My new running shoes
A bit breathless, a little tired but trying to push through it I saw the point at which I could just say I will do half of the run and walk home, it would still be a 1.5 mile run, that’s good enough. I stopped and stretched out my body and faced towards home but then something turned me towards the next 1.5 miles of the original run. I was running again this time more relaxed and stretched out. But what was it that turned my tired body towards what, at that moment, I perceived as more pain?
Determination turned my body around and self discipline made me run.
We make choices daily. How often do we make choices based on how we feel in that moment? In that moment I knew that if I stopped I would feel better for the next few minutes. However, if I did not start back up I would beat myself up in 10 minutes and then in 10 days when I go running with my daughter I would hurt worse than that and in 10 weeks when we are running the race we are training for together I will be really hurting.
The run is about so much more than exercise. It is about determination, self discipline, the challenge and reaching beyond one’s perceived potential. It is about spending time without all the distractions of this world; no cell phone, computer, career, car or pressing projects. It’s about utilizing your mind to move your body, one foot at a time in nature. It is about hearing your foot falls, feeling your heart race and pushing your mind to achieve goals you never thought you could achieve. In its ultimate moments it is about feeling free and in harmony with your body and your soul. But to get to that high you have to condition. You have to push your body to undertake discomfort and sometimes pains, definitely aches and lots of doubts.
The run can bring you to a place mentally that nothing else seems to provide. The only way to reach that mountain top is to put one foot in front of the other use your determination, drive and self discipline to achieve your goals. As I always tell myself and my children “pain is only temporary bragging rights are forever.” for me that is bragging rights in my head that I can accomplish anything if I never give up.
