Push your Limits vs Know your Limits
Push your limits when the extra effort produces more reward than cost. Know your limits when the extra effort produces more cost than reward. (read that again)
Mark Manson
Sounds simple enough, but in reality, that can be one of the hardest things to navigate. When to push ahead and when to pull back. When to push your limits… that threshold that sparks growth through challenge. And when to know it’s time to pullback, retreat and protect your boundaries to survive.
I recently came out of one of the toughest seasons of my life. A period of a few months where so many changes hit me all at once… big changes. Now that I’ve caught my breath, I can sit back and think about what actually happened, how I ploughed through and what I needed to do to make it to the finish line.
Now I know we all have stuff on our plate, some things we share, other things we neatly tuck away behind a smile and the typical “I’m fine” response. But if we’re honest with ourselves, we can say that sometimes things in our lives suck… they’re hard and uncomfortable. And not being OK is part of it.
It could be your kid who’s going through some rough waters, your relationship is shaky, you lost a loved one and everything suddenly changed or someone you love has an illness and so you help carry the burden.
Life is beautiful.
But it can most definitely be hard.
And when it is, we might struggle to know if we should be pushing through or pulling back.
That dance between both can be a tricky one to navigate. Especially if you’re the type who wants to keep her word, commit to the thing and try to “do it all” (for everyone).
Things I learned this summer….
Here are a few of the hard lessons I learned that might help you if you’re in a season you’d rather skip.
Don’t let “perfect” be the enemy of “good”. I had to (on several occasions) lower my bar of perfection… cuz it simply wasn’t possible. A super clean house? Food prepped? Consistent workouts? Out the door. I had to resign to the fact that good enough was good enough and for now that’s what was necessary for me to survive. Letting go of things temporarily might be the road to take so you can continue to travel along step by step.
Partial workouts are better than none! I love to check the box and get things done in their entirety, but when I was crunched for time, whatever I was able to squeeze in was far better than nothing at all. Fitness feats will always be there, training for performance goals will never cease… but for now, these needed to be placed on the backburner while other competing priorities won the race. Fitness “snacks” was all I could do sometimes, other times it was skip it altogether. And for now, that was OK!
Our immune system speaks volumes…if we listen. I got sick… frequently. A cold virus that ran through a full month. I’m not one to catch cold viruses very often, but this summer I got hit twice within a month. Clearly a sign that my immune system wasn’t running as strong as it should. Fatigue and stress can play quite the number on our bodies. Feeling run down while running on empty is NOT the way to live. Our bodies are amazing at sending us important messages, aren’t they?
Setting boundaries protects ME so I can help YOU, better. I set boundaries and kept them in an effort to preserve my energy. My limited energy supply needed a hedge of protection. Saying no or backing away from unnecessary things was the only way I could keep going. I had to release the feeling that I might be letting others down. In the end, I want to be my best even if that means pulling back now so I can be “more” later :) This one’s tough, especially if you are, by nature, someone who likes to help others and be of service. The old motto “You can’t pour from an empty cup” echos truth that can be hard to swallow.
I am not perfect by any stretch.
I have struggles.
I have my moments.
Just like you.
I hated my summer season because it stretched me beyond what was comfortable or easy.
Now when I say “hated” it’s not like I was in torment for its entirety.
It just means it wasn’t a season of relaxation, vacation, and fun. The typical summer vibes we all chase for a few short months.
In a nutshell, it was a time of physical work with an intense emotional toll attached to it… emptying my mom’s house (where she lived in for 45years), helping her move into a new place (so tough after dad’s passing months ago), helping my daughter set up her move to TO as she preps for grad school (empty nest feels), presenting sessions for a fitness conference (first time in person since Covid so expectations were high but my energy was sub-par), all while dealing with a cold, cough, laryngitis and congestion that sucked my energy through it all. Of course, that’s besides the usual stuff like laundry and life!
But I made it.
I survived! With new lessons learned, I truly hope that whatever season you’re in, whether it’s a struggle or smooth sailing, you remember to know when to push ahead and when to pull back.
Resilience comes at a price that most of us would rather not pay.
But in the end, I think we go through such things in life so we, in turn can help others go through similar struggles.
So that we can actually say, from the heart, “I understand what you’re going through, and I’m here if you need me, let’s travel together.”
What hard season have you weathered?
What lessons came out of it?
I’d love to chat ;)
Coach Lisa 💪❤
