There are aspects of the fitness world that we try to emulate such as being so inspired by someone else that we do our damndest to be like them, train like them and follow their style. The truth is, being somebody else takes away your own individuality and rely on other forms of settling into your aspirations. Now, we can try to imitate them and pretend we are them but can never be exactly like them.
We have trouble keeping up with ourselves so we're going to completely switch gears and become someone else completely? Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with wanting to change in order to grow and evolve. Sometimes we have to switch things up in order to become better versions of ourselves. Do we even know how to keep up with ourselves? Do we always know the direction we're going? No. We hit forks in the road, we may pick up someone along the way and there might be a new destination along the horizon we don't know about.
Setting goals is always admirable whether in the long term or the short term. We make goals such as PRs, certain length of time of a program, a number of pounds to lose or gain or we go for a number of reps or sets in a given workout. Are those goals sustainable and able to match up, or are they so unrealistic that we can't keep up with the demand? Sadly, very few go the first way and the majority go the second route and they don't even know it. It doesn't make them gullible or weak either, at times it's so demanding on us from others that we just simply can't do it and end up paying a price for it.
I did have aspirations to train like the greats and had set goals but once I understood how unrealistic they were, during certain periods it was too late and I either got hurt or came close to blacking out. I can't be exactly like a Bud Jeffries or a Eero Westerberg, hell even a fucking Matt Furey but I can be me the best way I can and continue to learn. I admire these guys especially Bud, he was the real deal and if there's anyone worth being like (personality wise), it's him. The goals and demand I made for myself with intention but progressed methodically and intuitively paid off in more ways than one. I can go hard but not get injured, move well but not go to extremes like an acrobat and practice what benefits me, not what someone tells me what benefits me.
We have our own aspirations, our own goals, our own individuality and demands that concern our long term payoff as a person. We can't always keep up the demands of someone else, we take things as best as we can and not try to sprint during a marathon, it'll just wear us down and tear us apart in the end.
