windwalker
I need an Adventure
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2006
The Fear Factor
We all have them. No matter how tough we are, we all have fears. Our fears are as individual as we are, but there are also fears that we all share. The difference between each of us is not in whether or not we have fears, but how we react to them and how much we let them control us. If we are not careful, those fears can push us in directions we really don't want to go. Fear can control us or we can use that fear to spark needed changes.
In this economy many of us are afraid we will lose our jobs through downsizing, and then lose everything we have worked for all of our lives. That is a very real fear. If we dwell on it too much, it can drive us to seek comfort in food or drink. There are lots of real and serious fears like that, we worry that if gas and food prices keep going up, we will not be able to pay our bills. But really those are fears that hard working people have had forever. Each generation has its own concerns but things always seem to work out, the secret is not giving in to those fears but to keep pressing ever forward. Striving to be the best you can be at everything you do is the right way to control the fear of not being good enough. Let those people that dont try to do their best at work be the ones that worry about downsizing.
As adult athletes we have our own unique fears. A big fear is that we are not getting a certain vitamin or mineral. Is there something we arent doing nutritionally that will make us better athletes. We are bombarded with intense advertising for products that promise to give us what we desire. Faster times, defined abdominal muscles, the endurance of a migrating bird, all are available if we will just buy the right supplement. Companies feed on our fear by offering a lot of products that will make all our dreams come true. We stress over having the proper training and racing gear. How often have you wondered if you are wearing the right shoes? We worry that we haven't bought the stuff that we really needed.
We worry about a lot of things that are unrealistic. I have a fear of dogs that are not leashed, even though I have dogs and like dogs, I still fear unknown dogs. I have never been attacked, but I know people who have been, and that makes this a very realistic fear for me. I know a runner that will not run along a road, because he is afraid that the exhaust from the cars will give him lung cancer. It may sound silly, but to him, it's a very real concern. There is nothing wrong with being cautious. Taking certain precautions makes us feel more secure.
There are people that have convinced themselves that they have the beginnings of a terrible disease or physical condition, because something they feel matches a symptom of that condition. Athletes are ripe for that, because we generally always have something that is acting up. Joint pain, chest pain when sprinting, side stitch....it's always something. I used to worry about my heart, since I'm a senior athlete, until my doctor told me that my training is like giving myself a stress test a couple of times a week. Before he told me that I would only run in public areas so that if I had a heart attack I would have help readily available. Now I can even train on trails if I want to.
The best way to handle the stress of those countless fears is to be pro active about them. If you don't feel well, make an appointment with your doctor for a physical. If you are hurting all the time, you are either working out to hard or not getting enough recovery rest. Nutrition was something I was stressing about, so I decided to clean up my diet and now I don't have to worry about whether or not I'm eating right. If you are concerned about wearing the proper shoes, go to a good running store where they have trained people to analyze your gait. Let them fit you with the right shoe type. If you are worried about the economy, cut back and start putting a little aside each payday.
Fears are part of being human. Being cautious keeps us safe. We just have to be careful that being overly cautious doesnt restrict our doing what we desire.
Thanks for reading.
Dave
We all have them. No matter how tough we are, we all have fears. Our fears are as individual as we are, but there are also fears that we all share. The difference between each of us is not in whether or not we have fears, but how we react to them and how much we let them control us. If we are not careful, those fears can push us in directions we really don't want to go. Fear can control us or we can use that fear to spark needed changes.
In this economy many of us are afraid we will lose our jobs through downsizing, and then lose everything we have worked for all of our lives. That is a very real fear. If we dwell on it too much, it can drive us to seek comfort in food or drink. There are lots of real and serious fears like that, we worry that if gas and food prices keep going up, we will not be able to pay our bills. But really those are fears that hard working people have had forever. Each generation has its own concerns but things always seem to work out, the secret is not giving in to those fears but to keep pressing ever forward. Striving to be the best you can be at everything you do is the right way to control the fear of not being good enough. Let those people that dont try to do their best at work be the ones that worry about downsizing.
As adult athletes we have our own unique fears. A big fear is that we are not getting a certain vitamin or mineral. Is there something we arent doing nutritionally that will make us better athletes. We are bombarded with intense advertising for products that promise to give us what we desire. Faster times, defined abdominal muscles, the endurance of a migrating bird, all are available if we will just buy the right supplement. Companies feed on our fear by offering a lot of products that will make all our dreams come true. We stress over having the proper training and racing gear. How often have you wondered if you are wearing the right shoes? We worry that we haven't bought the stuff that we really needed.
We worry about a lot of things that are unrealistic. I have a fear of dogs that are not leashed, even though I have dogs and like dogs, I still fear unknown dogs. I have never been attacked, but I know people who have been, and that makes this a very realistic fear for me. I know a runner that will not run along a road, because he is afraid that the exhaust from the cars will give him lung cancer. It may sound silly, but to him, it's a very real concern. There is nothing wrong with being cautious. Taking certain precautions makes us feel more secure.
There are people that have convinced themselves that they have the beginnings of a terrible disease or physical condition, because something they feel matches a symptom of that condition. Athletes are ripe for that, because we generally always have something that is acting up. Joint pain, chest pain when sprinting, side stitch....it's always something. I used to worry about my heart, since I'm a senior athlete, until my doctor told me that my training is like giving myself a stress test a couple of times a week. Before he told me that I would only run in public areas so that if I had a heart attack I would have help readily available. Now I can even train on trails if I want to.
The best way to handle the stress of those countless fears is to be pro active about them. If you don't feel well, make an appointment with your doctor for a physical. If you are hurting all the time, you are either working out to hard or not getting enough recovery rest. Nutrition was something I was stressing about, so I decided to clean up my diet and now I don't have to worry about whether or not I'm eating right. If you are concerned about wearing the proper shoes, go to a good running store where they have trained people to analyze your gait. Let them fit you with the right shoe type. If you are worried about the economy, cut back and start putting a little aside each payday.
Fears are part of being human. Being cautious keeps us safe. We just have to be careful that being overly cautious doesnt restrict our doing what we desire.
Thanks for reading.
Dave
