Have you ever let other people's criticism stop you?

I'm pretty sure when most of you started out doing acrobatics/gymnastics conditioning/gaining new skills etc., you told your friends and other people and they were like HAHAHA OH GOD GOOD LUCK WITH THAT; but have you ever really let it get to you and demotivate you?

In all honesty, yes, I have been down this road. And it still gets to me because I really haven't achieved that much besides SLS and a decent freestanding handstand without use of a wall or walking on my hands to maintain balance, but that's only because I had no idea what I was doing at the time and how it would affect/destroy my body. I'm now trying to revamp my training and attempting to make it more balanced.

Any other experiences with this you guys have encountered?

Well, I got/get a lot of weird looks and comments when I do my stuff. Then they try it and can't do it, so it helps.

In all honesty, I never let it stop me. I kinda move off to one edge of the gym to work my routines unless I need some weights, but that's about it. Don't worry about having a really slow start at first. Very few people here knew what they were doing when they started (I think), and the list of people who have injured themselves is MASSIVE.

I'm sure many other people here can tell similar stories, so I'll just say stick with it. It's worth the effort.

When i was a teenager i sure did and 'regret' it. I was the skinny guy in gym class, and got made fun of quite a bit and let it keep me from trying. I also didn't realize that there are many things in life one can't do the first try, this wasn't an option in gym class, if i couldn't do it i didn't try much.

I regret it because we were at least introduced to gymnastics, and i actually liked it but felt myself too skinny a weak to try, same with wrestling, which i actually had some talent for as well, i even thought of tryout for the team, but that lack of confidence kept me from doing it.

When i got into college i started to realize what other people think or say doesn't matter all that much, its how much you try that does. I was already in my late twenties before i realized i could do physical things too, starting with skateboarding. Still i regret not doing gymnastics and wrestling as a youth as i really liked both and with proper coaching might have done reasonably well.

Of course regret just means that when you get older you see things from a different perspective, i don't beat myself for it and am happy now starting at this stage of life with no expectations other than the pleasure of doing what i can.

never can stop you if you don't want to stop!!!

the opinion of the peoples if is not helpful to be a better person for is equal to zero!!

i follow my way!!!

The only person who's criticism I have let get in the way is my own! For awhile in my rec gymnastics class I would not try very hard because I was afraid of failing/looking bad so I would tell myself that I suck, and that I was really old (I was 15/16 )

But anyways my time is way WAY to valuable to waste any time with regret, so I am just happy to be training injury free, and getting some pretty epic skills

I remember when i got interested in breaking when i was in high school. 17, chubby, and in the worst shape in class they didnt really take me seriously. Everyone else could kip up on their first try, i couldnt. My PE teacher told me that some "understood the technique and some didnt" and of course i placed myself in the second category. After weeks of training i managed finally because i did not want to give up. Though not a big technical achievement, it meant a lot. I vividly remember i was watching a clip on internet of a bboy doing windmills, and a friend coming over saying "you are never going to manage that" with a completely serious tone. I can understand him though, i was unable to finish 3 km funning and not particulary strong. I was also living in a really small town where i was the only one getting into this.

Now 9 years later, im a professional handbalancer, and in principle the reason is that i figured out that if i could learn a kip up BY TRAINING, then there were other thing to be accomplished with the same procedure.

Never.

Confidence is the first step on the journey to success. To become a champion first you believe in your heart that you are a already a champion; then you make this dream a reality by behaving as a champion behaves and then training as a champion trains. By the time the medal is finally hung around your neck, you will find that you have already been a true champion for quite a while in all the ways that matter other than the public recognition.

Achieving excellence is a matter of personal choice; not public opinion. I have often found it interesting to note that the naysayers whose voices are the loudest are often the ones who have personally accomplished the least.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Coach Sommer said:

Never.

Confidence is the first step on the journey to success. To become a champion first you believe in your heart that you are a already a champion; then you make this dream a reality by behaving as a champion behaves and then training as a champion trains. By the time the medal is finally hung around your neck, you will find that you have already been a true champion for quite a while in all the ways that matter other than the public recognition.

Achieving excellence is a matter of personal choice; not public opinion. I have often found it interesting to note that the naysayers whose voices are the loudest are often the ones who have personally accomplished the least.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Thank you for the words of encouragement, Coach Sommer.

Though I don't think this applies to everyone, but I've always found it hard not to compare yourself to others. I mean, I look at people like your own young athletes and other professionals, and while I'm nothing short of impressed/amazed to the point where I want to take the journey and do this stuff myself, I find the hardest part is finding the motivation and drive to endure that journey. This is catalyzed by other questions like "is it worth it?", or "will I ever reach a level like this, or injure myself in the process?"

I hate the one that, watching your squat with little weight, start to yell something like "you will broke your knee/you will broke your spine/you are too young for that"...I just won't try to debate their conviction so will agree without talking at all and simply return to what I'm doing. Now that I'm past 100 kilos that funny advice become respect since only a couple of guys could do that but since I connect with the world I know how much little it is! Ignorance is root of all evil.

Apart from that, I never display in public skill that I'm still training, I actually trained my hs for 2 years in my room before saying "hey I can do hs" in public. Don't be a showman if you are not!

Train in silence, secretly, but be aware if you are doing stupid dangerous or not proven methods!

I used to believe that there are people who can (due to natural capabilities) and those who can´t(me!). That was pure ignorance, now I know that hard work and continuity (plus knowledge of course) are paramount. At my actual gym (the non gymnastic one) I started as a weak and overweight that tried weird things, now even that I am still a beginner people comes to me to ask or stare at me when performing exercices at the rings or HS, or … (you name it…). And you must see their faces when they see serotonin at the rings! :twisted: .

I never listen anymore to nay sayers !!! (some times there are good tips dough).

To those who have doubts about if this is "worth" the effort, should ask themselves if it is worth spending 4- 5 hours a week at the gym to just increase your bench press, dead lift, curl… you name it (nothing wrong with that of course), when with the same time invested you can develop AWESOME skills!, 1000 more fun and rewarding IMHO.

some time ago, my mind was a little different, well, a lot diferent.

four years ago, i was someone without self-confidence, and that's was a trouble for me, cause i wasn't able to make relationships with people, because of the fact that i was afraid of critique...

Three years ago, i began training parkour, and my confidence grew up a lot, that made me a diferent person, cause i learnd to live in discipline, with determination and dedication, from that moment everything changed.

The i had to leave parkour, and began to train bodyweight strength conditioning, and found a lot of sources that have helped me in my way, in my unstoppable march...

the only thing that i'd like to mention, is " Do everything for yourself, live for and by yourself"

sorry for the english, saludos desde mexico!

S

I live in the arctic circle here in finland, and i havent met anyone here who is into this kind of training. I started about two years ago and some of my friends laughed at me and said i could never even learn a handstand cause i was 28yo at the time. "If you want to learn that kind of shit you have to start when youre 6years old, dont waste your time.". That gave me so much motivation that im actually grateful to these guys!

Now i see those same guys still drinking beer but their attitudes have changed, since they have seen me doing handstands, muscleups, human flags.. Guess i wasnt too old after all.

I only ever listen to people that I think know what they're talking about, if I get weird looks etc I just carry on, but I mostly do all my gymnastics training/conditioning at home anyway, if I don't then I'm out with mates doing it so either or I never really care.

Coach Sommer said:

...whose voices are the loudest are often the ones who have personally accomplished the least.

Still waters run deep.

I'm terribly bad at team sports in PE, and rest of the guys in my year are laughing at me while we play soccer, basketball, or whatever, we never had gymnastics, last year PE teacher got us to do spotted HS, on a mat, yea, try to balance that I've already stopped talking about my achievements or goals in my school or with my friends who don't know stuff. Some people will pull you down, and some will pull you up, it's always like that.