I think fear is the worst four-letter word there is.
It is a word that controls most of us WAY too often.
It’s limiting. It’s damning. It’s destructive.
When it comes to training and exercise I believe the two most common forms of fear are : fear of the unknown and fear of failure.
Why do we allow these fears to stop us from accomplishing what we really want?
My oldest daughter is only six and she is already very plagued with fear. This summer she did swim team and every day we drove there she would tell me her stomach hurt and that she didn’t want to go. I knew it was because she was afraid of failure and the unknown…”What are they going to make us swim today? What if I can’t do it? What if my coach gets mad at me? Etc.” She would get herself so worked up only to find that once she got in the water and was actually doing the work, it was fine. And she liked it. Was it hard work? Yes. Was it scary or impossible? No. Was all the fear and worry on the way there unnecessary? Absolutely.
She has now started dance and gymnastics, which she loves, and has a similar feeling in her tummy. We talked about it and now, while she isn’t able to get rid of the feeling at this point, she is at least able to recognize what it is and not allow it to discourage her from doing what she really wants to do.
The more we give in to those fears, the more power they have over us. Every time we think, “I don’t want to do that workout or that race. I could never do that. What if it hurts? What if I can’t do it? What if so-and-so is better/faster than me?” and we decide not to do it, we have just made that fear bigger. We give the fear power and we get weaker.
The only way to conquer fears is to face them, head on. Pretty soon we realize there wasn’t anything to be afraid of and we wasted all kinds of energy being afraid.
Put all the energy you have from fear into your workouts, your goals, your life. Whatever your fear is, take it on.
The sooner the better.
I betcha you’ll win!
Dixie Dixon is the founder of RaceDay Training, an online training community that provides daily workouts and community support to help you realize what you can acheive. She believes that we are all happier when we are active and healthy but understands that sometimes it's hard to know where to start or how to find the motivation. She has developed RaceDay Training for this very reason. To find out more visit her website at www.RaceDayTraining.com and sign up for your free 10 day trial today.
