In a world full of filtered photos and cleverly edited videos plastered all over social media, there is a lot of pressure for everything to be and look perfect.
The consequence of this is that so many people want everything perfect before they even begin anything and so, never get started. For example, putting off racing because you are not in your best shape, instead of using races to help you get back into shape. It might not feel pretty, look good or get the most likes on Strava, but it’s a step closer to where you want to be, and it takes courage to do this and to put your ego to one side.
We have all been the runner doing a 5k, 10k or marathon for the first time or when not fully fit, the runner where things didn’t quite go to plan, the runner where it felt a lot harder than it should of, the runner when your lungs felt like they wanted to explode.
When these things happen, it is good to remind yourself that you are NOT the ONLY runner that will have ever felt that way because guess what… you are human! And it’s often these days that challenge you where you learn the most and GROW.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to achieve more and to progress but be careful not to fall into the trap of ‘perfection paralysis’ as this can massively hold you back or stop you from even getting started.
The best time to get started… Yesterday
The next best time to get started… Today
Forget perfect, we are going to count you down from 5, and at which point it’s time to get going with something you’ve been putting off..
5,4,3,2,1 Go!
This article is by our contributor Lilly Adkins from Move Better Run Better – check out their website here.
Lilly worked with an Olympic athlete for several years before transitioning to become a sports massage therapist where she worked with many elite athletes. Through her own experiences of overcoming serious injuries including hip surgery and 15-pins and 2 plates in her ankle, she used Strength and Conditioning to prove the doctors wrong and to still be able to continue to run pain free. This inspired Lilly to become a Strength and Conditioning coach and she has since helped hundreds of runners to avoid and overcome injuries and is now head S&C coach at Move Better Run Better.
