Yeah, it's been a ride...I guess I had to go to that place to get to this one...
I think its pretty unavoidable to not jam out to Eminem when you're a runner, triathlete or any kind of athlete at all (Check out this Kona video to 'Till I Collapse and tell me you aren't inspired. I'll wait.)
Sadly, me and the 'nem don't often work out together anymore (we had a bad 8 mile run (ba dum ching)) but when I think about facing adversary or any of the tough stuff, I can't help but revert to 'Till I collapse' or 'Lose Yourself' or 'Superman' (Mom, don't listen to any of those songs. Please.)
Well, after last weeks race, I definitely have Eminem on the brain. I wasn't lying when I said I was really pleased with my shiny new PR, but I think I've also made it clear that part of me is bummed that I missed my goal. After my last post, I actually got an email from a reader (I can't believe I actually have those....he also wasn't trying to sell me a timeshare in Nicaragua, this was legit, guys!) regarding these "big scary goals" of mine. Specifically, how do you deal with it when you put everything you have into one of them, and it just flat out doesn't happen? How do you deal with it?
It's a legit question. And thanks, James, for the inquiry. I'm sorry you're stuck reading my drivel now, but I'll do my best to explain my mindset, post race.
The concept of big, scary goals has been a tough one for me to wrap my mind around. It started out with the idea that if I wasn't afraid to dream big dreams and go after them, then logically, great things would happen. I set my sights on a few goals that seemed a stretch, but realistic - to beat 3:45 in the marathon, and to get the hell on my bike again.
Wait, what?
Yep, you heard me right. In my midst of chasing the 3:35, I completely forgot that my first goal for the Coffee Milk marathon was actually a 3:45.
Evidence:
See, the thing was, once I got invested in this goal and started to try to make it happen, my mindset shifted. A 3:45 not only seemed reasonable, but after running with the fast crowd that I did (Again, Mom, a RUNNING metaphor!) I knew I could do better than a 3:45. So I aimed higher. And did something I had never done before. I made it public. I let everyone know that I was aiming for Boston and damned anything less. I was fully vested. I kept my eyes on this goal and didn't waver. Not when I had a bad day, not when I saw obstacles in front of me. Not ever. And something amazing happened.
I realized, at mile 16 of the race, that a BQ was not in the cards. At least, not on April 7th. But something even more incredible happened. I wasn't afraid. To be vulnerable. To make mistakes. To fail.
And what happened?
I didn't fail. I walked away with a trophy, a new PR, and the sense that when shit got tough, I did not, in fact, fold and walk away.
And those lessons are going to pay dividends for the 2019 season. It's really easy to go forward confidently when everything is going your way. It's much less so when you're running against the wind, running on empty (pick your best crappy running song. Both of those win).
So you give it your all. You pick yourself up at the end of your very best effort, and you ask yourself honest questions. Was the goal realistic (if a bit of a stretch?). Do you need to reconsider it? No? Good. Then re assert yourself and go for it again.
And I intend to. I've stepped back for the last week, reviewed the day, both from an analytical and emotional mind, and decided, yes, dammit, I can shave off 6 minutes and 47 seconds from that marathon. It's gonna happen. Stay tuned for it.
I'm not afraid to make mistakes with this. To call Coffee Milk one hell of a training run, to learn from it, and to go forward with all of the knowledge I gleaned from giving it my all and going forward confidently in the direction of what I want.
I'm not afraid (I'm not afraid)
To take a stand (to take a stand)
Everybody (everybody)
Come take my hand come (come take my hand)
We'll walk this road together, through the storm
Whatever weather, cold or warm
Just letting you know that, you're not alone
Holla if you feel like you've been down the same road
So there you go. The answer is - don't throw in the towel. Don't be afraid to run after what you want - because if you don't do it, who will? Then pick yourself the hell up, dust off your ego, and go for those big scary goals. Because you CAN do it.
And to celebrate this line of thinking, I tackled that next big scary goal. And took my bike out for a ride. On April 16th. I'm damned proud of myself. It's so on this year. So. On.
I think its pretty unavoidable to not jam out to Eminem when you're a runner, triathlete or any kind of athlete at all (Check out this Kona video to 'Till I Collapse and tell me you aren't inspired. I'll wait.)
Sadly, me and the 'nem don't often work out together anymore (we had a bad 8 mile run (ba dum ching)) but when I think about facing adversary or any of the tough stuff, I can't help but revert to 'Till I collapse' or 'Lose Yourself' or 'Superman' (Mom, don't listen to any of those songs. Please.)
Well, after last weeks race, I definitely have Eminem on the brain. I wasn't lying when I said I was really pleased with my shiny new PR, but I think I've also made it clear that part of me is bummed that I missed my goal. After my last post, I actually got an email from a reader (I can't believe I actually have those....he also wasn't trying to sell me a timeshare in Nicaragua, this was legit, guys!) regarding these "big scary goals" of mine. Specifically, how do you deal with it when you put everything you have into one of them, and it just flat out doesn't happen? How do you deal with it?
It's a legit question. And thanks, James, for the inquiry. I'm sorry you're stuck reading my drivel now, but I'll do my best to explain my mindset, post race.
The concept of big, scary goals has been a tough one for me to wrap my mind around. It started out with the idea that if I wasn't afraid to dream big dreams and go after them, then logically, great things would happen. I set my sights on a few goals that seemed a stretch, but realistic - to beat 3:45 in the marathon, and to get the hell on my bike again.
Wait, what?
Yep, you heard me right. In my midst of chasing the 3:35, I completely forgot that my first goal for the Coffee Milk marathon was actually a 3:45.
Evidence:
See, the thing was, once I got invested in this goal and started to try to make it happen, my mindset shifted. A 3:45 not only seemed reasonable, but after running with the fast crowd that I did (Again, Mom, a RUNNING metaphor!) I knew I could do better than a 3:45. So I aimed higher. And did something I had never done before. I made it public. I let everyone know that I was aiming for Boston and damned anything less. I was fully vested. I kept my eyes on this goal and didn't waver. Not when I had a bad day, not when I saw obstacles in front of me. Not ever. And something amazing happened.
I realized, at mile 16 of the race, that a BQ was not in the cards. At least, not on April 7th. But something even more incredible happened. I wasn't afraid. To be vulnerable. To make mistakes. To fail.
And what happened?
I didn't fail. I walked away with a trophy, a new PR, and the sense that when shit got tough, I did not, in fact, fold and walk away.
And those lessons are going to pay dividends for the 2019 season. It's really easy to go forward confidently when everything is going your way. It's much less so when you're running against the wind, running on empty (pick your best crappy running song. Both of those win).
So you give it your all. You pick yourself up at the end of your very best effort, and you ask yourself honest questions. Was the goal realistic (if a bit of a stretch?). Do you need to reconsider it? No? Good. Then re assert yourself and go for it again.
And I intend to. I've stepped back for the last week, reviewed the day, both from an analytical and emotional mind, and decided, yes, dammit, I can shave off 6 minutes and 47 seconds from that marathon. It's gonna happen. Stay tuned for it.
I'm not afraid to make mistakes with this. To call Coffee Milk one hell of a training run, to learn from it, and to go forward with all of the knowledge I gleaned from giving it my all and going forward confidently in the direction of what I want.
I'm not afraid (I'm not afraid)
To take a stand (to take a stand)
Everybody (everybody)
Come take my hand come (come take my hand)
We'll walk this road together, through the storm
Whatever weather, cold or warm
Just letting you know that, you're not alone
Holla if you feel like you've been down the same road
So there you go. The answer is - don't throw in the towel. Don't be afraid to run after what you want - because if you don't do it, who will? Then pick yourself the hell up, dust off your ego, and go for those big scary goals. Because you CAN do it.
And to celebrate this line of thinking, I tackled that next big scary goal. And took my bike out for a ride. On April 16th. I'm damned proud of myself. It's so on this year. So. On.
No comments:
Post a Comment