Staying Positive

I beat myself up for not running the full distance I planned on running. For example, yesterday, I had planned on running 10 miles. “I only ran 6 miles today,” I confessed to my co-workers. “Only 6 miles!” they’d say, tongue in cheek. “That’s 6 more miles than I would ever run.”

Feeling a little embarrassed by my statement, it hit me. I should be happy that I ran at all. Instead of focusing on my shortcomings, I need to remind myself of what I accomplished. So, I changed my tune and announced, “I ran 6 miles today!”

From now on, if I run less than my anticipated distance, I will remind myself that I beat every person that decided to stay in bed and not run that day.

Whenever I am feeling down about my marathon time, I’m going to hold my head high and declare to myself, “I ran and finished a marathon!”

When I find myself defeated because I ended up walking most of my marathon because of an injury, I’ll remind myself that the average person doesn’t participate in marathons.

Whenever I feel as if I lost a race, I’ll remind myself of this quote: “Failures do not define us. They are events that make us better.”

Happy Running!

“Mental toughness isn’t genetic. It is honed through experience.” ~Dr. Bradley Young, Sports Psychologist