No, you’re not an athlete just because you ran 5k, or a marathon, or feel like one

For once, I thought I’d be a mean motherfucker.

And maybe a bit of a narcissist.

I’ve seen several of these stories lately — some variation of how one feels an athlete after some event, or because if you feel like an athlete, you are an athlete.

No.

Just because you traded a couple of stocks, you’re not an investor.

Just because you set up a company or maybe even created a mock-up of your app, you’re not an entrepreneur.

Ok, sure, call yourself whatever, if it makes you feel better.

But you are still not an athlete. Or maybe you are a wanna-be athlete (which is fine).

In fairness, we are not talking about a scientific concept so this discussion will always be subjective.

But let’s try discussing it.

Let’s look up the definition.

A person who is proficient in sports and other forms of physical exercise.

A person who has undertaken training or exercises to become proficient in physical activities such as competitive sports

It’s not a bad start.

I want to point to the word proficient.

Competent or skilled in doing or using something.