Self-identity

k8eekins

jjpptt2 wrote: »

I'm curious... How much of your identity is tied to your health/fitness?

When I stopped racing a few years ago, I struggled losing that part of myself... both with the loss of goal/direction, but also with the loss of belonging/group. It was the manner in which I could fairly easily measure myself, compare myself to others, and feel reasonably good about myself. Losing that was hard. Is still hard.

Do other people identify as a runner, lifter, as being passionate about fitness, etc etc etc?

I know... too serious for chit chat, but...

I identify more with being an uber private person vs how our neighbours deem me and my sister, from our outdoor activities as "bad *kitten*, ninjas, fit, workout fanatics, the hula girls, the runners, the swimmers, ..." We choose to not buckle to how they comfortably compartmentalise and label our activities, where we're simply living our chosen therapy - our preference for an effective wind-down to their preferred glass of wine or a beer over a quick grill or barbie. We don't label their forms of therapy, which they've done for themselves eg wine-ohs, keggers.

dewit

jjpptt2 wrote: »

I'm curious... How much of your identity is tied to your health/fitness?

When I stopped racing a few years ago, I struggled losing that part of myself... both with the loss of goal/direction, but also with the loss of belonging/group. It was the manner in which I could fairly easily measure myself, compare myself to others, and feel reasonably good about myself. Losing that was hard. Is still hard.

Do other people identify as a runner, lifter, as being passionate about fitness, etc etc etc?

I know... too serious for chit chat, but...

A very good question. Your perspective is different, because I never competed in sports (short races don't count). Sports were recreational activities for me.

To me, the way I eat or train is (defined by) the way I am. Being consistent, being disciplined (or not), believing in myself (or failing to), setting goals and achieving them, finding balance... are what I want to be like. On one hand, in order to keep myself in shape, to stay healthy or to look decent. But on the other, the same applies at my job and relates to my carrier. These aspects also influence my relationship with my family and friends.

So what defined you when you competed (team spirit, going beyond limits, working hard to achieve a goal) would define you in your daily activities now and in all that you set your mind to. You just have to channel the energy that you put in when training into other activities that fill your life with meaning. You are the same person who competed. :flowerforyou:

Motorsheen

LiftingSpirits wrote: »

I think if you are cross fitting vegan it's definitely your identity 😏

Let me tell you ALL about it ?

Which would you like to hear about first?

It's okay, let me know.... I have until Monday morning to discuss.

DecreasingDuchess

By choice, they're {weight riddance & exercise} the most imperative parts of my life but my disability's {Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/CFS} my identity because it's severe enough, that I revolve around it instead of it revolving around me.

Motorsheen

amorfati601070 wrote: »

I am Bike Man. It’s pretentious AF but it is a lifestyle and a culture. It’s deeply ingrained into my psyche.

Ha. There's a lot of truth here.

Yeah... hour after hour after hour in the saddle, dodging Volvos, can create a different kind of persona, that's for sure.

MoonOverMyHammies7

Nurse and mother here. Other than those two things I have no idea who I am.

isalsayourface123

Nap loving wing eating trail running kind hearted soft spoken human person.

TheMattyExperiment

Lifting and identity were synonymous before. Now it’s more of something I just do versus who I am. Though I get mighty cranky when I miss a scheduled sesh.

bojack5

isalsayourface123 wrote: »

Nap loving wing eating trail running kind hearted soft spoken human person.

Damn fine kind of human person!

Versicolour

I'm a shodan. That's pretty well enmeshed with karate, which is fitness too

mi_nina_lola

i identified as a runner for 30 years. then i had an accident that prohibited me from running. it gutted me because this was something i did for so many types of release. i then discovered flamenco dance , which then became my obsession. now i can not do that anymore either. and i mourned the loss of that more than running. it was a passion more than running ever was. i chased it all over spain and north america and it gave me great pleasure at the time. but life throws things at you that you never expect.

i discovered through my diagnosis with cancer, that i am more than my identity of what i do to keep it moving, i've stopped putting emphasis on labels and have found that i'm just a body. a body that is still living, breathing, coping.

the max i can do is hike and walk in summer, cycle and treadmill and occasional weight lifting in winters at the gym. i do yoga on a daily basis.

for me - now i'm just doing what i can to stay reasonably limber and somewhat agile. the fact i put myself in a box with runner then flamenco dancer, and mourning those inabilities to continue with those activities, damaged me more than was necessary. i'm in a better place mentally because cancer showed me that i'm more than identifying myself as *such and such*

Motorsheen

I identify as a *kitten*.

mommabear4315

I self identify as a fly by the seat of my pants margarita drinking flip the bird if I don’t agree love my boys and I will cut you if you hurt someone I love type of person.

CarbsAndCompounds

isalsayourface123 wrote: »

Nap loving wing eating trail running kind hearted soft spoken human person.

Aw..I love this.

Tinydancer106

your_future_ex_wife wrote: »

I’ve never wanted to be a lifter or a runner. I never wanted to be defined by that. I am a person who lifts. I run (reluctantly).

i don’t want to have a “thing” that I always do forever and ever.

This is probably because I am forever seeking balance but also because I love new things so much.

I am here to say.....

I FREAKING MISS HER SOOOOO MUCH
😭😭😭😭😭

and like always I agree with what she said....I was a dancer for so many years and lost a bit of me when I stopped doing it as a job....now its just something I do and I'm always looking for other things to add to my list....running...strength training etc.....

Great thread though..🤘..even though I'm seriously missing this chick❤😣

ThatJuJitsuWoman

As you can see from my username I identify very much as a Ju-jitsu instructor. For years that was my main sport, and I ran to improve my fitness for Ju-jitsu.
When I decided to make a training plan and run a half marathon I decided I could finally call myself a runner!
Fitness is definitely a big part of my identity. I found it difficult when I couldn’t exercise hard during pregnancy, and it was important to me to get fit again afterwards. I’ll happily do this forever and ever, or at least until it becomes physically impossible. Then I’ll find something else that I can do and carry on.

Motorsheen

Tinydancer106 wrote: »

your_future_ex_wife wrote: »

I’ve never wanted to be a lifter or a runner. I never wanted to be defined by that. I am a person who lifts. I run (reluctantly).

i don’t want to have a “thing” that I always do forever and ever.

This is probably because I am forever seeking balance but also because I love new things so much.

I am here to say.....

I FREAKING MISS HER SOOOOO MUCH
😭😭😭😭😭

and like always I agree with what she said....I was a dancer for so many years and lost a bit of me when I stopped doing it as a job....now its just something I do and I'm always looking for other things to add to my list....running...strength training etc.....

Great thread though..🤘..even though I'm seriously missing this chick❤😣

same here


that is... I miss her


(I've never been a dancer..... wrong verb.)