Tues Tip. If At First You Dont Succeed—QUIT.

by

Yep.

You read that right.

Even *after* yesterdays lovely ramble about consistency Im gonna urge you to quit.

What started my musing on the quit was when we paused to review our goals and chatted about how it was, perhaps, time to cross a few off our lists.

Goals we’d achieved and goals we’d decided no longer applied.

Whether it was the fact we’d vowed to run our first 5k and realized we (the royal) thoroughly detested running or that we’d promised to start doing weekly Pilates classes and found that it simply was NOT in the budget—–some of our goals were crossed off not met.

And you know what? that’s ok!

It all reminded me of my then boyfriend, Renaissance Man, and my experience with kayaking (*here* is where you may wanna grab a protein-rich snack & a water bottle and settle in for a while…).

We decided to take an outdoorsy vacation and *finally* learn how to kayak. Both of us had longed to learn for a while and one of us (ok, me) thought she would be AMAZING at the sport.

One of us thought this even though she knew her gifts were NOT in the sport realm nor were they in her ability to pick up physical skills quickly.

Regardless, she thought she’d be FANTIZTASTIC and the star of the class (yeah, you see where Im going here…)

We arrived at our beautiful destination so excited to get started. Couldnt wait. Barely slept the night before kind of thing.

And then class began. Day one of a five day course.

Day one of what CLEARLY appeared would be a five day suckfest for both of us. (I love you guys so Im giving you the short version. Dont thank me—email WW magazine and tell em to hire me as a columnist).

Renaissance Man? He didnt excel at the roll.

Me? I didnt excel at any of it and, as is oft my experience (someday Ill tell ya about my golf lessons), because I *appeared* to be athletic my lack of skill irritated our instructor. I think, with hindsight, she thought I was fucking around being silly—-but that’s a post for a different day.

At day’s end (and more than one nearmiss with regards to getting stuck mid-roll and drowning) my amazing thenboyfriend looked at me, laughed, and said:

We outta here?

And Im certain I dont need to tell you guys that I didnt miss a beat in giving him a FO’SHIZZLE.

My point? Not just that we’d wanted a fun vacation and were happy to chalk it up to money lost/lesson learned in order to save our remaining few days.

Life, all of it from the job you work to the relationship youre in to the outdoorsy vay cay you take, should be about making you feel better about YOU.

Setting yourself up for success and, most importantly, being self-aware enough to realize when something truly is a futile effort & knowing when to switch paths (nope. I didnt say quit).

I often hear people say “I hate running but…” or “I do yoga because it’s good for me but I really cant stand…”

My response? QUIT. Sometimes that really is the answer.

It doesnt mean you dont immediately commence trying out something else (although I will admit that the (fingerquote) something else (unFQ) Ren. Man and I tried out was a bed & breakfast)—-but, IMO, doing something youre neither good at (Hello, plummeting selfesteem!) nor enjoy some aspect of is never the answer.

MizFits? Agree? Disagree?

Are you a Suzie StickWithIt or an Alex Abandonship? Hit us up in the comments.

EDITED TO SAY: lest you think Im entirely a quitter please to skip on over to Fitarella’s amazing blog. Please NOT to focus on the the pic or the post so much as the fact I came in dead last. I knew both preparing & the moment I saw my competition I’d come in dead last. Why did I not care? Because I enjoyed the *process* of it all.

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Comments

  1. I want to agree. But for me, I started running as it was strongly recommended, and I hated it. I loathed it. And then it kind of began to grow on me. I still have to throw myself off my couch, but once I’ve started, its pretty good.

  2. I think you are right – if you have genuinely given something a red hot go, then discover it’s not for you – move on, baby.

    I kept trying to make myself a runner a few years ago – I’d written about training for a 5K en blog, I had a friend helping me train, I wanted to be part of that whole runner’s things. But I didn’t enjoy it. I kept pushing despite a bad knee injury coz so many people were watching. I was in love the IDEA of running, but hated running itself. Once I admitted that I moved on to other activities like spinning and kickboxing that I genuinely look forward to 🙂

  3. (dietgirl up in herre? we SO honored, People. but I digress…)

    I often say, DG, that I love the *PROMISE* of something not the actual thing.

    For me a biggie is loving the promise of being the woman who rides her bike everywhere.

    someone whom others see whizzing by on her oldschool ride complete with plastic woven basket hanging on the front (it’s my daydream, right?) & turn to each other and ask:

    DOES SHE EVEN OWN A CAR?

    alas, it’s never gonna happen. Ive ridden in traffic twice, it scared the cr*p out of me, I QUIT 🙂

    M.

  4. As a professional quitter of things it’s nice to have some validation. I tend to believe you should stick with something for a certain amount of time before quitting though. But if something is not for you, it’s not for you. But other times, things grow on you. Like swimming? I used to hate it. Used to get teased as a wee one for being so crapaoke at it. And as an adult? I discovered I absolutely love it!
    I guess the answer it just depends on your reasons for quitting I guess!

  5. good point, WundaLucy.
    If Id wanted to quit because the kayaking was a challenge and something at which I simply sucked—-I might have paused before sprinting to the car and hauling ass to the B&B.

    (as with the bodybuilding competition)

    I think your point, of pausing, BEING INTROSPECTIVE and examining our reasons for wanting to quit, is a *fantastic one.*

    M.

  6. I KNOW your point here was about giving up not being necessarily a negative thing.

    But I am blind to everything but the romance of you and RM being on EXACTLY the same page at EXACTLY the same time and I read this post and did a massive swoon. *rainbows and puppies and dew-drops in meadows and fluffy fluffy cotton-wool love*

    Boy was actually saying to me last night how dreadful I am at just quitting at ANYTHING I’m not good at straight off, and the chances of me getting me a new hobby that I might actually stick at are fairly slim because of this.

    However when I’m good at the basics of something I will work hard to overcome tough challenges within that arena, so I think this is, as you say, actually quite a positive trait of mine.

    OK, maybe not when I overturn the board during a game of Monopoly and storm out of the room. But every other time – positive.

    TA x

  7. Oh I LOVE this post because I’ve quit so many things! If it doesn’t fit for me or I’m not enjoying myself or “the process” as you say, then see ya later. I’ve been told by some people that i don’t stick to things, but i disagree. I don’t want to spend any more time than necessary on something that I don’t enjoy. If that means trying every sport, race, skill, hobby, whatever then BRING IT!

  8. TA? You may overturn a Monopoly board @ my domicile any day—–just as long as you employ those fab writing skillz of yours and it’s a post on your blog pronto.

    (Waitforit) S.L.A.P.?

    And Fitarella? DID YOU HEAR?
    Starting 8.8.08 the newest Olympic event is the Quitteratholon.

    Great athletes from all countries in ONE GIANT VENUE attempt & QuitOnTheSpot new athletic endeavors.

    They’re evaluated on the passion which which they shun the new experience.

    I knew we were on to something….

    M.

  10. YES! Didn’t I tell you? I made the Quitteratholon USA Team! Watch for me on the tele as I shun with grace & conviction. I will make you proud and bring home gold baby!

  11. I agree with Aischai’s point. I hated running at first, and felt like quitting many times, but didn’t. Now it is my favourite thing, so I am so glad I didn’t give up.

    What about the person that wants to quit exercising, or quit healthy eating? Some things you shouldn’t quit.

    But I agree with your point – I know what you are driving at!

  12. I need to “quit” getting up so damned early. Presently trying to type with a Tuxedo under my arm pawing at the keyboard.

    If I try it, hate it, I’ll quit it.

  13. and just to clarify, I’m NOT saying “quit if its too hard”, I’m saying IMO “it’s ok to quit if you don’t *ENJOY*”. I might struggle, curse, & huff-n-puff during my marathon training, but in the end i enjoy the overall process.

    ok, enough of me now.

  14. yay! Hats off to you ANDREW for disagreeing 😉

    And, perhaps to your chagrin (who can say?) I completely concur.

    Which is why I encouraged, later in my rambles, people to switchnotquit.

    But I also think my post (devils advocate? will we ever know?) assumes a level of introspection & S.B.H. (SelfBRUTALhonesty) that so many of us (the royal) work to avoid.

    M.

  17. Agreed! What I’ve finally figured out is that it’s okay (maybe even good) to simply love trying new things. The joy is in the accomplishment of being FIT enough to *try*.

    I share your dream of being the younger, cuter version of Jessica Fletcher zipping about on my errands. But not at the risk of getting squished. But I rock in the subdivision.

  18. I rock in the subdivision.

    Uh, Cammy?

    HOW ON EARTH IS THAT NOT YOUR TAGLINE/CATCHPHRASE?!

    love.

  19. Great advice!

    My problem though is with strength training. Love the results, hate the process. And while I can mix up the exercises a bit, lifting heavy shit is still lifting heavy shit. It’s uncomfortable, which is why it works.

    Still waiting on my magic exercise pill…

  20. QUIT!

    I’m with you on this one MizFit. As long as I’ve given a concerted effort. Like has been mentioned a couple of times in the comments, when I started running, I didn’t like it (and I pretty much sucked at it). But with persistence, I’ve gotten so I like to run (and I only semi-suck at it). But, hey, I’m ok with that!

    Still, kayaking sounds fun…you haven’t convinced me yet not to try myself…

  21. Totally dudette! (Wow, flashback to 1989.)

    Life is too short to spend your free time doing something you hate or are terrible at. Do what you love or at least like. It’s like me and weights. I will never love them, but if you pair movements to music and put a good DVD in front of me, I’ll do them every time.

    Staying healthy is 1/2 consistency and 1/2 just good sense. Make it work for you.

  22. What I would really like is all the money back that I’ve spent on videos/DVDs before I accepted the cruel truth… however much I think I can tolerate anything for half an hour, my attention span is so short that I’ve I’ve seen the video more than once, I’ll spend every successive time moaning about how much I loathe it, how ugly the clothes are, the fifteen other things I could be doing since I’m home anyway, and I’ll be secretly praying that the phone will ring. It’s not my kind of exercise.

    I’ll play racquetball all day or go to the gym or take an exercise class with an actual live human being, but doing something I hate is a sure recipe for procrastination.

    (I should add that I think that this excellent advice applies to the rest of life, too… when at all possible, try like hell to eliminate things that you truly hate from your life, and your productivity goes up leaps and bounds.)

  23. I’ll have to come back to read everyone else’s comments, but I’ll throw in my 2 cents.

    If you’re not happy doing what you’re doing, quit! There is no reason to make yourself miserable for an extended amount of time just because you set a goal for something. If you hate it or feel like an idiot doing it, quit.

    Find something you love to do instead, and enjoy that. No reason to be grumpy and miserable when there is so much out there to enjoy!

  24. and DEFINITELY with this extending far, away & utterly beyond fitness.

    as does all this stuff, huh?

    life is too short to stick with the PAIN YOU KNOW (oooh. methinks that’s another tomorrow teaser) versus the UNKNOWN.

    M.

  25. remember how your mom used to say, if he doesn’t call you back, he probably doesn’t like you that much?

    oh, that was just mine? that’s kind of the same philosophy i have about things in my life. if i find myself trying to avoid something or making up excuses, the underlying reason is usually that i just don’t like to do it. and after i get through the guilt of all of that, i give up. after reading this, i might not feel so guilty next time!

    sadly, though, i have to agree with your first commenter on the running thing. i have a kind of love-hate relationship with running. but i still do it. sometimes i dread my run for the day but once i get into it and finish it, i feel all wonderful inside. but running and i are starting to fall in love. it’s like one of those arranged marraiges where you respect each other at the beginning but respect grows to love? anyway, thanks for helping me to remain guilt free. ps. i tried a rolling class once and can totally relate to the near-drowning thing.

  26. and there’s your point, christieo.

    the LOVE-hate.

    as long as youre feeling the L-word Id so not quit.

    my kayaking experience? hate-hate.

    (the same can be said for more than a few jobs and relationships. oh, and the mother-thing? she was WAY ahead of her time, huh? He’s Not That Into You made MILLIONS!)

    M.

  27. I firmly believe that there is no point to sticking with something that makes you miserable. I will admit that up until now, it did kind of make me feel guilty, but after reading your spin on it, I will no longer succomb to the guilt!

  28. Hmm, maybe I should show this post to the hubby, who is salivating over terribly expensive kayaks he wants to buy and he hasn’t even tried a class yet.

    I’m all about the fitness DVDs with my workouts, so I’ve learned when to quit on a DVD workout I don’t enjoy–almost immediately. I have tons of workouts so I have no reason to waste my time on a poorly made or boring workout. I also really hate bootcamp style workouts, so I usually don’t even buy those anymore.

    Unfortunately, my orthopedic surgeon wanted me to give up step aerobics (wonky knees), but that I just could not do. I won’t quit the stepping as it’s the most fun I have doing cardio. I just lowered my step a bit.

  29. I hate the elliptical, but I’m not going to quit doing it because I’m only able to do 10 minutes, and dangit I want to be able to do 30 or more. Once I’ve achieved that, then perhaps I’ll kick it to the curb. It’s the challenge of the thing that keeps me going.

    I know it’s time to quit something when I get so emotionally over the top that I become irrational. Last week at my workshop there was a session on photoshop. The trainer was a techno-guru, but he sucked as a teacher. I finally walked out and layed into the organizer for everything but the high price of gas. He talked me down, but I wasn’t about to go back into that class. NOPE! I sent my student. (It was as much PMS as anything, but the guy still was no teacher. I am a teacher; I know teachers, and you, sir, are no teacher!)

    So, yeah, when I reach the point that I really can’t take no more – I am done. Unfortunately I HAVE done that with fitness and healthy eating. Not intending to do that again any time soon.

  30. I think the key to lifelong exercise is to find something you love. For me, I try so many different things that it would be impossible to keep up everything I start. I quit stuff all the time. It’s awesome.

    Very timely post;)

  31. Um, first of all–checked you out on Fitarella, and DAY-UM, girl! You kick ass!

    Second, I wholeheartedly agree. If you don’t like something and you don’t want to do it, you’re not going to give it your all. I firmly believe that you’ll get much better results in the long run from focusing your effort on activities you ENJOY! So I guess I’m an Alex Abandonship…

  32. GREAT advice!

    This is me and swimming. I desperately wanted to do a triathlon, but I’m like a drowning rat in the pool. I even got Lasik just so I could work on swimming without the hassle of contacts.
    It still didn’t change the fact that I suck at swimming and feel like I am going to die every.single.second.
    therefore, I quit.

    That damn pool beat me but I just couldn’t take it anymore!

  33. I think your right on. I mean, it’s not good to quit at everything because it’s not working out, but sometimes, it’s ok to realize that the goal you set might by a little lofty, and you should readjust it, or things have changed, and it’s no longer a priority. Can’t beat yourself up over something that honestly just wasn’t going to “fit”.

  34. Thank you thank you thank you!! Back in the good ole days of January, I resolved that I would train for and run a 5k…

    I have yet to begin training because, although I desperately aspire to be a runner, the truth is running is not fun for me right now. I can walk faster than I can run and I get a great work out from walking, but honestly I feel a little bit of a failure for not being a runner.

    BUT, since you have said it’s okay to quit, I am going to quit that dream of being a runner FOR NOW.

    Maybe after I drop another 20#, it will be more enjoyable, but I’m going to cut myself some slack and focus on other forms of workin’ it.

    Thanks Miz – you da best!!

  35. so many thoughts to thumbtype. pardon the errors…

    Bottom line(s):
    Charlotte? Your JOB is to try & then quit.
    If you didn’t then we’d git no new experiments.

    HughsMom? You’ve gotten me thinking. I was going more for the OH MY GUT TELLS ME IN THE FIRST 1 OR 2 TRIES THAT THIS SH** IS NOT FOR ME! Not the ‘I’m so burnt out & frustated by all this. I’M DONE’

    Jen? So glad you’re a fellow Alex 😉

    W.O. Mommy? Beat? I’d beg to differ. I think *you* decided you were done with that relationship.

    Kate? Yep. And love your selection of the word FIT.

    Back to the MamaLife.

    Miz.

  36. Thanks for permission to quit! But…. but….. wait! Who will do it if I don’t? The critters will starve, the yard will become a jungle (the house already IS), who will do the gardening and canning and preserving and …….oh, you said it’s okay to quit if you don’t LIKE it. Oops.
    Carry on.

  37. OH and if you seriously want to lend a hand, I would gladly accept your hand, your other hand, your fab arms, and your legs too (I need all the help I can get)!! Thanks =)

  38. Agree, agree, AGREE. And amen and thank you, as well. 🙂

    There are so many, many things out there that people will recommend until they’re blue in the face, and every single one of them is great – for someone. But not every single one of them is great for ME, no matter how beneficial they may be.

    I am learning to love running. I will probably never run a 5K and I know I will never run a marathon, but I am learning to love my little one and two minute sprints. In fact there are times when I WANT to run so badly I can’t stand it, like last night. So I do. But there are also times when I cringe and moan and loathe the very notion of moving upward of 3.5 mph. I would venture to say I’ll never be a passionate runner. So instead of pushing myself grimly through the Couch to 5K, I quit. I still run, but I’m not pushing myself through a regimen that makes me miserable just thinking about it.

    I have tried a number of things in my quest for health. Some I adore (read: yoga, circuit training, free weights, my treadmill and a few others) and some I loathe (read: step aerobics, “dancing it off”, Pilates, and anything that involves other people seeing me in Spandex). I think that you have to honestly give something a real, genuine shot – you’re not necessarily going to love something the first time; it took me a while to love strength training and now I can’t breathe without it – but if after giving it a chance, you don’t love it, let it go. There are a million other things out there you can be doing that you WILL love.

    Life is not about grimly forcing yourself to do things you hate. It’s about finding things that are good for all parts of you – body, mind, heart and soul – and building those into your lifestyle. That, to me, is how you live long and healthy and happy. Which is what I’m all about. 🙂

    V.

  39. Sounds very similiar to my 1st mountain bike experience! More cursing than laughing and I have never really done it again. I can enjoy a NICE wide flat fireroad but anything skinnier, forget it.

    I agree if you can’t have fun, then, quit.

  40. I totally agree. Trying, and knowing if it works for you or doesn’t, is much better than not trying at all.

    Great post!

    PS
    I will do what you said, and put away the scale. I am enjoying the whole process and that’s what it is about. Thank you!!! 🙂

  41. Life is not about grimly forcing yourself to do things you hate. It’s about finding things that are good for all parts of you – body, mind, heart and soul – and building those into your lifestyle.

    Um, wow.

    everyone please to proceed to VALERIE’S blog.
    PRONTO.

  42. You know, I think there is something to be said about perseverance, sometimes it might be worth getting through the pain of it all to reach a point where it gets easier and actually enjoyable. I always hate the first 10 min of running… Now, if you have tried for a bit, still hate every minute of it… yeah… quit! There is something else you will enjoy doing!

    Also, guess what I got… A pair of Air Rift… Mizfit, you’re not helping…

  43. I was raised to be a Suzie StickWithIt when it came to almost everything. I even stuck with freaking FLAG TEAM my sophomore year of high school despite the uber, uber dorkiness of it all. Now, I’ve grown up and feel comfortable aboandoming ship (aka Alex Abandonship) if something is sucking up my time – a recent Junior Board experience comes to mind – or if I hate doing it. Life’s too short. OF course that doesn’t mean you can just leave, say, a boring meeting or a tough friendship right when things get tough. But you should never feel forced to do something. I think I’m getting more philosophical than what u were looking for…

  44. I hear ya! Sometimes you need to know when to let it go! If I get more stress than fun out of an activity, then it’s time to find a new one! For me, it’s about trying my best. Not going to sweat it if I can’t perfect it!

  45. I’m firmly in the “life is too short to do stuff you hate” camp. Being that I am incredibly uncoordinated, I do try to give things a fair chance before walking away but if I continue to hate it I walk away. With the exception that I am not a fan of most forms of exercise so in that case I do seek out the forms I hate the least because I hate feeling fat and frumpy more than I hate the exercise.

  46. Oh HAIL YEAH I’m a quitter. I curse the ground I pound and swear to quit “after this race” every time I run a marathon. Buuuut…it’s the medal at the end, the sense of accomplishment, the cloud I float on and the braggin’ rights that keep me coming back.

    In running, I have found to hate some things and quit. I love speed work not so much. So, in my training, I buck up and take it, hating the sport in that moment, OR I choose to enjoy the training runs and face the fact that I am a long hauler and not a speed demon. I am just fine with the long haul. Finishing is my goal, not finishing fast.

    I will try just about anything, but some things I don’t love so much and don’t try again.

  47. I agree to some extent but I think some quit way too soon (I am one of those in the past). Notice, how I said the past. Everyone should give something a valid effort and if you really hate it after giving it your best effort, go for it. However, sometimes we don’t always give it our best effort when it isn’t something we really want to do.

  48. This past January, my boyfriend and I went on a ski trip for a weekend in Vermont. I, too, was confident that I would be GREAT at it. I got the skiis on, bought a ticket for the whole mountain and not the beginner (bunny slope + lesson) package, like I should have.

    The whole entire way up the lift, I sobbed. Loudly. Uncontrollably. It took my boyfriend two + hours to get me down the side of the mountain (it took him roughly 15 minutes on his own). I cried, I yelled at him, I cried some more. I told him to leave me there to die, I fell and couldn’t get back up. On multiple occasions.

    It was a very emotional day for me. Next time someone proposes a ski trip, I’m staying in the lodge to get drunk.

  49. I am a big quitter. I’m one of those people who, if you tell me I wasted my $$$ by signing up for a 12-week yoga class and going exactly once, will shrug and say, “eh, better to waste my money than my precious time on this earth.” and then maybe I’ll go watch My Life on the D-List or something. So. Hmm. I guess it’s better not to overanalyze that sentiment.

    P.S. Miz, mr. tfh and I looove river kayaks. You don’t have to roll and it takes basically no skill. maybe you can try, try again someday?

  50. adore all your insights. and, of course, wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment as ELOQUENTLY put by a newnewMama member of the Bumbling Band (cue baby shaped confetti and please to click her link, People):

    —–
    give things a fair chance before walking away but if I continue to hate it I walk away
    —–

    Im also sure that Ive quit (again the movie line echoes in my sleep deprived brain) more than a few things too soon.

    things I may have adored had I stuck with them.

    it’s always about the elusive happy medium isnt it…

    M.

  51. I dislike swimming & elliptical. The former because I’m not very good at it, the latter because it’s boring. However, those are the only two activities I’ve been cleared for right now.

    It’s so much harder to face a workout of things I don’t like than anticipate a run. *fingers crossed* I’ll get clearance to run tomorrow.

  52. also – I am so sure that I am going to be the ass-kickingest kayaker in the world – the architect & I are going to take lessons next year. Even though I don’t swim well, fell mildly intimidated by water, and have no coordination skills to speak of. Maybe I’ll just pay for a one-day class to start.

  53. Wow.. just this morning I was on a treadmill, hating every damn minute of it, pleading with myself to just go for a brisk walk in the sunshine instead of doing “that”. But that inner monster said I have to run, it’s better… I ended up taking that walk later, and it was much more fulfilling, coming to the conclusion that I hate running and don’t want to do it anymore. There are other forms of cardio damn it.

    So this post of yours is right up my alley. Thank you for re-affirming my sorry, quitting ass! 🙂

  54. I think there’s a difference between giving up because something is hard and giving up because you recognize that this particular thing is just not right for you. I have tried classes at the gym that I didn’t like and didn’t go back, but that doesn’t mean I quit going to the gym or working out.

    Well. Okay. I did eventually quit the gym. But for completely different reasons. And I still do work out. 🙂

  55. I think we need to think about this on two axes. Y axis is good at something, x-axis is like something.

    Typically you want to be doing things you’re good at and like (upper right). Lower right, things you like but aren’t good at. This is ok. There may be room for imrpovement, and in any case if you like it it’s ok.

    Then there’s the upper left–things you’re good at but don’t like. Usually you are doing something for someone else up here. For example, you hate to cook, but used to work at a restaurant and are really good at it.. This is ok, if the person you’re doing it for understands that it’s an act of love.

    Finally, just stay away from the lower left. No upside whatsoever.

    Just my $0.02.

    Tony

  56. Tony? is that YOU? or are you posing as Tony and really my VERY SMART analytical left brain father?

    You lost me at the word axes.

    (yes. Im kidding. kind of. I know, intellectually, that you made a far more clear point/conclusion than I did in my post—but this right brain’er went immediately to NO LEFT CORNERS.)

  57. “eing self-aware enough to realize when something truly is a futile effort & knowing when to switch paths” Very true BUT should be done carefully. I HATED skiing at first but now love, love LOVE it. However, something in me was saying that I shouldn’t quit. So I guess if we really listen to ourselves, we know when we should keep trying.

  58. I always have to give something time to grow on me. I am horrible at any sort of sport when I start out, which immediately makes me hate it, but once I start to improve I grow to like it. Plus I have a really hard time quitting anything even when that is the best option.

  59. I couldn’t agree more! There’s nothing worse than continually beating yourself up for something that you shouldn’t be doing in the first place. Don’t think of it as quitting, think of it as expanding your options and choosing to do something different.

  61. Oh hell yes. Life is supposed to be FUN- why do something you don’t enjoy? And there’s enough stuff out there that I refuse to believe anyone who says that they can’t find something that they like to do. It might take a while to find out what you really enjoy, but once you do you’ll be happy and thats the main thing. I still like trying everything once, but if I find that its not for me, then I quit it and move on to try something new. And do what I enjoy.

  62. i agree 100%
    i’m debating quitting yoga. it quiets my often frantic mind but honestly… i think it’s slow and painful and pretty much despise it. life is way to short to spend a portion of it cursing in downward dog!
    have a wonderful day, mizfit! i love the article on fitarella’s blog– you are an inspiration 🙂

  63. Fitnessista—youre the perfect example of a time when Id say fo’ shizzle quit!

    but then immediately ponder:

    when else have you felt the same mind quieting.

    perhaps do meditation at home.

    yoga at home.

    a different TYPE of yoga.

    reading EAT PRAY LOVE & asking yourself if any of the types of meditating Eliz. Gilbert mentions appeals to you.

    perhaps utilize different breathing exercises (square breathing for example) to quiet your mind.

    you get the idea (and Im a’typin’ with my thumbs ;)).

    PRECISELY MY POINT and thanks for giving such a great example.

    Miz.

  64. I TOTALLY agree! When I was a kid, I was put through MUCH humiliation because my mother wanted me to ski downhill and play tennis. Never mind that my older brother was adept at and enjoyed both, she needed me to do same.
    Except I sucked. Big, huge pterodactyl (sp?) eggs. And I hated every minute of it. And it went on for YEARS!!!!

    SO now I do things I enjoy. And things that I don’t necessarily enjoy, but need to be done, like dishes. And going to the DMV, like this morning. Or the dentist. Like last Friday. Yeesh! I need to go do something fun!

  65. I couldn’t agree more; however, there’s a difference between knowing you HATE something (quittable, for sure) and just being out of your comfort zone (give-it-a-chance-able). As long as you know the difference, I say make your decision to quit wholeheartedly.

    By the way, I feel the same way about books. Friends have insisted that certain books were going to change my life, but if a quarter of the way in I’m still feeling “eh” about it, I’m done.

  66. Ah, I can be a quitter, if I know that I really don’t like it but like Dara said, if it’s just out of my comfort zone I will give it a good try. I could never get into sports when I was younger , but my mom made me at least “try”. I am thankful she did that and allowed me to make my own decision based on what I wanted.

  68. I’m afraid I tend to be sort of pathological about my stick-to-it-iveness. But not in exactly the way you mean.

    If I’m bad at something, I have no problem moving on. That’s why I took exactly one dance class ever in my whole life. OMG do I suck at dancing.

    But if I love something and am passionate about it, I have a difficult time drawing the line between my perception of “lazy” (“You quitter.”) and smart. Example? Sunday was *ridiculously* hot. National Weather Service heat advisory hot. And I, thinking I’m all young and bad ass, decide to go out in the morning for my 13 mile long run. I got to the 2 mile mark and turned around to finish my first loop. And I could. not. run. But did that stop me from trying? Oh hell no! I kept running in pathetic little fits and bursts, telling myself not to be lazy, to just keep moving the legs and it would be over soon.

    Which, of course, is entirely stooopid. I eventually packed it in, after walking most of the 4th mile.

    My point? I totally agree, in more ways than one. Kayaking (or triathlon-ing, I’ve discovered) is not for everyone. But bodybuilding definitely takes some very hard-core dedication as well.

  70. Quoting the philisophy of Kenny my main man Rogers, “You got to know when to fold. Know when to hold’em. Know when to walk away, know when to run. You never count your money, when you’re sittin at the table. There’ll be time enough for coutin’ when dealin’s done!

    I totally agree with you Miz!

  71. You are so funny and I totally agree – Stop the pain – cut the cord and move on. Not everything is going to be all love and sunshine. Time is way to valuable to waste it on a person, profession or situation that is not working and that frankly will never work. It takes a bigger and better person to when to say enough is enough, own it and then decide to go in a different direction. Story of my life these past few years. 😉

    Cheers
    Cathy

  72. Ok, I know this isn’t what you meant, but there’s a quote – I think by W.C. Fields – that goes something like,

    “If at first you don’t succeed, try again. If you still don’t succeed, then quit. No use being a damn fool about it.”

    It always makes me laugh. 😀

  73. ok that quote, Marste, is too frickin funny!

    (or Im waaay overtired. either way. I laughed.)

    LOVE W.C. Fields

    always think of this quote with my accident prone Toddler:

    “Never cry over spilt milk, because it may have been poisoned.”

    M.

  75. I must/try to be Suzie Stickwithit since, well, after all, it IS my (first) name! 😉 … Although I spell it with 2 S’s and forgo the Z.

    Seriously though, you have a good point about when to call it quits. Well, maybe I wouldn’t use the word “quit.” I’d say it’s more along the lines of learning what you prefer, what your priorities are, and what works for you and then moving in that direction. It’s simply a change in plans. 🙂

  76. Thank you! Thank you for putting it in black and white. I agree letting go and quitting can sometimes be the best answer. Especially if something is not making you happy.

  77. Amen sister! I think you should do something because you love it and feel passionate about it. I read so many blogs of people who run. Sometimes I think maybe I should give running a try again, but I know I will not enjoy it. I used to have to run for sports and I must say it was never something I grew to love. However, I love to bike and feel like I could ride all day. I think if you do something you love you are more able to stick with it and give it 110% But that is just my 2 cents. 🙂

  78. I’m a process gal…I want to enjoy the journey or take another route. I’m sooo not fast, but I love to run. It isn’t a matter of being good at it or not, just enjoying it.

  79. I LOVE THIS! Yes, it most certainly okay to quit if you’re not enjoying something. You tried it, you didn’t like it. End of story. I signed up for those belly-dancing classes and didn’t finish out the 8-week session. I didn’t enjoy it, and I wasn’t going to torture myself by continuing to go! 🙂

  80. The influence peddling involved in with pill mills became so intense that I chose last year not to allow my city to face this problem. I introduced an ordinance prohibiting any clinc catering to pain management to be established in Pembroke Pines unless staffed at all hours by a physicial who is board certified in pain management. This way we know it is reputable. The result? Not one pain clinc has chosen to open in my city since the ordinance was adopted. Increasingly, cities are forced to matters into their own hands that are best handled at the state level regarding measures needed to protect the health, safety and welfare of residents simply because our state legislature is slow or unwilling to do what is necessary. That’s a sad commentary but also a true one.

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