Why I'm not as depressed as Eeyore...

In June I'll be having knee surgery (if ACC approves my request) which could see me unable to fully run/train for up to 6 months.  A few years ago (maybe even months ago if I was being completely honest) this would have sent me into a depression that would make Eeyore look like Mr Happy.  Here's what happened and why I'm not feeling too bad about it.

I walked into my specialists office thinking that it would be just another meeting where he would say that yeah I injured my knee (again) but it has resolved itself.  I thought that because I'm in no pain despite doing a fair amount of running and other training on it.  This was not the case.

He pointed to his monitor which was showing my MRI scan.  The news was not what I expected - torn cartilage with a PCL partial tear to go along with it.  Less than ideal.

Long story short this meant one of two possible outcomes - which he wouldn't know for sure until he operated.

1. He would trim the frayed cartilage and it would be 6 weeks until I was back running/lifting again completely as before (or words to that effect).

2. He would surgically reattach the cartilage which would mean 6 months until I was back to full training again.

Oh and obviously I wouldn't know which option he had taken until I woke up (either in a splint or not).  Hmm.

This, as I mentioned earlier would have previously been earth shattering news for me, but I have changed my mindset in the last 6-12 months and it meant that I took the news a lot better than previously.  My mind immediately went into solutions mode - what could I do to improve the situation/prevent any issues while I am laid up, both in terms of my own training and also in terms of my business.  Far more productive thoughts than "why me, why always me?".

What did I do to prevent me collapsing into a ball of worry?  I gradually changed my mindset over the last few months.  Really I followed the advice which I give to all of my clients who go through tough periods of training/diet/stress.  I began looking at setbacks as speedbumps, not as roadblocks.  

Because I saw it as a speedbump I was able to see past the issues around me being unable to train and/or work for some time.  I know that I can still train my upper body.  I can still work hard on my rehab plan.  I can still get up and about when my physio tells me I'm able to.

In terms of working it has also raised some useful possibilities - I can look at doing post-grad study which had I been working would have been a huge challenge time-wise, as well as other certifications and short courses which I otherwise wouldn't have time to complete.

Mindset is vital in terms of reaching your heath and fitness goals also.  If you view every "bad" meal or missed training session as a failure, it won't be long before you end up quitting (which will guarantee you never reach your goals).  Viewing each setback as a speedbump along the road to your goals will mean that while you may slow down, you will keep moving forward.   Which, incidentally is how you reach your goals - little by little moving towards them keeping your eye on the end game.
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