This morning I got up to run and was about to stretch when I noticed the downpour outside. I'm not opposed to running in the rain, but the thunder and lightning influenced me to change my plans and head to the gym. If given a choice I would always choose to run outside over a treadmill, but I needed to get my miles in and this was the only way it was going to happen today.
Treadmill running is a bit monotonous (even with ESPN on the screen in front of me) and it feels like it takes longer to complete my distance. The lack of scenery change makes it boring and tends to tire me out more quickly. Today I hit a point about two miles before my intended mileage where I just didn't want to run any more. My legs had gotten a little heavy and I thought about calling it quits. The reason I kept running was that I knew I had a big race in a month and this run was an important part of my prep. Knowing what I was aiming at gave me the incentive to push forward.
There are a lot of times when we want to quit in life. We might be frustrated in our relationships, feel as if life changes we have made aren't working, or don't see that our daily efforts are making a difference. We have reached a point where our legs are heavy and it takes a great deal of energy to keep moving. If we don't have a vision of what we are striving towards it can be easy to give up when we get tired. Working for a long term goal helps us persevere through short term difficulties. Having a mental picture of where we are going gives us the strength to push through.
No comments:
Post a Comment