to be back doing some mentoring for Ideal Bodies Online. It's funny how things work out sometimes. The clients I'm currently working with I feel I can really help in relation to injuries and rehabilitation. Having 'been there, done that', it feels good to know that I can genuinely be of assistance and help them to understand that with patience and perserverance that you can overcome and go on to achieve your goals. Giving hope is so very satisfying.

In ending...it's great to be reading about how everyone is pushing themselves and motivated! I will continue to draw inspiration from all of you meanwhile. So...TRAIN HARD!, but remember to stop occasionally; take a breath; take time to reflect and remember where you've come from, and be proud of yourselves! :)