Day 99: A Quick Spin to Get Unstuck

Last night I got home from my son's baseball game. Got the kids doing homework and trying to get some emails sent. It was alot of details flying at once.

Do you ever get Acute Stress Syndrome? I have know idea if that is a real issue, but it sounds real. For me, its a case of getting flustered fast. Realizing it was happening, I asked for a few moments to resync and get balanced. Going to Hot Yoga for 90 min was not feasible.

I slipped into the room where the newly acquired treadmill (thank you Chris and Yvonne) is and get it humming. With U2's Live @ Slane Castle, I start to run.

Doors open, music blaring, heart racing. I run.

Within 30 minutes and just under 4 miles, I felt calmed.

Run. Jog. Walk. Move.

Do you realize within you, a best version resides. Sometimes the version of you gets buried by details, circumstances, pain, problems, etc. The reality is takes movement to clear the madness.

The worst thing I could have done is become stagnent and stale. Stuck. When I don't keep moving forward I get stuck in a moment that I can't get out of and surrounded by all that I can't leave behind.



"You got to stand up straight, carry your own weight..."

Waiting won't work. Later will not be better.

Do it now.

JAS

Day 68: Race Day

Its a great day for a 50K. The Way Too Cool 50 in an incredible race that occurs just a few miles from where I live (15ish). Its the closest race and I love the fact that I get to be home afterwards.

Yesterday I posted some pre-race thoughts. After talking to a friend, they had pointed out I over looked the most obvious. What do you do when race morning comes and you feelings are engulfed by thoughts of insecurities. Those thoughts can strangle a great day.

THOUGHTS

1. "I am not ready"
Trust your training. The mind is already trying to throw a mutiny by shaking the hours and miles of faithful training. Remedy is to go back and replay the days you ran and didnt want to. Remember the days you ran fast and personal bests were shattered on days you werent trying to go fast or far. You are ready.

2. "I may want to quit"
Of course you will. Your running far. Your mind will want to quit but your will is stronger than your mind.

3. "My training was insufficient"
Your training won't cripple you. Your thoughts will. Most of the time, people go into races having overtraining or they are too tired. For the desire to get a little bit more training, they ignored the proper taper and ran to much in the days leading up to race day. The body holds on to endurance as does the mind. The worst possible deficiency is going in to race stressed.

4. "What if I feel crappy?"
Chances are the first few miles will feel like garbage. Its your nerves that make you feel like crap. Settle down. Settle in. Embrace the pain. Run to gain.

Gain greater depth.
Gain greater perspective.
Gain greater hope.
Gain greater strength.
Gain greater confidence.
Gain greater control over your mind through your will.

Now go.

JAS

Day 43: Mind Tools: Resilience

A runner's edge is rooted in the ability to adapt to adversity. Long distance, even Ultra, has never been attempted and completed by anyone who lacks resilience of mind. Though they may not feel they are strong, ironically, the sheer fact that they finished, show a strong mental fortitude.

Are you resilient? Does your mind have the ability to over-throw your body's attemped mutiny when it comes to "pressing through?"

Resilience is similar to a rubber band that is stretched. Resilience has the ability to, through stretched, can flex and ply back to its original form without breaking.

Resilience is the ability to work with adversity in such a way that one comes through it unharmed or even better for the experience. Resilience means facing life’s difficulties with courage and patience – refusing to give up. It is the quality of character that allows a person or group of people rebound from misfortune, hardships and traumas.

"Resilience is rooted in a tenacity of spirit—a determination to embrace all that makes life worth living even in the face of overwhelming odds. When we have a clear sense of identity and purpose, we are more resilient, because we can hold fast to our vision of a better future."

Here are some of my favorite quotes that echo on the resilience stage.

"Resiliency is "the process of, capacity for, or the outcome of successful adaptation despite challenging or threatening circumstances."
(Masten, Best and Garmezy (1990)

Resiliency is "... the inherent and nurtured capacity of individuals to deal with life's stresses in ways that enable them to lead healthy and fulfilled lives"
(Howard & Johnson 1999 p 3).

"It always seems impossible ... until it's done."
Nelson Mandela

"You can't cross a sea by merely staring into the water."
Rabindranath Tagore

"I have always believed, and I still believe, that whatever good or bad fortune may come our way we can always give it meaning and transform it into something of value."
Hermann Hesse


AND THE BEST TO CARRY TODAY

"Victory belongs to the most persevering."
Napoleon Bonaparte

Remember, with that rubberband's resilience, the further it is stretched, the further it flies when released.

Run,
jas