Let's Heal From the Inside Out

I've had a chronic knee problem for about 10 years. It stemmed from all the years jumping in volleyball, and even though I've had minor surgery, it hasn't gotten that much better. Funnily enough, in the past six weeks, my other knee started to hurt. (I think it's from all the years of compensation, not to mention that little bit of tennis I played with my friends and a stud coach I was trying to impress).

I've been working with a great trainer and friend of mine, Ben. We've been going hard for about a month. You see, people, just like I preach to you, I switch it up. I'm doing tons of things I'm not good at or don't like, but that are really helping me. I'm even seeing subtle changes that I like in my physique.

My point? Well, Ben handed me a couple of notebooks and a few pens the other day and said "Journal." We'd talked about my injury, and I felt like I was holding onto it for some reason. It's easy to just cast something aside and say, "It's not getting better," but why isn't it getting better? So I started journaling trying to get whatever is inside out on paper. Outside of me. Away from me.

To be honest, I've come to a place where I realize if I don't deal with my knee now, it will hurt for the rest of my life. I'm not saying real injuries don't happen, but often times a "permanent" injury is a reflection of something else. Yes, my knees hurt because of over-use and bad mechanics. However, there's something within me that's using the injury to hold me back. Maybe it's safe. Or an excuse. Do you have anything like that in your life? Maybe it's a sickness or some extra pounds that you're keeping on to protect you or isolate you from life. I know I'm doing it, and I'm tired of it. I'm going to write until I unload the self-sabotaging crap that's inside me. You can still be performing and holding back just a little bit. I work hard, I'm disciplined and focused, and even within that framework, I believe I'm trying to just hold back a bit.

It's scary to go for it all the way. But I figure if we're here among the living, why don't we just put it all out there? If I fail, I fail. That's part of living, and I think once we do it a few times, we realize we survive and end up learning something. Maybe you're using it to hide from love? Love hurts, but the price is so worth it.

Get your pen and paper. Write it all down. Fear, pain, sadness, joy, dreams, the past -- whatever it is, get it out.

So I want to tell you to exercise more often and eat healthy for the obvious reasons. If you're not there yet, then ask yourself what's holding you back? Don't give me the "I don't know what to eat" or "I don't have time" or "I get bored." Let's have the truth. It's time for all of us to be as free as we can. Let's heal from the inside out.

2007 Gabrielle Reece . All Rights Reserved.
From Yahoo health