A little over a year ago our church sponsored a 5K run.I decided to
sign up for it along with our entire staff. Although, I had never
been a runner before I decided to go for it. I'm mean, come on, how hard can a
5K be, right? (Even with no training). Well, as I found out it's extremely hard
when you don't train! I hate to admit it but I ended up walking about 70% of the
race. Needless to say I was tired, sore, and more than a little embarrassed. The
fact is, running is really no different than most things in life. If you want to
be good, then you have to spend the time necessary to practice, train, and
prepare. SO…after that initial 5K I decided I was going to become a
runner. Let's see, what did do first?
I went to the closest "Runners" store; bought new tennis shoes, new
shorts, and yes, new socks that went up to my knee. (I'm sure I get a lot of
funny looks when I wear them running). I bought Jeff Galloway's book on running
(he's considered one of the guru's on proper training for running). I figured if
I'm going to be a runner then I owed to myself to at least try and run the right
way (and try and look good too)! What a journey it's been. After about 6 months
of what seemed like torture; I discovered that practice, consistency, and
perseverance really does pay off. I started to see
improvement in my time, my pace, and how I was feeling over all. I had dropped
about 25 pounds and felt better than ever! Since I first started running and
since that initial run a little over 13 months ago, I've run in the December
Rush 10 K with my son, and the Seattle Rock N Roll 1/2 marathon race with my daughter-in-law; finishing both races
without stopping. (Yeah!) I'm continuing to train as I hope to run in the
Seattle Marathon in November of this year.
Interestingly, along the way I've learned some incredible insights about
running and life. One, if you really want to be a good runner you have to be
willing to run in both good and bad weather. I can't tell you how many times
leading up to my 10K and 1/2 Marathon races I wanted to excuse myself from
running due to wet, windy, and cold weather. (More times than I care to admit).
Fortunately, most of the time I didn't, which helped tremendously during my 10K
and 1/2 Marathon races.
Secondly, I discovered if you wanted to be a good runner
you had to fight through "sore muscles", "sore feet", "aching back", "toenails
that came off" "blisters" and a lot of other "sorenesses" that I didn't even
know existed! (Again, all of that helped prepare for my future races). It was
painful but I'm so glad I was able to fight through it.
And then thirdly, I
discovered the joy and feeling of accomplishment that comes when you put in the
hard work of training, fighting through fatigue, and staying committed to the
process for what it takes to become a good runner. Interestingly, no matter how
long you run those three things never go away. Staying with the process allows
you to build upon your wins along the way.
You may not be a runner, but the three insights apply across the board. No
matter what you choose to do in life, you have to keep going even when conditions are good or
bad. Sometimes you have to push through when your tired and exhausted physically
and mentally. And eventually you will reap the rewards of all your hard
work.
Are you ready to run? Let's go!
Pastor Dave