I just got back from the Women’s Fitness Summit 2016 (literally just waking up as I type this), and every step of the way, I have been taught what it means to be resilient. Originally, I wanted this post to be a post that recapped everything I learned, the experiences that I had with everyone I met at the retreat. This post IS about all those things, but it is more so a post about a particular word that is now resonating with more than the words “Military Press” and “Kettlebells.”
Resilience.
Over the weekend, Dr. Krista Scott-Dixon of Precision Nutrition asked us all to write out our definition of the word “resilience”. At the time, the word seemed obscure to me. “What is this resilience you speak of?” I thought to myself. I understand the words “strength”, “power”, “determination”, but “resilience”?. . . I felt like I had nothing. In fact the word resilience elicited an intense level of emotions, especially after having listened to the intense talks from Erin Brown and Kelly Coffey (both of whom seem to have nailed this “resilience” thing down well). I can’t really get too far into the reasons WHY this word first made me feel off base, but what I CAN tell you is that the entire summit brought to the surface just how resilient I am, and how I realized that I was not allowing myself to recognize it.
“We all knew you had gone through a lot of shit, I just had no idea of the magnitude of it all. You truly ARE resilient!”
The comment above came from one of the very coaches I met from Precision Nutrition, and there that word was again. “Resilient”. The comment came after this particular person got through the first chapter of Powerful Pressing. This wasn’t the first time I heard this phrase over the weekend, and to be honest, I was stopped by several people that got a copy of my book, read the same chapter, and thereby said the same thing. “You ARE resilient”.
I got hit pretty hard by some deep seeded emotions at the summit. These emotions were so raw that I had to take a walk around the ARC building several times to deal with them in between the talks. As hard as it was to bear, and as difficult it was for me to hear these words from my colleagues that brought to surface my own hardships, I finally came to terms with what everyone else was telling me. My own recognition of my resilience came not from a sort of validation I was searching for, but for having those that see me from the outside looking in. It goes without saying that we can be our own worst critiques at times, and I suppose that over the past year of my life, I forgot who I was. I have written about these sorts of feelings in a previous post, but I can tell you that there is more to this story of mine beyond that which was published in Powerful Pressing, and within the next year, I pledge to build up my courage to write that story as well.
Until then. . .
I think I have a pretty solid definition of the word “resilience”, and today, I wanted to share that with you all.
Resilience is one’s conscious choice to live their life despite circumstances that have tempted one to think otherwise.
You have the ability in you to choose to live your life EXACTLY the way you want to live it. The moment you choose life, and step out in faith despite the whirlwinds circling around you, you become resilient. This applies to fitness as much as it does daily life. I actually remember an old coaching lesson I had last year called “Today I made a Choice”, , and I believe choosing to live our lives daily, to live them exactly how we want to in terms of being physically active, eating healthy, and being our full fledged selves is what makes us resilient. Let not the world tempt you to think other wise.
Choose to live! Choose to thrive! Choose daily, and become resilient!
Press on!
