Self Trusting Strategy, Have You Got One?

Over the last few days I had been reflecting on 2015, like so many people. I look at all aspects of my personal and professional life which encompasses the efforts of Born to Reign Athletics.

Last year, I declared 2015 to be “Year of the Plus Size Athlete” and I am thrilled at the positive progress made on a global level in supporting and representing plus size athletes.  I posted the top 12 highlights on Instagram, but specifically, I am especially proud that we showcased over 12 plus size athletes on our blog in 2015.  From runners, kayakers, cyclists, triathletes, cross fitters and of course the ever popular, hammer thrower, Amanda Bingson.  We defined the Anatomy of a Plus Size Athlete, which isn’t based on shape or size.  We helped educate women on questions to ask and what to look for when buying a bike, choosing a bike shop, being physically comfortable on the bike.  And we shared our message through over 10+ conducted interviews with the media and wellness companies from the U.S. to the U.K. with coverage picked up globally.

While my athletic experience was the catalyst for creating Born to Reign, it’s continued success happens because  everyone so generously shares their time,  stories and questions with us, allowing for a social community that supports, motivates and celebrates plus size women and their athletic lives.  And for that, we are forever grateful and thankful to everyone who has been a part of this journey.

Now that we are officially in 2016,  it’s natural to think of what’s next. I think continuous learning is important in our lives, it helps us grow, experience new challenges and become stronger and more resilient.

At this time, you may be thinking of setting New Year’s Resolutions or new personal athletic goals.  Whether you are just starting out or a seasoned athlete, you may be questioning if you can achieve it.  Oh the horror of already having doubts and it’s only Day 1.

I am reminded of a free course I recently took with author, Brene Brown on “Anatomy of Trust“.   But let me digress for a minute…whether it’s adding new training to your routine for a new event or race, improving your sleep, fuelling your body with more veggies for energy, changing your attitude, behaviour and actions are required.

Every January, I would go throw the mental pain of feeling like I would never get my swim endurance back after taking 3 months off as part of my off season.  I’m horrible at comparing my current self to where I once was.  It’s as if I didn’t trust in myself that I would get there or it would take too long, or any other whiny moment I had for the day. Yet I always did.  I was always race ready by June but going through that was not fun.  How could I have made this easier on myself?  While it may have been a combo of just telling the inner voice to just shut up, and get on with things, only recently have I thought that maybe I needed to also strengthen my inner self-trust.

Which brings me back Brene Brown’s free course on “Anatomy of Trust” which includes her BRAVING acronym: Setting Boundaries, Reliability, Accountability, Vault, Integrity, Non-Judgement and Generosity. It doesn’t take very long to watch and comes with downloadable exercises for your personal and professional life as well as building self-trust.

So as you venture into 2016 with your eyes set on new goals, ask yourself what changes will you need to unleash your inner athlete (we’ve got some ideas) and do you have a solid, self-trusting relationship in place to support your plan. I know that when my self trust is high, so is my confidence,  it’s easy to make decisions and life flows more smoothly with little resistance in the way.   I don’t think self-trust is always in a whole, constant state, so we do need to proactively work on it.

Welcome 2016.  Wishing everyone a happy and healthy year.

About the Author:

Krista is the Founder of Born to Reign Athletics, a blog + portal website dedicated to motivating, educating and celebrating plus size women who unleash their inner athlete as a means of living a healthy life.  She is an award-winning multi-sport athlete in triathlon and indoor rowing, and is recognized as a global leader in plus size fitness and athletics.

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