Crashing isn't always a bad thing

         Allow me to preface this post with this: although everything I'm about to say is about metaphorical crashing, these ideas blossomed from an actual crash I had last weekend while riding my bike. One painful shower, 2 nasty cuts, a couple of bruises, and scattered road rash later, I realized that crashing isn't always a bad thing. Instead of being angry at the few scratches on my bike and my poor riding ability, I was instead grateful that I didn't break any bones and that everything that went wrong could be fixed. I realized that this is true when you metaphorically "crash"; such as doing poorly on an exam, making a mistake at work, or pushing a little too hard in a workout. All of these situations present an opportunity to learn, not an opportunity to be upset.

        The key here is that you must learn from what you did wrong. History becomes the present if you don't take the time to assess why something happened and what can be done to avoid its recurrence. Oftentimes, we want to mentally push mistakes out of our lives by trying to forget them completely. But that doesn't help us moving forward.  What helps us become better people and better athletes is taking the time to find out what works and what doesn't. It takes patience and courage to face your own shortcomings, but it's so worth it in the long run.

      It has been said that we should live life with no regrets; that we shouldn't want to change a thing from the past. Although this is invariably true, it has always been a hard concept for me to grasp. Of course, I wouldn't be who I am today if I hadn't made all of the mistakes and had certain experiences. But sometimes I can't help but wonder how different life would be if this or that didn't happen...and that's not the right mentality to have.  One of the biggest favors that we can do for ourselves is keep our perspective in the moment--because it's the only thing we can deal with right here and right now. Part of growing is accepting that you've messed up and not extrapolating to the future.

      As I begin my Boston training, I've been determined not to make the same mistakes I made when training for Disney. Luckily, I have my training log (which I kept obsessively and plan to do so again) so that I can point to what may have sent me down injury row. It's almost comical how stupid I was in training for that race. There was a 2 month stretch where I stacked hard workout after hard workout on top of each other like a couple of Jenga blocks. My tower only half fell over, because I made it successfully through the race. But I've been picking up the pieces ever since, and I don't want that to happen again. I'm willing to work really hard over the next 4 months, but my goal is to be fit and  healthy as I toe that line. I just want to enjoy the race without the possibility of injuring myself.

      In the moment, crashing feels awful. After I realized that I didn't die and got my helmet dislodged from the asphalt, I just sat on the road, wondering how I managed to flip my bike on an innocent group ride. After a bit of grumbling and a couple miles of riding later, I understood how lucky I was that I didn't break any bones or get a concussion. My shifters on my bike were a little out of whack, but they could be easily fixed. I guess what I'm trying to say is that very few crashes are ever beyond repair.

Three of the things that I've learned this year from my crashes:
Take one day at a time, only give what you expect in return, and believe that things will work out.