Yeah managing injuries is a big part of my life.
I give up sometimes too, I just never have the commitment to stay "given up" ;)
When I was road & track cycling I always trained to win, even if I was only realistically going to be in the running for a 3rd or even 5th place my motivation was to train to win.
It payed off many times too, if the expected winner got a flat the fifth place I was in contention for suddenly became a 4th and a possible place on the podium & if I was in contention for a 3rd when the leader dropped out I'd be in the running for a win & I did win many times and made quite a bit of money in the process.
Train to win not to keep up.