Break a Hip
Dear
Girlfriends,
It all
happened in slow motion. I could feel myself falling but for the life of me, I
couldn't catch myself. I was going down and I was going down hard. Lying on the
ground I was bewildered, frustrated - and embarrassed. And I was mad at the
world.
No, I
didn't trip. This was a full-fledged, self-induced fall. I fell off my bicycle
while learning how to "clip-in".
To take my
bicycling to the next level, Steve introduced me to the concept of clipping-in.
In order to optimize the strength and power of the quadriceps and glutes, many
bikers buy a unique type of shoe that actually attaches to specially designed
pedals. The problem is - it's not natural! It's tricky to get started and
almost impossible to stop - without the help of asphalt. So, there I was - starting,
stopping, and falling.
Clipping-in,
like living intentionally, is not for sissies, those afraid of failure, or
those who are willing to pass on the fabulous adventures that come with
optimizing life. Counter-intuitive to conventional wisdom that says "play it safe" and you'll live happily ever
after, I believe that to live intentionally we need to go out on a limb.
Our society
has us all paralyzed with fear that we're going to get hurt - or worse, fail
and then be embarrassed. Well, sometimes we might. But to truly experience
life, rather than just tick down the days until we die, we have to be willing
to fail; to fall; and to succeed. To
live intentionally means we take risks while walking in faith, allowing life's
surprises to mold us into interesting people, rather than bitter, boring ones.
I'm not saying you should be reckless - I'd hate to hear that some of you went
out Saturday night and got a Harley tattoo. But I am saying that many of us
miss out on rich experiences because we're not willing to explore new things.
So what new
experiences might make life a little more flavorful this month?
Go to a
play.
Travel
someplace new.
Research a
new line of work or industry.
Take
dancing lessons.
Try yoga.
Go on a mission
or humanitarian trip.
Take golf
lessons.
Join a
choir.
Go to the symphony.
Take an art
class.
Try tennis.
Go back to college (or go for the first time).
Join a book
club.
Take up bicycling.
Try just
one new thing. You don't have to adopt it as a lifestyle. To live intentionally,
you only have to adopt the philosophy of experimenting
with the understanding that it's okay to fall.
Without risk, faith is
impossible. Soren
Kierkegaard
Girlfriends,
I don't know about you but I don't want to be 93 and gray, telling a sad story
about falling on the way to the bathroom. I want a tale of adventure, and I
want it now....complete with the success. Yes, my failures (and bruises) were all
worth it; clipping-in has taken my cycling to a whole new level. And my falls
made the success all the sweeter.
Optimizing
my quads (and life),
Ellen
Posted by Ellen on November 30, 2007 2:08 PM
| Category: Living Intentionally
|
