Last week as I was listening to Coach MK’s Morning Mantra I was as usual, very encouraged. Even though I haven’t actually requested my own mantra, some mornings I feel like she is speaking directly to me.
What I love most about her morning mantra podcast is it’s short, to the point, and incredibly meaningful. I strongly encourage you to check it out…. even if you can’t relate to her message, I bet you know someone who can. I can’t tell you how many times I have passed on her daily message….or at least thought about it.
The other day I was having a conversation with a dear friend who is going through some really tough stuff. One of the things he shared is that he has had to do it put his fitness and time spent in the gym pretty much on hold. His top priority is spending time with his family and fitting in work as much as he can.
The cool thing is that he’s perfectly ok with stepping back because he knows he’ll be back in the gym at some point. He probably also knows it won’t be easy and he may have to work extra hard to get back to his fitness level.
I have been thinking about how this relates to my running journey lately and how sometimes, it’s not always about the running.
In the end, it boils down to this “I know what to do, but I don’t always want to do it.”
Isn’t this the root of the problem for most of us. In fact according to Coach MK,”the only way to forward is to do the work. We don’t have to like it, but if we want to get better, we have to put in the work.”
There is no easy button or shortcut in life…. work, running, being a mom, wife, etc.
The reality is that in order to reach your goal, you need to put in the work and some days you may not feel like it. Maybe you’re tired? But guess what, you will be tired a year from now as well. You may not “feel like it” today, but guess what, you necessarily won’t “feel like it” tomorrow, or even a year from now either. ‘Just sayin’
In the end I can either choose to do one more workout, or one more repeat, or one more set of strength, even though I don’t feel like it. In other words, just because I don’t feel like it doesn’t mean I can’t do it!
This coming July I get the opportunity to hear Mel Robbins up front and in person. She is incredibly amazing and if you haven’t read her book, I strongly recommend adding it to your library.
“The way that our minds are wired and the fact about human beings is that we are not designed to do things that are uncomfortable or scary or difficult. Our brains are designed to protect us from those things, because our brains are trying to keep us alive. Your brain is wired to stop you at all cost from doing anything that might hurt you.
In order to change, in order to build a business, in order to be the best parent, in order to be the best spouse–to do all those things that you know you want to do with your life–you are going to have to do things that are difficult, uncertain, or scary”
— Mel Robbins
Is it weird to compare this to running a 5K or the last 10K of a marathon? I am not sure which is worse. 5K’s hurt from the minute the gun goes off till you cross the finish line. Maybe that’s why I dislike them. If you run them correctly, THEY HURT and are uncomfortable the entire way. Marathons on the other hand, don’t have to hurt till the last few miles. At least that’s the goal. I’ll never ever forget my first BQ and running Boston was a dream come true.
Maybe you are never going to feel like racing again. Maybe you just want to run for fun. Maybe you want to keep running injury free and your goal is to make it to the start line and finish line with joy and gratitude. Some days I don’t feel it like but I keep putting in the work because my goal is to keep on running for the long haul. Some days are harder than others but I keep showing up, just like Des……It beats the alternative!
Go do the work. I’ll be cheering you!
Do you have a race coming up and if so, a goal race or are you running it for fun?
How long have you been running and have you ran Boston?
Have you read Mel’s book The 5 Second Rule?
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