I still sometimes forget
that I wear glasses. I often remember
because things are blurry, either because I haven’t yet put them on in the
morning or because the lenses are smudged.
Either way, I can’t see properly until I fix it.
Obviously, this is a
metaphor. There are two things that all
of us need to do to ensure that we are seeing clearly. One is to focus on the appropriate stuff. Some of us take the long view, exclusively,
missing the stuff right under our noses; others obsess on the minutiae and get
lost in the details. We have to employ
our corrective lenses to address the difficulties. In a fitness context, this means that we need
both process goals (show up for workout!) and performance goals (run the 5K,
bike the century, lift the record-breaking amount!).
The other thing we need
to do is get the fingerprints, splatters, and dirt out of the way. Maybe this means that we work out even if the
kids don’t want us to go, or we feel like we don’t have time, or we’re tired. Maybe this means we stop assuming we are lazy
or weak or ugly. Maybe we realize that
we actually detest aerobics classes, but are perfectly happy listening to the
latest vampire novel while running along the beach. Clarity allows for decent planning and
planning enables success.
We can do this.
