One handstand pushup at a time

It's really easy, at least for me, to get caught up on what I can't do, what I need to work on and what I hope to achieve in a very short amount of time.  Yes, I'm referring to Crossfit here and in general my physical abilities.  I don't like not being able to do something and I don't like failure.  I've come to terms with where my current abilities are and I've embraced my strengths and 'goats'.  But every now and then my ego gets the best of me.  I did sectional WOD #1 and I was in the top 60!  I'm not going to lie, this went to my head a little bit and I already started imaging what if...what if I actually could place in the top 60.

Sectional WOD #2 came around and I was quickly humbled.  I fell down to 88th place (top 60 go on to regionals).  Then sectional WOD #3 came and I made no progress towards the top 60.  This quickly humbled me and I honestly felt like saying, well, maybe next year. 

We took a mini vacation this weekend, and I did some major diet damage.  Upon returning home we decided we needed to workout.  I looked online and found a WOD I really wanted to do.  It included handstand pushups, something I haven't been able to do at all.  Something I've been working on.  So I picked that WOD and decided, you know what, I'm going to do this!  And I did!  I modified by having the pad for my head higher than it should be, but I did it!  I achieved one of my goals, just one, but it felt great!  I am stronger now that I was last month and this was something I achieved on my own.  I've been practicing and working on building the strength and confidence to do handstand pushups.

So this got me thinking, first of all, why did I ever expect I would be in the top 60?  I should, and am, be super happy to be in the top 100!  I will be super happy to finish in the top 1/4 or 1/3 in our region and I need to focus on that.  This is a time to push myself and enjoy being able to compete at all!  Being able to do this WOD helped me gain perspective on what I've achieved.  The fact that I am currently sitting at 100 out of 404 is amazing and I am really proud of myself for achieving this. 

So, one handstand pushup at a time, I am getting stronger and achieving goals.  It isn't going to come overnight and I need to always remember to focus on my achievements rather than dwell on my weaknesses.  Each day I am humbled by what I can't do, but I am learning to focus each of these experiences on becoming a better athlete and competitor.  The point of this journey is to push myself to see what I am capable of.  This may or may not ever take me to regionals, but one handstand pushup at a time, I am pushing myself to new limits and it makes me feel great!