debbie13
QUITTING or RESPECTING LIMITATIONS: you decide
Jul 16, 2011
A few weeks ago, my HulaFit instructor passed out wrist bands that said "PAIN IS TEMPORARY QUITTING LASTS A LIFETIME". Up until yesterday, I thought this was a very true thing to think. Then me and 15 other people from my support group went to Adirondack Extreme. This is more than just zip-lining. You can check it out here:http://www.adirondackextreme.com/. There are five courses ranging from what THEY call easy to holy crap you need to be an athlete to do it.After you get your not so cute harness, there is an instruction session and a practice course. The guide Brian, was great. He used great patience with us as he taught the safety aspects and how to use the equipment. Of course much emphasis was placed on safety. He kept reminding us about "transition lines" and that the course got higher and harder as you went along. Then he said it: "RESPECT YOUR LIMITATIONS, we can come and help you down if you find you can't go further".
That's when it hit me. When we have to stop doing something because we find it too difficult, are we really quitting or are we respecting our limitations? Is there a difference? My first thought was, no there isn't.
But as I hugged someone who was terrified and had to be rescued, I realized that there is. She didn't quit. She knew she could not push herself any further. She respected that she had met her limits. She had challenged herself to try and made it as far as she comfortably could. That is not quitting. It is not giving up. It is respecting yourself and knowing when to stop.
No one finished every course. Two made it to the fifth (hardest), a couple didn't make it through the first one, a couple of us didn't go on it at all. Each of us knew our limitations and respected that. We respected each others limitations. I would not allow anyone to say "oh he/she is quitting". No, it was "he/she is respecting their limitation". We cheered each other, heck, we cheered total strangers. That's just how we are. We are support.
Many times we say we are quitting when we stop doing something in our lives. Are we really quitting or are we respecting our limitations? I say we are respecting ourselves.
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About Me
Cossayuna, NY
Location
33.5
BMI
Surgery
03/30/2009
Surgery Date
Jan 29, 2009
Member Since
