I hated P.E.
Hated it.
To the point that I was mildly terrified of it.
Why was it that the teachers ALWAYS became so unreasonable and tyrannical during it?
I liked riding my bike, but I never considered that a form of exercise… A sport… That was just something fun I did. As far as I was concerned sport was not ‘me.’
It’s interesting to note how much mentality and performance effect one another. It is rather like a chicken or the egg scenario whereby both affect the other. In this instance, I thought and therefore I was. I didn’t enjoy P.E. I didn’t think I was good at it, partly due to my own inexperience, and partly due to the rather narrow way in which Physical Education was taught in schools (I have no idea what it’s like now… this was the nineties/noughties…). My enthusiasm for the task was low… whether it be hockey or netball; I disliked team sports… and consequently my performance was worse than it would have been had I believed I had a fighting chance.
You’re not going to be very good at something your whole nature feel averse to. I say ‘feels’ rather than ‘is’ because it wasn’t that I wasn’t capable. As human beings, I believe we are all designed for movement of some kind. However, somewhere along the course of our lives, due to many factors, whether it be a physical impairment, a short tempered P.E. teacher, mean kids or lack of opportunity, some of us become under the impression that we’re ‘not sporty.’ This belief is sad because it’s not true, but if we believe it, it can become self-fulfilling.
Our bodies are meant for exercise, and we all have different strengths and varying abilities. The world’s strongest man would be pretty naff at a marathon. I am not very fast, and my arms are pretty weak, but what I have discovered is that my stamina isn’t all that bad! Whilst I am not the fastest, I managed to train for and run a half marathon. This is not something I would have imagined doing, but when I realised that running always made me feel good afterwards and that it got easier the more I did it… I was sold! Watching friends race in the Chester half and feeling the excitement from the side lines drew me in and the following year I was behind the starting line myself, finishing 1hr and 53 minutes later. The sense of achievement was so worth it!
Interestingly, whilst our mentality can affect our performance... Conversely, what we do can also affect how we think and feel. I find that when I exercise regularly it massively improves my mental well-being. There’s no such thing as ‘not sporty’ and exercise is good for all of us.
Over the last 10 years I have been training on and off in one way or another. I have been attending Synergy sessions now for the past three years and this has really helped me to stay on track and give me a love of training. These sessions involve dynamic movements and work your strength and stamina. (Everyone can always improve in these areas!) To begin with new things can often be scary, but if you push through you can achieve what you would never have imagined. Working in these group sessions is so much fun and has truly made me stronger and fitter. As a community we have grown and developed, meeting up outside session times to get coffee and chat. The Synergy members and highly experienced Personal Trainers work together to provide the positive and friendly environment we are known for and which motivates and inspires us all. The first session is FREE, so I really encourage you to come along and give it a go!
Tash Peto