(Originally sent as part of our weekly email @fullrangefitnesspvd; published on 3/6/2023)

How often do you find that you compare yourself to others? And how much weight do we give these comparisons?

And while Theodore Roosevelt called it “the thief of joy,” I think that we, as human beings, have a natural tendency to compare. We are constantly presenting with choices and options, and, in order to make any action, we need to be able to create standards, and file things under “better,” or “worse.”

As we wrap up another year of the Open, it’s naturally a time for many of us in this arena to make comparisons — how did we stack up against others across these tests of fitness? Where do we rank among our peers? Am I as fit as so-and-so?

For those that choose competition, this is a part of the game (in fact, it IS the game). But, I hope that we can all maintain the ability to step back and recognize this crucial distinction: how you perform is not WHO you are, and comparing ourselves along a single metric, or in one area, will never leave us feeling satisfied — because the unfortunate truth is that there will ALWAYS be someone out there that is better than you in one area.

On the flip side, what a competition like this does allow for is a unique opportunity to compare against ourselves — either in terms of our past performances, or just our expectations. While self-comparison does have it’s pitfalls, it is a much more rewarding path, in my opinion at least, to chase improvement over one’s prior self, as opposed to improvement over others.

So, while comparisons can be useful, and at times are necessary, let’s try to keep perspective; be proud of ourselves for what we do, without the need to base it off of external factors that are beyond our control. Chase progress, but only to the extent that it enriches your life, and doesn’t lead to negativity.