A state of grace (blog)
The Olympic Games have come and gone, once again. I know a bit about sport as I was an athlete for much of my life (alongside my professional endeavours and spiritual journey). In fact, what I learned from sport about myself and my health, has proved invaluable ever since. I competed at international level in two sports - rowing in my teens and early twenties, which culminating in the Commonwealth Games 1986, and equestrian endurance more recently, which concluded when I sold my farm to embark on a new chapter of my life a few years ago. Both sports are brutal. It takes total discipline and focus to train day after day, for years on end. You have to optimise your skill, fitness, health, nutrition and hydration. And, on other the other side of the equation, your mind too, because it’s as much a mental game to deal with the pain and debilitating competition nerves that are inevitable.
During the Paris Games, I was riveted by the collective anxiety of the rowing competitors at the start of their races. I knew what they were experiencing as they sat there in those last few minutes – trying to stay in their bodies (rather than wishing to be anywhere but sitting in the boat at that moment). Anticipating how much it was going to hurt (knowing that every time they race they go through the pain barrier - the change from aerobic to anaerobic breathing and the point at which lactic acid accrues). Rehearsing the race plan in their head. Trying to stay relaxed so they don’t fluff the first stroke and lose the race before its begun…..
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Footnotes:
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