Get Knocked Down. Get Unstoppable.

Sometimes we fall from our setbacks (injuries, sickness) but tough times never last, and tough people do. One tough adversity can prove to make you stronger, braver...and quite frankly....unstoppable. 

“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” - Helen Keller.

This has been a rough winter. With an intimidating and nasty flu circulating and cold winds blowing, many of us have faced tough times and have been set back from reaching our goals or training in some way, myself included. In times of physical discomfort...whether you've had the flu for 4 weeks or have torn a muscle and are currently restricted from training for awhile, it's incredibly easy to suffer from frustration and weakness. It's easy to forget that many people in life are set back, and even easier to hold on to the inner frustration and impatience of being sick or "out" for a prolonged time. It can take awhile for our bodies to get in shape and into the rhythm of training everyday, and once we're on a great roll...hello there flu season. One day you're in the gym smiling at your fast growing biceps, and the next you're knocked down, literally, on your couch with a bowl of chicken broth. Quiet the change of scenery...and quite the change of emotion and challenge of inner strength.

People always write about how to stay healthy during the winter....the right foods to eat to get rid of a cold, the smart strategies to prevent catching germs. But personally, I think that's overrated. Because in all honesty, when you love working out and are excited to get in shape...when fitness is something that your life is centered around and you're suddenly set back by an unexpected situation like an injury or an illness, you don't want to hear about how you should've washed your hands after touching the grocery store shopping cart. All you care about is hearing that you will get better, that others are in the same situation, and that your suffering and anguish of sitting on the sidelines will soon pass. I know how sitting out feels, because just like many of the victims out there this year, I've been out for almost 2 months. Yes, at first it was angering and frustrating. By week 3 I was draped over my couch, torturing myself by watching clips of Olympic sprinters training on TV, knowing that I couldn't even walk. And then I experienced the short period of feeling sorry for myself for not being able to work out...when we're really sick or injured, we always feel like we're the only one experiencing such an ordeal and ask, "Whyyyy me?!" Am I right? Don't say no. 

Sometimes we are challenged,
pushed to our limits. But we are
pushed to become stronger, suck
it up, and just do it. 

It's easy to feel like the course of being sick or injured will never come to end...and it's excruciating waiting for the day when we can start slowly training again, and living life happily and healthily. However, I've realized something from my set back, that I want to pass on to all of you too. Realize that with fitness and training, we get knocked down. Accept it. I was talking to a friend today...his entire life is centered around training. He spends his time training for bodybuilding competitions in the gym after school and writes up training and diet plans for people for fun....so that wasn't a joke...his life is centered around training. Today he told me that he tore his ACL the day before he was recruited to play rugby for a team in South Africa. It's difficult enough pulling a muscle before a basketball game or getting a stomach ache before a big meet...some injuries are more severe than others, but most injuries related to sports and training are inconvenient. As unfortunate as his situation is, it proves that we all go through rough times, at the wrong times. There is never a good time to get sick or injured. Being set back will affect you, both physically and mentally, and let's be honest...it's rough. When you accept the situation for what it is, you can begin to move forward, recover, and be happy. 

This young girl was injured for 7
months, and as soon as her cast
came off...she completed a 10K.

There are two ways to handle a situation in which you're set back from training. At first I chose option A, and I lay in bed for weeks feeling impatient, frustrated and longing to walk on a treadmill. Then...being out from training forced me to grow up, get over it, and move on. Option B. We have to make the best of our situations, of our set backs, and of our adversities. It is the strength deep inside of all of us...that little voice in both our hearts and our heads, that tells us to keep going and to get through our tough situation or our time of suffering. That is the same voice that pushes you in the gym, on the field, on the track, and in the weight room. That voice is your strength. When you push through being set back from doing something you love, you grow immensely as a person and develop the strong characteristic that you can then use to come back, and fight harder than ever. Push through the pain of your illness or injury like you would push through the pain of lifting heavy weights or running. A lot of times in life we have to do things that are uncomfortable, that we don't want to do.  What distinguishes the strong people from those who aren't very successful, is the way they handle their adversity. Don't let pain and suffering win...like they all say, if you're already hurt get a reward from it! 

The conclusion? No...I didn't talk about what type of tea to make for the winter flu or what vitamins to take to prevent a terrible cold. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger (yes, I LOVE that Kelly Clarkson song). What you should remember, is that tough times never last, but tough people do. Rise from your setback, your struggle...your adversity. And heck...use it to your advantage...to be a stronger person, and to recover and train harder than ever. 

So my medicine for you this winter? 

BE STRONG. BE POSITIVE. BUT BE UNSTOPPABLE. 

-Lil Miss Strong