Fitness Failure

November 5, 2008

If you are like me you have had fitness failures tooooo many times to count.  Now I define fitness as anything that requires your body to move at a rate that is benefiting you, fitness-wise.

Maybe running, walking, playing soccer, baseball, working with weights, the bike…quick game of checkers, (just making sure you are paying attention).

When I was growing up I was not a super athlete, I was average…not the last picked, and certainly not the first.  And what I figured out at an early age was is what I LIKED (as I tried as much as I could) because if I liked what I was doing, I was more apt to do it. Take baseball for example…

I tried out for baseball and made the team, at a late age compared to all of my friends. I was 14, everyone else had been playing since t-ball, when they were 5 or 6. So, I had a mental disadvantage because I internally told myself that I was going to SUCK at this because I had never been on a team or had a coach and I never really liked baseball, but it was important to at least try it once, just so I would know.

On my first game at my first up to bat I hit the ball. Granted, I swung with my eyes closed, but I hit the ball and made it to first!  I was so excited!  I was so excited I struck up a conversation with the first baseman, like he was my buddy or something, so I wasn’t paying total attention at that time to my surroundings. Next thing I noticed was that the pitcher was starting to slowly wind up…so I thought, Matthew, you can steal this base (I was still feeling a bit cocky from actually hitting the ball and was thinking that this “baseball thing” really wasn’t that hard). So, I took many many side steps as I stared down the pitcher, kinda like a cat stalking it’s prey. Step by step I was slowly further out…He wound up and pitched the ball…AND…I ran like a bat out of hell!  I was going to steal this base no matter what. As I approached second I decided to ice my move and slide head first, hands out…superman style.  PERFECT! PERFECT! PERFECT! I thought as I claimed by base and dusted myself off. As I slowly looked around and awaited cheers from the crowd, I heard silence. Then I heard…(and this is verbatum), “Hey asshole, get back to first, the pitcher was warming up…what an asshole, can you believe this guy?” 

As I slowly walked back and realized that I had not been paying attention, talking to the first baseman, that they had switched pitchers and the new pitcher was just warming up. I took my time getting back to first. When I arrived, the first baseman was doing everything he could to not bust up laughing in my face. I looked him straight in the eyes and said, “Hey, if he can warm up…so can I.”

I finished out the season and never “got” the game.  And I made a deal with myself -I was going to do what I like fitness-wise. I knew that exercise was a very important role in life, I just needed to find what worked for me.

I found exercising in a health club was very fun and easy for me to commit to and learn about. I encourage you to do somthing that you like and be passionate about it. I’m passionate about general exercise and fitness. I am not passionate about baseball. What are you passionate about?

Posted in