Motivation
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Day 100 of my running streak.
Thanks to all of you who emailed and called and sent text messages of encouragement last week. It sure made a difference. After last Sunday, I suddenly felt the struggle lift away and I wanted to run again. YAY!
Ah, it's such a relief to want to run again instead of that long week of making myself do it. I got in a few two- and three- milers and was feeling excited about ramping things up this weekend and getting in a long workout.
Unfortunately, I woke up Friday with a bug. Sore throat and cough.
Now I had the opposite problem. I wanted to run but I had this physical obstacle preventing me from doing so. Throw in a foot of snow and suddenly my ramp up just became a serious slow down.
Must this process be so hard? Some days it feels like one step forward, two steps back. I remember early on in my weight loss getting sick could really derail me. It wasn't just the time off of working out, but the lack of energy and then the difficulty in getting back on track mentally.
I don't want this streak to be unhealthy for me either, so I wanted to be careful to take time off if that was what I really needed. I was finding this balance a challenge. What do I really need? Rest? Or to keep the streak alive?
I decided on both. I did my mile each day over the weekend, but I did it very slowly and with the agreement with myself that if I felt that I was pushing too hard, I would stop. Then I added lots of rest and relaxation this weekend. As I was running nice and easy up my street the day after the big snowstorm, one phrase kept going through my head. "This too shall pass."
The snow will soon melt making room for sunny spring days and long enjoyable runs. This cold will be gone tomorrow (I hope!) and I will once again be able to take big deep breaths without coughing. Another mental battle may come and go. More obstacles will pop up, guaranteed. This too shall pass.
I believe what's important is that I don't quit no matter what obstacle I encounter. It's so easy to get discouraged. It is no fun to take one step forward, two steps back. But these setbacks are temporary. When I refocus and allow myself to see the bigger picture, I can see that I am moving in a direction that I chose. It is not always a straight line, but that doesn't matter.
One hundred days. 330 miles. I like those numbers, but when I really think about what all this means to me, it's about keeping a promise I made to myself. I'm honoring my commitment. There is no better feeling to me than being able to say I did what I set out to do, despite all the setbacks. Remember, this too shall pass.
Now get moving!
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