A few weeks ago, I participated in my first ever Aquabike event. It was a 1-mile swim and then a 25-mile bike ride. I have done a few triathlons before but I don’t enjoy running, so I was excited to try out this option. I was also nervous and wasn’t sure if I was prepared enough. However, I was as prepared as I was going to be as the day approached. I swam a few mornings each week, rode my stationary bike at home, and completed some outdoor rides here and there.
As we all know, it is so easy to think negatively and talk ourselves out of things. The morning of, my brain started: “I think it’s going to rain. This is too early, I’m tired. I hope the water isn’t cold. Should I cancel?” Were any of these good reasons? Nope. In order to calm my nerves, I had to switch my thinking: “Ann, you are fine. You love to swim. Even if it rains, you are in the water anyway. Take your time. The water will be warm, it’s summer. It’s a great day for this.” As I kept repeating these types of thoughts in my head, I felt myself calm down and couldn’t wait to just do this.
In the end, I finished feeling great and got 3rd place in my age group! I was so excited and happy that I did it. Moral of the story: you CAN do this! Just because something is hard doesn’t mean you aren’t capable. If we weren’t so hard on ourselves with everything we do, we’d be able to move forward faster and keep going. Expecting perfection is not a realistic goal. Don’t give up on yourself and when it comes to making changes to your health and lifestyle, it is worth it to STOP the excuses and just START.