My sister wanted to watch this with me as she’s getting into this genre of media and aside Mitchell I’m the only one that watches anime. Set in a world where superpowers (called "Quirks") have become commonplace, the story follows Izuku Midoriya, a boy who was born without a Quirk but still dreams of becoming a superhero himself. He is scouted by All Might, Japan's greatest hero, who bestows his Quirk to Midoriya after recognizing his potential, and helps to enrol him in a prestigious high school for superheroes in training.

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While the show does adhere to some of the usual hero anime troupes, such as melodramatic displays and monologs about honour, duty and finding strength. The show has found its place on my list from its "power development". See, in so many hero shows (especially anime) when facing off a strong villain they’re called to find hidden strength or literally power up. If more often a result of desperation and will power. To be totally honest it’s a trope that annoys the hell out of me simply for its massive over use. The hero can never fail, or they find a loop hole, plot armour or they go off train and come back stronger then ever. I get that its not gunna be the best story if the hero fails or dies altogether but it can be done right. Take the show one punch man, it takes this to the next level and uses it as not only satire but shows how boring a show or character arch can be if they hero will ALWAYS win with just one “serious” punch. While MHA is guilty of this at times it does a fairly uncommon “power- up” motivation. It has the usual, not letting the world end or society fall, not wanting harm to come to others or wanting to be the best, but the one I want to talk about is friendly rivalries and in that same dynamic pure spite. Often done in a funny way. For example, a character hears a weaker classmate is going to potentially become the outright strongest, he becomes enraged and abuses his “friend”, because in his head how is beating the strongest anything to brag about if the strongest hero is so weak. It’s a mindset I carry with my self-reflection. Yeah its good I’m physically fitter (all be it a lot thinner) than most the people I know when I don’t have a chest infection, but it doesn’t mean much if I know I can be even better.   

This is really important when it comes to cystic fibrosis and our training to stay healthy, and for anyone that aims to better their health.

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That being said that is a VERY slippery slope with being over analytical and worsening your physical and mental health, especially for self-esteem. Its wonderful to have that attitude to only compare yourself to yourself, but only if you allow yourself the same rests, slip ups and setbacks you’d allow anyone else. I cannot stress the importance of the line “Learn to rest, not quit!”  

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My hero’s, ben Mudge, Sophie and Arron aby. But also, myself. My own best friend and my own worst enemy. Its ok to push myself harder. As long as I still practice self-encouragement and remember my own boundaries. I like to reach my limit and then add 1. I have the mental capacity to reach my limits and then strain another 5-10 but I know full well I won't be able to just rest and do the same again maybe the next training day. But it’s still vital to reach your limit. Otherwise, you won't progress. That’s why I hate taking the easy route. I had a friend with CF and she loved to dance. Growing up I saw her wheelchair bound most of the time. My understanding was when she was put on oxygen she wasn't allowed to reach her limits. Not from her physical limits but from over protection from her loved ones. I understand now it was more complicated than that but that mentality has helped me achieve my goals so I intend to keep it. The best way to describe it is when you go to the gym. In order to gain muscle mass you need to break the fibres, so you do maybe 5 reps. 5 should be very difficult for you to do, but instead of doing 5 you do 6. I'm not suggesting to do 7 or 8. You may be able to do so physically and feel well on the day, however it will mess up your rest you'll require to repair the muscles which, more than likely, mess up the full weeks schedule and result in you losing a weeks’ worth of gains for doing just two reps extra. Personally, my issue has always been other people stopping me at three or four reps because of their concern over my health.

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This ties in with the main character of the show too. He was given a power too powerful for his is capable of using fully, so a big part of the show is watching him learn to control and harness his gift. And let’s face it, there’s bound to be setbacks but big and minor.

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This has been shown in the show too. At risk of spoilers, I think it’s early on in the show the main protagonist breaks his own arms by pushing himself too far. I’ve delt with set backs my whole life, even some of my earliest memories I remember wanting to be a police officer or a firefighter but I was told it would be too risky. Then I wanted to be a film actor, but my health was declining so I trained to be a PT and nutritionist. Then with my health I tried so hard to avoid a feeding tube and I obviously lost that. But whilst some dreams are past possible if there’s even a 1% chance or some obscure route to achieve my goals you better believe I’m gunna try.