Do you consider yourself an athlete?
If not, I’ll suggest that you are and you should. I’ll explain why and why it matters in a moment.
If so, that’s awesome, but this tip is still for you too. I’m going to dig a bit into the definition and etymology of the word, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the details expand your perspective of the topic and affect your approach to a variety of other areas of life.
Athletic vs. Coordinated
I ask the question in the first place because, in numerous conversations over the past 15(+) years of coaching, I’ve heard many people directly say, “I’m not an athlete/athletic,” or describe a close friend or relative as feeling the same.
To some extent, I understand. Merriam-Webster defines athlete as “a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports, or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina” and athletic as “active or gifted in sports, games, or exercises”. So if you don’t actively participate or, at least, don’t feel particularly trained or skilled in such activities, then describing yourself as unathletic seems accurate.
In plenty of cases though, using that self-description causes a problem: it becomes a major obstacle against being active, at best, or an all-out excuse for avoiding challenging activity, at worst.
The thinking seems to go like this: “I’m unathletic/uncoordinated, so doing physical things like playing sports or exercising is hard and probably not for me. (Or vice versa.)”
But this is backwards thinking.
Coordination, or the “harmonious functioning of parts for effective results” (again according to Merriam-Webster), actually develops when we partake in physical activities that are on the edge of our current capabilities. And athleticism develops when we apply our general coordination to learning and improving movement patterns useful to a specific exercise or game. In other words, athleticism is a type of coordination that simply applies to a specific set of activities, and both are learned skills.
There are two takeaways here so far. The first is that using coordinated and athletic interchangeably (especially in your self-talk) isn’t exactly accurate. The second is that, assuming you’re able to dress, walk, and feed yourself without jabbing your face with the fork and that you couldn’t do those things as an infant, saying or thinking that you’re uncoordinated is demonstrably untrue.
Now you might be thinking, “OK, fine, but that still doesn’t make me an athlete.”
Which is true, but also leads to my next and most important point.
Etymology of athlete
Scroll a little farther down the Merriam-Webster page defining athlete, and you’ll discover that it derives from a Greek word meaning “to contend for a prize”. Obviously that makes sense in the context of sports or physical games, but I’m going to dive a little deeper.
Look up the definition for contend, and you’ll find this: “to strive or vie in contest or rivalry or against difficulties”.
And for prize: “something exceptionally desirable”.
Put it all together and abbreviate it slightly, and we end up with an interesting definition.
An athlete is someone who “strives against difficulties in pursuit of something exceptionally desirable”.
In the traditional sense, that definition still applies to someone seeking a Super Bowl ring, a hole-in-one, or a raised arm after a (friendly) game of pickleball with colleagues.
But it can also just as easily apply to someone seeking to improve their body composition for greater confidence or more energy, increase flexibility and endurance to more easily play on the floor with kids or grandkids, or gain strength to make everyday activities (e.g. carrying groceries, doing yardwork) easier.
My point is that, if you have a goal that’s important to you and that you’re actively pursuing, then you are an athlete. (At least if your goal is something physical, assuming you aren’t quite willing to make the mental jump of defining an athlete as someone pursuing a non-physical objective.)
If this distinction seems too academic, I’ll once again state something that I’ve described in detail numerous times before (most recently here and a while ago here). Identity is a significant factor that helps drive our behavior.
And I’d bet that most people would agree, picturing yourself as an athlete striving against difficulties in pursuit of something exceptionally desirable is a more positive and inspiring identity than seeing yourself as unathletic or uncoordinated.
Putting it into practice
Now that you know you are, in fact, an athlete, consider the potential implications for your life.
How would an athlete (based on your prior definition) approach his/her nutrition, exercise, and sleep routine in order to achieve your exceptionally desirable objective?
Do your daily actions align? If not, what’s one thing you could do tomorrow to nudge yourself in the right direction? If so, what’s one thing you could do tomorrow to nudge yourself a little farther in the right direction?
Commit to doing that tomorrow. And the next day. And the next. That’s what an athlete does.