Being a runner is more than the number of miles you run per week, or the brand of shoes you wear, or the kinds of people you hang out with. It is Life training. How do you recover from a bad run? How do you cope with the pain, mental and physical, from a 16 miler? What do you do when sidelined with an injury? How do you celebrate a victory?
The tools I have learned through my running career - both mental, emotional, and physical - have been very useful in almost every other aspect of my life. My son's recent birth showed me that more clearly than ever before.
You mentally prepare for each painful contraction just as you would for a hard run. When you want to give up, you realize it will take longer to go back than to finish, so you keep putting one figurative foot in front of the other (or just take each contraction one at a time as they come). When recovery feels so long and painful, just remember that this too shall pass.
And the joy of doing something you didn't know was possible - of accomplishing your goal - is indescribable.
No comments:
Post a Comment