After 8 weeks of intense physical therapy that included limited mobility at practices, miles of tape and adhesive, and absolutely no competitive events, my oldest daughter returned to the pool tonight. She swam over 1000m in her events, returning to her favorite events: 200m freestyle and 400m freestyle as well as her two relay events.
Initially, she was not pleased with her performance for a variety of reasons.
We stepped back.
While it was true that she did not finish first in the events, that is not the goal of every event. You cannot control the speed of the swimmer in the lane beside you.
You can, however, control you.
In reflection, she realized that – despite two months away from competition – she walked away with two personal bests, in the 200m and the 400m. She had a solid swim – dropping considerable time on both events and placing herself in consideration for Regionals in both of her individual events.
Sometimes, our biggest competitor is the person in the mirror.
And, at the end of the day, personal growth is the most important indicator for future success.