I’ve been meaning to post this for quite a while now, and it’s high time in finally did.
Over the last 10 months I’ve finished two obstacle course races and two half marathons. And over that time I’ve learned quite a bit about succeeding at accomplishing a goal.
Nobody else is going to put in the miles for me
Ironically enough, this hit me not when I was out on the road by myself but when I was doing the Warrior Dash with my great friend Jumbo. Jumbo is more fit than I am, so when we started the race he went off well in front of me. This left me “alone” to just run the race. As my feet pounded the ground and I could only hear the sound of my breath and those around me I realized that it’s just me. Jumbo wasn’t coming back to help me along. Nobody else in the race was going to carry me to the finish line.
I have to do it for myself
With the above thought in mind, the next lesson I learned was that it has to be for me. Whatever the reason is – lose weight, get fit, accomplish a life goal – I have to want it for myself. I can’t do this to fill someone else’s desires for me. They’re not going to put in the time, effort and energy. If you don’t want it for myself, no amount of motivation is going to keep me going.
There will be times when I just don’t “feel it”
Over the last 10 months I’ve been blessed to run in many great areas. My run through Sydney in August was just amazing, if very hilly. I’ve run along the Mississippi river in Minneapolis. I’ve run along the water in San Diego many times.
But I’ve also been stuck in areas where the best place to run was through an office park. There’ve been times when I’ve left work with little energy and even less motivation to get out and run. There have been many, many times when I just didn’t “feel it”, or, frankly, feel like doing anything.
Those are the toughest times, but there really is one solution – lace up your shoes and get out the door. The longer I sit there, the more that feeling is going to set in, and the harder it’s going to be to overcome it. I need to remember – when I finish, I’ll be glad I did it.
Make the decision
I really want to expand on this point later, but for right now I’m going to post it here. Everything I do in life is a decision. Hitting the snooze button in the morning is a decision. What I eat is a decision. Working out is a decision. And it’s not a one time decision; it’s a decision that must be made every time the opportunity arises.
Four times a week now I make the decision to get out for a run. No less than three times a day I make the decision on what to eat. And every morning I make the decision on the snooze button. Do I make the right decision every time? With the exception of the running, no. But I know it’s my decision.
I’m not a victim. Bad habits don’t own me, I own them. I make the decision to let them get the better of me.
And now, far more often than not, I’m making the decision to live better.
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