"Fear stifles our thinking and actions. It creates indecisiveness that
results in stagnation. I have known talented people who procrastinate
indefinitely rather than risk failure. Lost opportunities cause erosion
of confidence, and the downward spiral begins." -Charles Stanley
This morning I made a decision.
I have been training for a 5k coming up on May 11. This is now less than a month away. I was using a couch-to-5k program where you run for a certain number of minutes and then walk, run, walk, run, etc. Eventually you build up your minutes of running and diminish your minutes of walking until you are running the entire time. Last week I was only up to 3.5 minutes of running and a minute of walking in between; I just didn't feel like I was making the progress needed to run a 5k in a few weeks!
The weather is warmer, so my lungs weren't going to seize up the way they had been. I just finished out a month of Crossfit Boot Camp. I just finished a month of clean eating. I am only 30 lbs over weight and not even 30 years old. I decided this morning that enough was enough. I decided that it was my fear that was holding me back. I had preconceived notions that I could not run for more than a few minutes at a time. My attitude was getting in the way of my success.
This morning I decided.
I got out there at 6am and just starting running. When I passed the 3.5 minute marker that I had been stopping at I decided to push past it. Around 5 minutes I was wondering if I should stop. But my lungs weren't burning, my heart wasn't pounding in my ears, my legs weren't weak... so I pushed past it. I made one round of my apartment complex (which I later measured at half a mile) and decided to keep going. Before I knew it I had been running for 10 minutes. And you know what? I was ok! I wasn't dying! So I kept going. I looped the complex again. I passed another runner for the second time and I didn't look like a floppy mess, in fact I smiled at him and said "Good Morning!". I was strong, my shoulders were down, my breathing was steady, I was standing tall. When I came up on my 3rd lap around I was feeling like maybe I should stop, but I decided that was all in my head and I kept going. I only had 30 minutes to run this morning, and I ended my fourth lap around the complex in 28 minutes. I ran 2 miles in 28 minutes. WITHOUT STOPPING!
Now, a 14 minute mile may seem kind of pathetic for someone my age. But for me, a person who has not run for more than 10 minutes at a time in 10 years, running for 28 minutes straight for 2 miles was a major feat! I felt awesome! I felt like I was on top of the world!
When I made my decision this morning to run for as long as I could I really, truly believed that I would need to stop somewhere between 5-8 minutes. I truly believed that I could not do any more than that. This belief, or should I say UN-belief, in myself was holding me back. More than my lungs or my calves or the extra 30 lbs I'm carrying on my body. More than my previously sedentary lifestyle, more than my laziness. My ATTITUDE was what made me stop at 3.5 minutes, convinced I could go no further. I allowed it to stop me. This morning I decided to not let fear rule me.
My Groupon for CrossFit ended and I really don't have the money to re-up right now. But I realized I could do most of these exercises on my own at home. So I'm going to continue pushing myself at home the way I was in class. This past month has made me realize that I can push myself and that I am far more capable than I give myself credit for. It also made me realize exactly how far I have left to go. But my confidence has built up to a place where I can see that I can reach my goals if I just try.
My goal is to, over the next few weeks, get up to doing the entire 5k distance (or 3.1 miles) in 30 minutes or less. I figure a 10 minute mile won't be hard to build up to if I just keep pushing. And on the weekends I have a little extra time to do my long runs to build up endurance.
The moral of the story, kids? Don't allow fear to keep you from even seeing how far you can go, how much you can do. Push yourself! I bet you anything you'll be amazed at what you can accomplish.
Happy Tuesday, everyone!
This morning I made a decision.
I have been training for a 5k coming up on May 11. This is now less than a month away. I was using a couch-to-5k program where you run for a certain number of minutes and then walk, run, walk, run, etc. Eventually you build up your minutes of running and diminish your minutes of walking until you are running the entire time. Last week I was only up to 3.5 minutes of running and a minute of walking in between; I just didn't feel like I was making the progress needed to run a 5k in a few weeks!
The weather is warmer, so my lungs weren't going to seize up the way they had been. I just finished out a month of Crossfit Boot Camp. I just finished a month of clean eating. I am only 30 lbs over weight and not even 30 years old. I decided this morning that enough was enough. I decided that it was my fear that was holding me back. I had preconceived notions that I could not run for more than a few minutes at a time. My attitude was getting in the way of my success.
This morning I decided.
I got out there at 6am and just starting running. When I passed the 3.5 minute marker that I had been stopping at I decided to push past it. Around 5 minutes I was wondering if I should stop. But my lungs weren't burning, my heart wasn't pounding in my ears, my legs weren't weak... so I pushed past it. I made one round of my apartment complex (which I later measured at half a mile) and decided to keep going. Before I knew it I had been running for 10 minutes. And you know what? I was ok! I wasn't dying! So I kept going. I looped the complex again. I passed another runner for the second time and I didn't look like a floppy mess, in fact I smiled at him and said "Good Morning!". I was strong, my shoulders were down, my breathing was steady, I was standing tall. When I came up on my 3rd lap around I was feeling like maybe I should stop, but I decided that was all in my head and I kept going. I only had 30 minutes to run this morning, and I ended my fourth lap around the complex in 28 minutes. I ran 2 miles in 28 minutes. WITHOUT STOPPING!
Now, a 14 minute mile may seem kind of pathetic for someone my age. But for me, a person who has not run for more than 10 minutes at a time in 10 years, running for 28 minutes straight for 2 miles was a major feat! I felt awesome! I felt like I was on top of the world!
When I made my decision this morning to run for as long as I could I really, truly believed that I would need to stop somewhere between 5-8 minutes. I truly believed that I could not do any more than that. This belief, or should I say UN-belief, in myself was holding me back. More than my lungs or my calves or the extra 30 lbs I'm carrying on my body. More than my previously sedentary lifestyle, more than my laziness. My ATTITUDE was what made me stop at 3.5 minutes, convinced I could go no further. I allowed it to stop me. This morning I decided to not let fear rule me.
My Groupon for CrossFit ended and I really don't have the money to re-up right now. But I realized I could do most of these exercises on my own at home. So I'm going to continue pushing myself at home the way I was in class. This past month has made me realize that I can push myself and that I am far more capable than I give myself credit for. It also made me realize exactly how far I have left to go. But my confidence has built up to a place where I can see that I can reach my goals if I just try.
My goal is to, over the next few weeks, get up to doing the entire 5k distance (or 3.1 miles) in 30 minutes or less. I figure a 10 minute mile won't be hard to build up to if I just keep pushing. And on the weekends I have a little extra time to do my long runs to build up endurance.
The moral of the story, kids? Don't allow fear to keep you from even seeing how far you can go, how much you can do. Push yourself! I bet you anything you'll be amazed at what you can accomplish.
Happy Tuesday, everyone!
