Self-Examination and Not Fooling Ourselves

Part of the process of becoming a champion,or at least achieving some degree of personal athletic success,is having the ability to look at ourselves in a critical way.Are we really who we think we are? Have we been doing the necessary work or have we just "been playing the game?" It's of course easy to find fault in others but not so easy when it gets personal.
Consider the following questions: how active are we in trying to improve ourselves? Except for the fact that we work out, are we basically living the same kind of life as the guy who is a spectator watching endless hours of television while eating and drinking whatever he wants? When was the last time you read a book,did some study on the science of your sport,went to a seminar or did the disciplines that could improve you physically as well as mentally? I've known alot of people who thought they were much more committed to athletics than they really were.                                                                                                                                                          
I know this sounds crazy but for those of us who seek athletic excellence, it's almost like a calling. Why else would we spend a great deal of time pursuing something that offers little or no financial gain and a minimal amount of recognition? The answer is that for most, it begins with a love of the sport. There's more though. It's also about something deep inside that wants it and it's an activity, for lack of a better word, that is as worthy to you as any other that's out there.
Cerutty touches on this subject as he tells us that we must evaluate ourselves.
"Thus it is far better to study oneself than to study others.When we have mastered ourselves as persons:accepted our weaknesses,and tried seriously and conscientiously to overcome them: when we have discovered by trial and error(such as by tests,pitting ourselves against standards) we can then have a chance of reasonably evaluating ourselves as against our fellows."
"When we have mastered ourselves"---that's a process that takes time and effort,but,it's a labor of love if you have a love for what you are doing.