For me, "setback" is spelled “Elk Ridge,” and you can find it off the Saddleback Express chairlift at The Canyons ski resort.

If you check my last blog, you’ll see I’m working on an influence challenge. My long-term goal is to be more physically fit, and the two vital behaviors I’m working on include 50 pushups a day and an hour of aerobic exercise five times a week.

But then I met Elk Ridge and Elk Ridge met me. My nephew, PJ, and I had been tackling expert runs for three days. He’d been snowboarding and I’d been on skis. We were really clicking together on the slopes, having the perfect spring break. That is until I caught a ski tip and stretched my calf muscle to the popping point, and PJ followed suit by banging his wrist hard enough to require x-rays. We were good enough for chuckles at the first aid station.

Needless to say, that adventure has thrown me a bit off the tracks. I don’t think hobbling counts as an aerobic exercise—even if I could keep it going for an hour.

Preparing for the inevitable setbacks is an important part of every plan. It’s a topic we discuss in detail beginning on page 128 in Influencer. Here are a few guidelines to consider.

• Don’t go into debt over setbacks. For example, if you eat 500 extra calories on Monday, don’t try to eat 500 fewer on Tuesday. Live one day at a time.
• Use setbacks as feedback, not discouragement. Anyone who tests their limits will experience setbacks. These setbacks can be important cues that increased effort or practice will be required. Don’t interpret setbacks as failure. Don’t get discouraged. Instead, ask “What have I learned from this setback?”
• Use setbacks to fine tune your plan. This goes with the last guideline. Review pages 35 to 41 in Influencer, the section on positive deviance. Positive deviance is a powerful technique for identifying vital behaviors, but it can also be used to fine-tune your plan.

So, how is my setback affecting my plan? The good news is that my tear is minor. I’ll be able to run or cross-country ski within a week or so, and I’m already back doing pushups.

However, I do need to fish or cut bait so far as expert runs are concerned. And making this decision takes me back to my whole reason for wanting to improve my fitness. I want to be fit so I can do the things I love to do—with the people I love. So, where does downhill skiing fit in?

Truthfully, I don’t do a lot of downhill skiing. In fact, prior to this last weekend, I hadn’t hit the slopes for three years. I used to be pretty competent on skis, but now I’m the scary guy who’s always at the edge of either losing or regaining control. I should probably stick to intermediate slopes unless I’ve already skied at least five days that season. Maybe I should even take a few days of practice runs before a favorite niece or nephew arrives for a visit. Oh yeah, twist my arm! I think I’ve got a plan.

Update on PJ… They don’t think his wrist is broken, but these kinds of breaks sometimes take a week to develop. Meanwhile, he’s wearing a splint and doing fine.

Add a comment

Posted by David Maxfield on March 28, 2008 10:09:00 AM MDT #