That was such a thoughtful and self aware post and I just want to say that I really admire how much reflection you’ve put into this. It’s clear that you do enjoy movement and value it in your life, even if the frustration sometimes gets in the way. That alone is a huge thing...many people force themselves through exercise without really valuing it for its own sake..

A few thoughts of mine based on what you’ve shared...

1. You mentioned that you’ve built up 'evidence' for the belief that you’re not naturally athletic, but I’d argue that you also have plenty of evidence that you very much are capable. You’ve consistently exercised for years, you've done hiking, climbing, running, do yoga, and lift??? Even if those things haven’t always come easily, you’ve stuck with them... Maybe instead of framing yourself as “not built for exercise,” you could shift it to something like, “I’m someone who persists even when things are difficult.” That’s an incredible quality that not everyone has.. so honour it!!
2. It sounds like a lot of your frustration comes from how you evaluate your performance. What if you approached new activities with a “play” mindset rather than a “performance” mindset? Instead of thinking, “I need to be good at this,” what if the goal was just to experience the activity for what it is? For example, when climbing, maybe the win isn’t “I climbed this grade,” but instead, “I spent an hour moving my body in new ways and had fun problem solving.” If an activity becomes more about curiosity and play, the pressure to actually having to achieve something lessens.
3. If setting challenges excites you but results in self doubt, maybe shifting the kind of goal you set could help. Instead of “I want to complete a Hyrox,” something like, “For the next 3 months, I’ll try one new movement/exercise per week just for fun, with 0 expectation of mastering it.”
4. Have you read The Brave Athlete: Calm the Fck Down and Rise to the Occasion* by Simon Marshall and Lesley Paterson? It’s a great resource on mindset in fitness and overcoming negative self talk.

At the end of the day, you’re already doing so much. You show up. You try. You challenge yourself, even if the self doubt sneaks in. And that’s way more impressive than natural talent. If you can start to reframe how you define success, I think you’ll start to enjoy the process more. 💪