Cheer Others On!

“People need to be encouraged. People need to be reminded of how wonderful they are. People need to be believed in — told that they are brave and smart and capable of accomplishing all the dreams they dream and more. Remind each other of this.” - Stacey Jean Speer

This blog post is brought to you by 'my thoughts while at Orange Theory.' I do my best thinking there, and I think it is because it is totally void of distractions. I can be myself, work on my fitness goals, and tune out everything else. 

For those of you unfamiliar with Orange Theory, it's a group fitness class based on high-intensity intervals, there are about 24ish people in the class at a time, and it is led by an instructor. 

Every so often, a class has a 'benchmark' which is meant to be there to appraise your fitness. So if you have never done one, you do it to see where you are and hope you do better next time. If you have done the benchmark before, your goal is to beat your personal record. It is there to give you a goal to work toward and show you where you are improving or what you need to work on. It's also great for people like me who like to be able to quantify their progress. 

This past Friday was a 2000m benchmark row. For those unfamiliar with a 2000m row, it's similar to running a mile in that it's not a sprint, but it's also not a very long distance, so it's tricky. To give you an idea, most people are within 6-10 minutes to complete this. 

I've been attending Orange Theory for about 3.5 years and have done almost every benchmark. However, I had never done the 2000m benchmark. 

I have an Ergatta rower at home, and overall, I love to row. It's such a good workout, and I find that I enjoy it more than other forms of cardio, like running or cycling. So I row quite a bit at home and at OTF. 

Because of this, I had an idea of the time I wanted to get for my 2000m row but no past times to beat. I was SO nervous about this benchmark because I hadn't done it before, and I so badly wanted to beat the goal I had set for myself. I let myself get so nervous about it, and when I walked into the class, my heart rate was higher than what is typical because I was truly that anxious! This is how I am wired; I always try to beat my goals and put (often) unnecessary pressure on myself. 

Anyway, I rowed my heart out and beat my goal by 32 seconds, which is quite a long time, so I guess I underestimated myself. I was so relieved, though! 

As the next group took to the rowers, I watched the whole thing out of the corner of my eyes. I don't normally pay attention to anyone else, but I noticed everyone was working SO hard; it was hard to miss! The coach was cheering them on, and at the end, everyone was clapping and telling each other great job. 

The positivity was almost tangible. I think there was also a group sigh of relief that it was over! But in that room, I truly felt that everyone wanted the best for everyone else. We all had different goals in mind, but we all worked our hardest. 

I may sound jaded, and quite frankly, maybe I am when I say this, but it's hard to find others who truly want what is best for you and want to see you succeed.

I don't want that to come off as me not thinking I have cheerleaders in my corner. I do, and I am so thankful for them! 

But in general, there is a lot of competition, jealousy, and, quite frankly (and quite unfortunately), hate. I personally notice it more via social media vs. real life, but seeing a room full of people come together and be so positive and cheer each other on, not even knowing each other, is inspiring and reminded me of the abundance of good in this world! 

The experience was so subtle, and I doubt anyone else even noticed what I noticed, but it was moving and a great reminder for me to be a cheerleader for others in life. If you uplift someone, you make them feel seen and welcome! 

You don't even have to know someone to cheer them on. You could be driving through Starbucks and just let the person at the window know how great the coffee is, or maybe someone bagged your groceries at the supermarket in a great way- acknowledge it! Let your neighbor know that you like their new landscaping and that they have great taste. Let your hairdresser know how talented he/she is. We are not just talking pleasantries; whatever you do or say, you must genuinely mean it! 

This is all something I am going to work on because it's something I would love to see more of both online and in person! 

"Be an encourager. The world has plenty of critics already." 

-Dave Willis

Cheer people on. Be the reason someone has a smile on their face! Share the positives. Make someone feel welcome. Be genuine. It's the small things that add up to be big things.