I have been trapped by the comparison trap. Many times. In life. All different areas of my life: parenting, fitness, faith, family. I compare. I get stuck in that rut comparing MY LIFE to THEIR LIFE. I do not see their personal challenges… I just see their success.
I find myself comparing MY beginning to someone else’s middle. Then I begin to struggle and doubt my efforts and my personal journey. That blasted comparison trap!
This got me to thinking about my blog and my fitness level and YOU! I have created this space to be about my journey. I am super excited that you have chosen to join me for this amazing ride. However, what I do what to share with you is that I am not perfect… not even close. I want to do my best to be transparent and honest with you about my successes as well as failures.
I love the running community. I love that runners come in all shapes, sizes, ages, stages of life and ability levels. I love that just because someone LOOKS like they are fast… it doesn’t necessarily mean they are! It is always a guessing game in this sport. It is a fantastically surprising one too!
This is me, I love the running community. I fit in. Standing tall at a whopping 5’3” and 150 lbs… I blend right in the colorful chaos of diversity in the running community. I have fluff. I have extra skin. I have extra weight to carry. Yet, I am strong. I am healthy. I have a can do attitude to push through when the going gets tough. I am a runner.
To be honest, I too get very caught up on the darn number on the scale. It is just a silly number that measures one area of your health. It does not define me. Yet, I find that the number does have some sort of control over me. I obsess over it. I feel like I am not a quality athlete because my BMI is no in the healthy range or at a certain percent. I compare. I fall victim to the comparison trap.
When I run, I need to run for me. Just like with all things in life… I need to do it for me… and not for others. Comparing ourselves to anything will only confuse or harm us. Be proud of who YOU are! God created YOU for a purpose. You are Uniquely YOU!
Thank you for following me on my journey as one mom… who runs through life one day at a time! Running for faith, family, fitness, FOOD and always fun! I will never claim to be perfect. Nor do I have it all together. It is my hope in that sharing my flaws (and successes) we can grow and learn together! If you would like MORE silliness from me, feel free to check out my facebook page for more updates!
It is way too easy to compare ourselves, and more often then not, totally ends in disappointment!
Love your attitude and approach!
At one time or another, we’re all in that comparison trap (like you said, whether it’s about your parenting, your looks, your skills, etc.)… but I think for the most part, it’s all in our head. Most people are so concerned with themselves (and comparing themselves to others, unfortunately), they don’t have the chance to compare or judge you! At least, that’s what I’ve noticed. And you’re right – it’s really easy to fit into the running community (once you get out of your own head that you “don’t”)!
Oh yes, I certainly do. I’m much better about it than I used to be, so at least that’s progress. 🙂
Right on Rachel – thanks for posting this. I love to read running blogs, but it seems like a lot of my favorites are by runners that are much slimmer and faster than I am. I get discouraged when I work so hard, and progress is so slow that sometimes I want to give up. This weekend, I’m running my third half-marathon and though I’ve trained very well, I’m doubting myself. This is a great reminder for me.
I do at times too. But after dealing with my child’s autism I have learned that it isn’t helpful to compare.
I suppose we all do at some point, but we catch ourselves like you just did and then focus on our own individual achievements again.
I too fall victim to the comparison trap. It’s hard not to but also something I am working on.
Oh my goodness Rachel – what woman doesn’t do this huh?! And what Danielle said above is so true – most people are so concerned about themselves to worry too much about others:)
Really appreciate your honesty & vulnerability.
I try REALLY hard- making a conscious effort all the time- not to compare myself to others, but I totally do it all the time. It’s really hard not to, but I know it’s important to just be myself.
I think we all get in that trap one time or another. It’s sometimes so hard to not compare or to want to be where someone else is.
I know I fall into this trap all too often. And then I have to take a step back and evaluate why I’m really doing what I’m doing.