A good thread going on at the Men's Forum...

I try to let the Cali Board know when I see a good thread somewhere.  On the Men's Forum they are talking about exercise and why we compete so much post WLS.  Thought some might like it...makes good reading.  It's under the tread of "Making me run laps".  Brian
 http://obesityhelp.com/forums/men/

Theres some thought provoking stuff there, even for us "non-males", lol. Thanks for sharing!

S

I'd love to read it.  I've gone back 16 pages and can't find that thread.  Is there an easier way to find the thread other than going page by page?  What date was the thread started?

Thanks,
---jan---

The thread is "OK I know you jocks"

Found it.  I couldn't see the entire thread topic because of the line break

O.K. - I Know You Jocks Are Gonna Make Me Run Laps For Asking This, But ...

For others looking the topic thread is on:

http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/men/a,messageboard/action,replies/board_id,5479/cat_id,5079/topic_id,3780579/

I would have loved to respond to that thread, but I know how you guys are protective with your territory over there. :)

I don't remember who said that women tend to not exercise as much as men...I'd challenge to him with a race with Kirsten or a session with me in the gym. ;D  HA!! j/k

For me, I really resist the idea of competing with others.  I had a friend sign up for the Disneyland Half and he wanted to playfully trash-talk and compete during training. I told him "you're faster,  I'll see you at the finish line.....you'll already be done." I'm just not into that.

I love to be a cheerleader for others though. If you think a 5k is beyond you, I would ask you to reconsider....you can do amazing things when you're willing to sweat for it.

I also like to joke around with Kirsten and Kevin....but it will be a long time before I'm in their league as far as speed is concerned.

I compete against myself.  In school, I was always the kid in gym class that was last...out-of-breath and miserable. Each new challenge I take on is just a chance for me to reclaim the time that I lost when I was younger.  WHen I run and I get tired, I remind myself that I am a miracle just being out there...I'm living the life I always dreamed of, even I'm only running a 16-minute mile!

Long distance cycling, running, anything is just as much of a mental challenge as it is physical and in many ways a long race is a metphor for life:  It's a lesson in commitment, dedication, discipline, courage, and patience.

Hijack!!

OMG Monica I LOVE LOVE LOVE your new avie!!!  You could so be a model!!  Beautiful my dear!

Oh what a bunch of sexist bull!

Seriously, there are plenty of women in the Fitness & Exercise forum who are doing marathons and triathlons and stuff -- really hard-core training. There are plenty of couch potato guys around OH, too.

ETA I was referring to the first post, not the whole thread.

Let me start by saying that if I ramble, I'm sorry, I'm loaded up on cold medicine right now and it feels like I have been out all night drinking (what a light weight I have become)

I'm totally impressed by any of the people that manage to work out to the level that they are.

I still have a hard time seeing myself as being able to complete any of the races or physical activities that these people are doing.

I have done 2 sprint triathlons so far and I have performed to a level less than what I would like to have achieved.  I had to walk a portion of both of them.   

The discussion about doing it to compete or complete comes to mind when I think about these events. 

I think that every bone and fiber of my body is competative, and that plays into both the compete or complete component. 
If I am trying to just complete the event, then I want to complete it without walking, without stopping, without taking a break.  Doing it any other way and I end up seeing it as a failure.  If I enter a 5k run, then I expect to run 5k not run 3k and walk 2k.  Then once I am able to do the 5k I start comparing myself to others and my goal switches from complete to compete.
How did I do against others in my age group, could I have done better.  Did I leave anything out there on the course, did I have more in me, could I have tried a little harder.

I know, I know, 2 years ago I couldn't have done this, blah blah blah, but my mind doesn't work that way.  I also have a hard time seeing myself as able to do a 5k or 10k run.  Some day I want to run a marathon and a full ironman, but I have years of being a fat man to overcome, my mind still says hell you can't run that far wtf are you thinking.

I think that competition is good for the soul as long as it's used positively as a means of encouragement and self motivation.  Where it goes wrong is when you let a poor performance bring you down and you allow it to keep you from trying to improve.

Scott