The humility of sports

July 26. It’s Olympics time! Nothing is more inspiring to me than watching amazing athletes perform on their highest stage. It is remarkable.

Sports analogies are always my favorite because most of us, I you have ever played a sport, trained for something or committed to something really challenging you can relate to the absolute perseverance and sacrifice it takes to get there. We get to see the beauty of their thing. The magnificent outcome of YEARS of blood sweat and tears.

And they make it look effortless.

Last night we stayed up later than we should have to wait for Katie Ledecky to swim against Ariarne Titmus in the 400M Freestyle. Katie has won five Olympic gold medals and 15 world championship gold medals, the most in history for a female swimmer.

She is so fast she has to train with men just to get the kind of workouts she needs. #SheIsASuperHero

But there’s a new girl in town. There always is right. No matter what you do or who you are, the next generation will always rise up. There will be someone faster, someone with more money, someone with a bigger following, you get what I mean. And Ariarne Titmus is that girl in middle distance swimming.

It was bittersweet as we watched Katie touch the wall just .67 seconds after Ariarne to win the silver medal. And you know what she said after “I think we delivered. You can’t get much better than that”. Wow.

I don’t know about you but I’m pretty sure I would be wanting to cry and stomp and demand a reswim.

Nope, with the grace of an Olympic athlete she stood tall and proud of her own efforts as well as that of her upcoming rival and said “Tremendous race, a lot of fun,” Ledecky said. “I can’t be too disappointed with that. That was my second-best swim ever. I felt like I fought tooth and nail and that’s all you can ask for.”

These athletes make me think about my own actions when I don’t get my way, or encounter a failure. Like this morning as I was trudging down the road for my morning jog, sweating my butt off and thinking why isn’t this getting easier.

In years past it would have been so easy for me to beat myself up. Call myself names and punish. But I’m not the kind of person that treats myself that way anymore. Extending grace to ourselves is a critical component of living well in recovery.

Watching them also reminds me that there were many times they didn’t want to get up early to go to the gym. There were many times when they felt exhausted, mentally drained and even wanted to quit. But they didn’t. They just resisted the hesitation and did it anyway.

Just like Mel Robbins talks about in The 5 Second Rule. Hesitation is the killer of dreams. But in 5 seconds you can make life alter decisions and move yourself towards your goals over time.

One thing about sports is its not over until the final whistle, but one thing is for sure we can count on Katie showing up like a lady with Grace and ease.

These are the role models I want for my children. The people who’s character we should be matching. Here’s to the hard work it takes to live well in recovery.

To love yourself fiercely and forgive often.

XO,

Shelby