Confessions Of A Shameful Runner

 

I have a confession to make:  I am a shameful runner and have been for years.

Let me explain…

My running journey started out in 2006 when I experienced my first heartbreak.  With no prior heart healing experiences to call on, I turned to running to get through it.   Slowly, I started out running at a 12 minute pace and eventually worked into a comfortable 10 minute mile, where I stayed for years and years to come.

During the 365 days of sweat challenge, I shaved off another minute, leaving me hanging tight at a 9 minute mile.   It’s a pace I’m comfortable with and rarely do I speed up or slow down.  It wasn’t until I created My Sweat Project on Facebook and Instagram that I noticed how intense some runners are and that I was incredibly far from running like them.

My old running obsession.

This longing was causing me to feel shame within my running self.   For months I started tracking my runs on NikePlus and would gauge my running ability off of my times and those of others.  The pressure I was putting on myself was making me fall out of love with something I truly enjoy.  Not only that, I started ditching my running partner, Journey, because she slowed me down.    It felt horrible.

After months of dodging running as much as possible I decided to try out a 60 day running streak.   Feeling inspired by my little goal, I ran 3 miles everyday for the first four days with my favorite running accessory:  a little black dog and my iPod (sans the running tracker).  Day 5 it was wicked cold, which helped me decide to skip my outdoor run since I don’t belong to a gym

That run skipping day invoked this simple thought, “I get to create what my running looks like and make it fun again.”  With that, I want to give my new running rules ideas:

• No timed runs.
• Bring Journey.
• 5 days off out of 60

New running style.

Three small things change the way I view running.  I’ll keep up with this for the next 60 days and see if I can fall back in love with the sport.   Low pressure = bigger gain.

Is there something that you can do to make working out more fun and less stressful?  I challenge you to find a version that feels the best to you and ditch the stress.  More fun means you’ll stick with it longer.  Promise.

Please share with other readers what works for you in the comment section below.  Now get to some sweating that you truly enjoy!

A Wealth of Knowledge For You!

Even though the weather in Colorado is still boasting record high heat, I am day dreaming about pulling out my long-sleeve running shirts and breathing in cool crisp autumn air.   Can you believe that summer is almost over?  It seems like just yesterday closets were being switched from winter to summer clothes and lawnmowers were being pulled out of the garage

All of this season changing talk was what reminded me that I have not posted any of my new posts on my 365 website.  In case you have not subscribed to my new blog, I wanted to share some of the cool things topics that have been covered at FindFoodPeace.   Including a really cool free monthly challenge group that you can join today and the most popular blog post I have ever written.  And of course, some other fun topics that might resonate with you:

3 Tips To Never Miss Another Workout

Stop Dieting and Lose Weight Now! 

 

What I Learned From Mastin Kipp

What I Wish I Would Have Known In My 20s

The Key To Happiness You Might Be Missing

Enjoy the rest of your summer and don’t forget to indulge in your favorite pumpkin flavored treat!

New Year, New Workout

Wowsers, it has been way too long since I have logged on and I apologize. The good news is, I bet that everyone has been so busy creating their goals for 2013 that you might not have noticed my hiatus. Maybe that is just wishful thinking! Regardless, happy new year and I hope you’ve set some powerful intentions for the year!

The last few weeks I had to take a hiatus from working out. I had a minor surgery that required me to sit on the sidelines for a few weeks. This happened a few days before Christmas and I am definitely not complaining. I could not think of a better time of the year for a doctor to tell me to “take it easy.” Although I cut out yoga and running, I stuck to at least a 30 minute walk with Journey everyday.

Now that I am able to do whatever my body would like, I decided to try something really challenging. 365 days of working out was challenging in the endurance sense, but I wanted something to push my physical limits in a new way. My husband kept hearing me talk about the Insanity workout videos and got them for me for Christmas. Bless him/curse him! I was able to start them three days ago…OH MY DARN GOODNESS! I’d add in some expletives, but I do not think WordPress would think highly of that.

The first day was the “fitness test.” I almost gave up two minutes into it, figuring I was never going to be able to do these workouts. The only thing that kept me going was a facebook comment from a friend that said, “get through day three of it and you will love it.” I was really holding onto that comment like it was the holy word!

After I was done with the fitness test I went for a run. The next day, my legs felt like jello. I liked that feeling and I wanted more of it. I decided that I will stick to the 60 day Insanity program and add in 3 days of yoga per week, along with a walk with Journey for at least 30 minutes per day. To keep track of this, I have created a spreadsheet that I will hang in the basement to keep me motivated.  It sounds like a lot when I write it out, but in actuality, Insanity takes place in our basement for 30-40  minutes and the walks are just for fun. The yoga is added in there to keep my mind clear and to stay centered.

Today I had a huge realization that made me run to my computer when I was done insaning. The first two days of Insanity I felt like I looked like a baboon trying to Zumba. The image I was creating of myself working out was not pretty. It was actually so bad that it was making me slack in fear of what I looked like. It sounds so silly to write, but my hunch is that you so know what I am talking about. After two days of allowing that negative thinking to affect my body physically, I decided to change my tune.

For my workout today, I decided I was going to act like I was one of the buff chicks in the video. Not only did I not feel like a Zumba’ing baboon, I felt like I belonged with the people in the video. It was still insanely challenging, however, I was able to power through with a lot more stamina when I let go of the negative thoughts.

This same mentality can be applied to every aspect of life. I know that I did not just stumble across something that no one has ever heard before. I just saw the result of it play out in my life in such a potent way that I knew I had to share it. Try it out on your next workout, client call, first date, conversations with strangers, etc. Replace your negative thought with something empowering and see what happens.

If it works, send me a line and let me know how it goes. Happy new year, happy thoughts!