true champions | mind over matter

We become champions when we rise to the challenge
- regardless of where our physical bodies take us. 

I haven't been able to go for a long run since April 3rd.  A few hours after I had finished my 17km run I realized that I had hurt my left foot. My knee also started to hurt again. Reluctantly, I gave running a break for a week and a half.  Yesterday I thought I was ready. I was pumped! But, one thing led to the next and now I have a blood blister at the bottom of my toe!  

Another. break. required. 

Sporting injuries seem to be popping up all around. A close friend of mine is struggling with her knee too. And, Kobe Bryant has torn his Achilles tendon and will be on the bench for months.  The default reaction for an athlete in these situations is most often frustration.  The frustration expressed by Kobe Bryant in his Facebook status update is undeniable.  

There is a perplexing dichotomy when it comes to our bodies.  On the one hand, the onus is on us to eat well, sleep well, hydrate and exercise well.  Our bodies adapt quickly, and if we give them the right attention, we believe positive changes are guaranteed.  Our actions determine the result.  

On the other hand, when we are injured, our bodies will take their own time to heal.  They decide when it's time to go back to normal - if ever. This state of affairs can be extremely discouraging.  "How can this happen? How can things get worse especially when I am doing everything right?" We feel like we don't know our own bodies - they become foreign to us. We are upset.  We feel helpless.  Confused.  

While sickness might make us realize that we have no control over our bodies, I think it should also remind us how much power we really do possess internally.  An injury can be a huge setback.  It can make us miserable. But, that's only if we let it.  While we may not be able to speed the body's physical path to healing, we can choose to take control over our mindset; to reorient our perspective; and to have faith that there is some Divine wisdom behind the occurrence.  That choice to be positive in a negative situation is ours, and ours alone. It's much easier said than done (trust me I know, I'm struggling with this myself!) but when we get there, I think that is the point we are transformed from ego-driven athletes to mature-humble athletes.  

A true champion is one that rises above negative circumstances and sees the light...they will search for the silver lining even if everything around is dark. A true champion knows their own potential - and knows that their potential is at a plain higher than any limitations imposed by physical ailments.  In fact, we become champions when we rise to the challenge - regardless of where our physical bodies take us. 

"She must be a tomboy".

Tough sports don't make a person hard inside.

The 21K-4-21K team is made up of four girls who in some way or another are involved in sports which some claim are 'violent' or 'combative'...fencing, taekwondo, rugby and boxing. For this post, I'll focus on boxing, but the message applies to women in all sports.

For most of the general population, the idea of boxing might conjure up images of heavy weight champion Muhammed Ali in the rope-a-dope with George Foreman, or Tyson biting off Holyfield's ear! You might think of Rocky with his ever-expanding muscular bulk.  You may think of sweat, heavy bags and two people knocking the day lights out of each other.  That - I argue - is the 'stigma' associated with boxing.  Just as media today has misinformed many of us about so many things, boxing too is pegged with its own misconceptions. Add to the mix boxing for women, and you can almost imagine what some people assume. She must be a tomboy. Definitely masculine. Rough and tough. Stubborn perhaps. Unmarriageable.

It's so easy to think that we know.  We read the news and think we know what is happening half way across the world.  We meet a few people from a particular country and we suddenly know exactly how everyone else in the country thinks.  We take a history class and we can almost recreate the past.

We meet a female in sport, and we are confident we know 'her type'.
Just as each coin has two sides, we cannot claim to know the whole picture when we have only seen one side (let alone the fact that most of that side too is a construction!).  What side of boxing may we fail to see?  Feelings of empowerment and accomplishment? Camaraderie felt amongst coaches and teammates?  Acceptance into a community, even by opponents? Respect shared amongst athletes? Belief in the idea of honouring one's body?  Life lessons learnt through the sport? Confidence? Perseverance? Love?

I wonder if we forget that Muhammad Ali, Tyson and Rocky were all many things outside of the ring, just as a female boxer is so much more than a female boxer. I loved seeing one female boxer caressing her two-year old daughter before she entered the ring to compete.  One lady at the gym shadowboxes like an art, and her love for plants never seizes to amaze me.  We've had female boxers bake the best cookies and bring them to share.  I've met female boxers who dedicate hours upon hours to community service.  I know female boxers who are students, stay at home moms and senior bureaucrats in government.  I know a female boxer who won an award to recite her poetry to Nelson Mandela. The list goes on.

There is so much more to a person than meet's the eye.  I think we all know this...I just hope that for those times that we forget (and many of us do forget) we force ourselves to remember.  All the women in sport that I know well are strong, amazing and beautiful inside and out Mashallah. Tough sports don't make a person hard inside. 

Honour your journey | My 17km epiphany.

Honour your Journey.

This morning I literally ran the hardest run of my life.  I started fast and solid, but by the end, I had my eyes glued on my phone, just waiting to reach my target distance.  I couldn't wait to stop.  Each meter felt like it had expanded.  It was very hard.  The body is extremely resilient however.  Despite the struggle, I loved each moment. Despite the struggle, I'm looking forward to race-day.  And, as I type this now, I don't feel the same fatigue on my body. I only feel calm.  I also feel contentment.

Running has an amazing ability to make you see things clearly.  Today, as I ran, all I could think of was "honour your journey".

I was never physically active while growing up.  In fact, I remember the first day I decided to go to the gym. I was in undergrad - probably around 19 years old. I decided to run the indoor track in Hart House at the University of Toronto. After 7 minutes, I was literally gasping for breath.  While running, I kept questioning how people were able to run for longer.  My heart felt like it would jump out of my chest.  Pushing my body that hard, however, made me feel alive in a way that I had never experienced before.  I was very proud of myself.  That 7 minute run caused me to fix my slouch and walk with my back upright to my class that afternoon. I had accomplished something great, and I knew it.

Today, as I struggled near the end...I remembered that same feeling of accomplishment and my mind kept on repeating, "honour your journey, honour your journey".

I ran for about an hour and 45 minutes this morning.  Sincerely though, I don't feel that my 7 minute accomplishment from almost 10 years ago is any less significant today.  Given my lack of athleticism at that time, that 7 minutes was all my body could do, and because I hadn't done it before, I knew it was something to be proud of.  Today, my 17km accomplishment isn't anything more significant in and of itself because I've had years of practice to build up to where I am now. It's all about the journey, and our abilities should be contextualized. Otherwise, we will do a disservice to our journey.  We will steal praise where praise is due, and we will inflate praise where humbleness is due.

Sometimes when we see an athlete, or hear about someone who goes to the gym regularly, we might be envious and wish we were able to do the same. We might look down upon ourselves because we feel we are less accomplished physically. All I can say though, is honour your journey.  Where you are physically now is as a result of unique life circumstances and decisions overtime.  Assess your progress with only one point of reference: yourself.

Quite frankly, I only started really paying attention to physical activity about 3 years ago.   The body is quick to learn and you get out of it what you put in.  Set yourself a goal, make an internal promise, and work towards it.  That should be all that matters.  If we all had the same starting point, it would make sense to compare our physical accomplishments to those around us.  But we all have different starting points...from past activity, to unique bodies and family history, to our life's struggles - extremely different starting points.   When you decide to adopt a healthy and active lifestyle, it only makes sense to look inside.

Praise be to God for the ability, energy and opportunity to be where I am now in my fitness, and for my amazing morning epiphany.  Let's all remember to look inside, and honour our journey.

Change it Up | Interval sprints!

I've had a few conversations about running/jogging with people recently.  Some say they love it, some say they can't stand it and get very bored, and some say they get tired too fast.  One thing to keep you enjoying what you are doing and to maximize benefit for your body is to change things up a little.  Instead of going for a jog one day, why not try some interval sprints?
This is what you do...first, warm-up for about 5-8 minutes at your regular pace. Then, set an interval timer to beep every 10 seconds.  Sprint for the first 10 seconds, then do a slow jog/walk for the next 10, then sprint, then slow jog, etc.  If you repeat this 10-20 times (depending of your level of fitness), you are bound to feel that you put in a hard workout.
What interval sprints do is keep your heart guessing!  When your heart-rate stays the same - which is something that happens when you run long at the same pace - it is good for endurance.  But, your body can get used to this overtime and any benefit will begin to plateau.   With interval sprints, your heart has to speed up and slow down very quickly in a short span of time. This is amazing for your cardio and the more you do this, the more fit you will begin to feel.  So...instead of a long run at the same rate, why not go for a short interval run instead?  Make sure that for those 10 seconds when you sprint...you REALLY give it your all!

Runner's Tip:  There are tons of applications you can download on your smartphone to help you with interval sprints.  I use IntervalTimer on my iphone.  And, if you prefer to run without carrying something, use lampposts on the street.  Run from one to the next, then slow jog to the following one.  Word has it that this is what Muhammad Ali used to do!