Kathryn Woodall
02-11-2007, 12:38 PM
"The question is not whether we will die, but how we will live." - Joan Borysenko
A dear friend of mine once told me that life is meant to be lived and not merely survived. Though he is no longer living, there are times those words still fill my head as I glimpse a memory of his eyes flashing their grey-blue sparkle and daring me to dream bigger and live better. Lately, I have been contemplating what that means for me – asking questions that I wouldn’t be asking if I hadn’t changed. Who am I and how will I live? I appreciate that the people and materials of RMAX have given me the opportunity to get to ask those questions again.
My reasons for wanting to be involved in this Challenge were posted with my hump-day report, and they didn’t really change during the Challenge except that one of them was met. I succeeded in doing 4 unassisted pull-ups (not in a row) and got really close a few other times, but have had trouble reproducing that ability except at “gear shift.” Still, that I did them means that they will continue to get better as long as I continue to work at them.
The Challenge kept me on target for creating a healthier me. The dietary changes we were asked to partake in were not significantly different from the way I was already eating except that the amount of protein was greater. While I found myself less hungry, a couple of weeks into it I noticed that I wasn’t “shrinking” as fast. Some of my teammates found the changes to be quite helpful in that area, so I think that the lesson that I carried from that aspect is that it is OK to try new things because sometimes they work better, but sometimes they don’t.
I maintained my new love of prasara in general although one of the flows in the Challenge continued to mock me. However, it helped me to see how not doing well in one flow can actually guide you to another flow and that doing so is one form of incrementally working toward a new ability.
One of the biggest surprises for me was what a great workout I could get in a relatively small amount of time. I love that aspect of 4x7 and will continue to implement it into my training.
From the moment that it was provided as an assignment, I have contemplated what I would write in regards to why winning this Challenge is important to me. I have struggled with my answer to it because for anyone willing to do the work, there is much to be won. It provided me with things mentally, emotionally, and physically that I haven’t gone into here and won’t because this is long enough as it is. But when it comes to winning…playing at any sport has never about winning to me. It is the fortune cookie saying that has been carried with me for years, “If you cannot win, make the one ahead of you break the record.” It is about how well I can perform and how well I can challenge my teammates to perform. It is the experience and the things that are learned and the difficulties that are either overcome or worked through that are important to me. I love the feeling at the end of a game/event when I know that not only have I done my best but I have helped to bring it out in another player too. That is what I associate with winning.
I want to thank my husband. His love and support always make me want to be my best. Little easter egg for you, Matt -- I love you MOST! : -)
Finally, in closing I want to say thank you to all of my teammates. You each supported as well as pushed me along the way and I hope that I was able to do the same for each of you. I wish you all much health and happiness during the rest of your journeys.
A dear friend of mine once told me that life is meant to be lived and not merely survived. Though he is no longer living, there are times those words still fill my head as I glimpse a memory of his eyes flashing their grey-blue sparkle and daring me to dream bigger and live better. Lately, I have been contemplating what that means for me – asking questions that I wouldn’t be asking if I hadn’t changed. Who am I and how will I live? I appreciate that the people and materials of RMAX have given me the opportunity to get to ask those questions again.
My reasons for wanting to be involved in this Challenge were posted with my hump-day report, and they didn’t really change during the Challenge except that one of them was met. I succeeded in doing 4 unassisted pull-ups (not in a row) and got really close a few other times, but have had trouble reproducing that ability except at “gear shift.” Still, that I did them means that they will continue to get better as long as I continue to work at them.
The Challenge kept me on target for creating a healthier me. The dietary changes we were asked to partake in were not significantly different from the way I was already eating except that the amount of protein was greater. While I found myself less hungry, a couple of weeks into it I noticed that I wasn’t “shrinking” as fast. Some of my teammates found the changes to be quite helpful in that area, so I think that the lesson that I carried from that aspect is that it is OK to try new things because sometimes they work better, but sometimes they don’t.
I maintained my new love of prasara in general although one of the flows in the Challenge continued to mock me. However, it helped me to see how not doing well in one flow can actually guide you to another flow and that doing so is one form of incrementally working toward a new ability.
One of the biggest surprises for me was what a great workout I could get in a relatively small amount of time. I love that aspect of 4x7 and will continue to implement it into my training.
From the moment that it was provided as an assignment, I have contemplated what I would write in regards to why winning this Challenge is important to me. I have struggled with my answer to it because for anyone willing to do the work, there is much to be won. It provided me with things mentally, emotionally, and physically that I haven’t gone into here and won’t because this is long enough as it is. But when it comes to winning…playing at any sport has never about winning to me. It is the fortune cookie saying that has been carried with me for years, “If you cannot win, make the one ahead of you break the record.” It is about how well I can perform and how well I can challenge my teammates to perform. It is the experience and the things that are learned and the difficulties that are either overcome or worked through that are important to me. I love the feeling at the end of a game/event when I know that not only have I done my best but I have helped to bring it out in another player too. That is what I associate with winning.
I want to thank my husband. His love and support always make me want to be my best. Little easter egg for you, Matt -- I love you MOST! : -)
Finally, in closing I want to say thank you to all of my teammates. You each supported as well as pushed me along the way and I hope that I was able to do the same for each of you. I wish you all much health and happiness during the rest of your journeys.