Training update & Thoughts on disappointment

As usual, haven't been updating much. Yesterday was sprints, box jumps, and some squats, bench and inverted rows.

Thorough warmup

Sprints - 5x10 yds

Box jumps - 3x5

Squat - 2x6 @245

Bench - 2x6 @195

Feet-elevated inverted rows - 15, 12

Going to shoot for the 100s x20 on DB bench tomorrow. I think I warmed up a bit too much last time I shot for it, so we'll see if I should temper that back a bit this time.

Disappointment is nothing more than a disconnect between your expectations and outcomes. If you are disappointed, it is because whatever the current outcome was did not match the level that you had expected prior. This is true no matter what it is you’re talking about – if you don’t have expectations (or expectations that are so low they are easily cleared), you can’t be disappointed.

On the one hand, that sounds like the cliché “set your expectations so low you can’t help but clear them,” but the fact is, that sometimes that becomes necessary. Surely we all want to be Superman (or woman), but at a certain point in time, we have to realize our current limitations and work within them. We can’t always “aim for the moon, and even if you miss, you’re among the stars.” The stars are much further away – if you miss the moon, you’re just floating in space. Be aggressive, but be realistic.

Disappointment in others is probably the hardest to deal with, because you have no control over the outcome. In our own lives, we may have great disappointment in ourselves; however, it is because we know that we have control over the outcome. When it comes to others, we literally have no control over their actions. We have certain expectations of others, especially those close to us, absolutely. But we simply cannot tie our happiness (or lack thereof) in with the actions of others. It will always be a recipe for disaster.

In the end, the best we can hope for is to not be disappointed in ourselves. That starts with figuring out what, exactly, disappointment is for you, and what you have to do to stay above it. Of course, your level of disappointment will always vary, too. If you fail to reach a lofty goal, there may be disappointment that you didn’t reach it, yet still some satisfaction that you accomplished other things along the way. However, if perhaps you didn’t even get close, or failed to achieve what should have been an otherwise fairly easy goal to achieve, the disappointment may be far greater.

So what the fuck am I saying in all this rambling? To be honest, this was just kind of a topic that popped in my head one day and I started regurgitating thoughts onto the screen. I think my point is that we have to figure out why we are disappointed in ourselves – aside from the particulars of the things we may “hate” in our lives. Our physical appearance, our jobs, our bank account – the fact is, all are fixable. However, we have to approach them by taking the right steps daily. And doing so will take you in the right direction. Set your daily goals, and try like hell to meet them. Avoid daily disappointment in yourself and see where you are in a few months, or a year. And if you screw up? Guess what, you get to keep trying to get it right.