Monthly Archives: November 2015

Thanksgiving Day to New Year’s Day Motivation

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Happy Thanksgiving to all my United States readers!

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, and not just because of the food.

I enjoy the time with family and friends, and having an entire day to think about all the blessings in my life.

I know we all do it from time to time- we get bogged down in what is wrong, and what isn’t working, rather than what is.  While no one’s life is perfect, every day we have is a miracle.  If you wake up in the morning, that is pretty good.  If you have people you care about in your life, that is even better.  If you can run, or engage in some type of physical activity, that really is a gift that is sometimes not realized until it’s gone.

That is one of the things I’m so thankful for- having had cancer, and not knowing for a while if I would ever be able to have my physical health back. During those hard runs, when I’m not “feeling it,” and I wish I wasn’t running, it instantly snaps me out of that mode, back to when I couldn’t– and my entire perspective and attitude changes. Instead of wishing I wasn’t running, I am so incredibly happy I am running, and most importantly, that I can.

I’m not a super, or a professional athlete. I have my good days and bad days with exercise just like anyone else. I do find even if I get out and do something- a short walk, a short run, some yoga, I always feel better and am so grateful my body allows me to do the perfect amount of exercise whenever I want.  It is an amazing thing, when you think about it.

In that spirit, with Thanksgiving kicking off the holiday season (unless you count Halloween 😉 ), it is hard to find time to be active and stick to your health goals.  On top of that there is all the delicious, once-a-year food, baked goods, candy, drinks, on and on, with many chances to engage in these foods.  I don’t believe any food is bad for you, as long it is in moderation, but the holidays makes it hard to keep things in moderation.  I don’t think you have to forgo holiday treats either. Life is about enjoying these things. Another plus for exercise though.  When you are active, you can indulge in things like holiday treats and not gain a lot of weight or feel guilty for indulging.

So with this in mind, I’d like to extend a motivation to all my readers starting today, Thanksgiving Day (yes today) to New Year’s Day, that you will set a physical activity goal to accomplish in the next 37 days. (#becauseWEcantdaytonyd)

I’m personally going to get a total of 37 miles in of running, hiking, biking, or walking.  That averages out to just a mile a day.  You can choose any goal you like, with the point being to extend yourself somewhat.  Maybe get up and walk 10 minutes on your break at work, instead of checking your email.  Go for a 15 minute walk after work.  Do 10 minutes of stretching and core work in the morning, or before you go to bed. Like the picture in this post says, try to do something more, even just one more minute of exercise than you normally would do.

It can be a family affair and with co-workers too. I’m going to encourage my family and my friends to do this with me, so we can motivate each other.  I am going to post what I did a few times a week on Running Free Blog’s Facebook page, and I’d love it if you do this, if you’d post too, and you can even track your progress there.  I’d like to see what activities readers are engaging in- we never know when something we do, can inspire someone else.  You could have had the worse day, and if you post you just got back from a mile walk, and the sunset was amazing- that could help someone you never met, to be motivated to go on their own mile walk.

Not only will it help with burning calories during the holidays, it will help manage the stress and the faster pace that comes with the holidays.  It will force you to slow down and appreciate you, and your body. It doesn’t have to be hard or be “work.” I guarantee you will have a different mindset if you do this e between now and New Year’s Day, and you will most likely start to look forward to this time, you’ve carved out.  You can walk a fast minute in about 15-20 minutes.  You may think you don’t have time for that, but how much time do you spend on Facebook, or playing a game on your phone, or texting? You can find 15 minutes a day for yourself and physical activity if you want to, and I hope you will want to- you are worth it!

I hope you join me- no better time than the present.  So maybe now is a good time to shut down your computer or close this on your phone, even though I do appreciate you reading, and start your TDay to NYD fitness motivation!  I promise in 37 days, if not sooner, you will be so glad you did!  🙂

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Perspective

Endurance

“Slow Is Another Word For Endurance.”
~Human Potential Running

Recently, I was able to attend the documentary, Run Free: The True Story of Caballo Blanco. If you have read, “Born To Run,” you know who Caballo Blanco was. It was a great and inspiring documentary, and I highly recommend it.

Before the movie started, one of the hosts of the documentary, from Human Potential Running, was giving away an entry into one of their ultra marathons- most were 100 miles. There was a rising of groans from the crowd but he said something I’ve been thinking about since.

“Slow is another word for endurance.”

It made me think about how many times perspective is the smallest thing that can make a difference but often the hardest thing to shift.

How many runners don’t want to be “slow?” I know many people who want to try a 5K race, but are afraid they will be too “slow.” Yet, with just a few words: that entire mind set can shift.  But we don’t hear too many runners say they are happy they can endure.

I’ve noticed since, how many times people put a negative spin on something that really could be a positive.

We’ve all heard the “glass is half full or empty” analogy.  There is something to that though- no matter what your goals are, or what you are trying to achieve. Like most people, I have thought things like “that isn’t good enough,” or “I’m never going to get faster.”

This quote though has gotten me to think, what if, I shifted my perspective slightly, on these things- how would I see and perceive the situation differently?

So I decided to try it. Not just with running but with life situations too.

My older son, Ryan, was really sick last week.  Having a sick kid is hard. I don’t like to see my kids sick, they are miserable, and it changes the routine of the day for work and school.  During the few days he was sick, I consciously worked on thinking things like “I’m so fortunate to have a flexible job, where I can work from home when my kids are sick,” rather than something like, “I’m getting so far behind at work.” I also thought, “I’m grateful we have a nice home where Ryan can rest and get to feeling better,” rather than, “Another sick kid?”

I can’t say that this made him get better any faster, but I did notice I wasn’t as stressed or worried about things as I normally would have been.

Because of this illness, and the time change with it getting darker earlier, I didn’t get to run as much as I would have liked last week. But rather focus on what I couldn’t do; I focused on what I could do.  That was still better than doing nothing.

It is a matter of being aware of your thinking and making sure what you are thinking, is positive, rather than negative.  I think we all know this on a basic level, but actually doing it consistently- that isn’t always easy to do.  In fact, it can be very difficult at times.  I do believe your thoughts pave the way for your experiences.  If you are thinking positive thoughts- that is going to be your reality. Obviously the same applies for negative thinking. This carries over into running and exercise goals.

I have personally been working on this though for a while.  I am happy to say, I’ve completely changed the way I think most of the time.  I can see where it’s helped me with running and other goals I’ve wanted to achieve.  The way I did this for me, is pretty basic.

I’ll share more of how I shifted my perspectives in my next post.  But until then, here’s a little hint: notice this next week where your mind goes automatically when less than ideal circumstances come up.  What are the first thoughts that come to mind, and how do they make you feel? Good or bad? Happy or sad?

It’s interesting to become aware of how our thoughts are making us feel.  The only thing we ever have full control over, is our mind and we always have the power to think something different, in order to change how we are feeling.

That is how perspective shifts.  Then you realize, you aren’t thinking you are “slow,” and feeling bad, but instead you feel amazing and happy, because you have endurance.