Hello runner friends!
Welcome back to the Bass Pro Fitness Series
MIDWEEK M😊TIVATI😊N blog!
Now let's get started by talking about the Bass Pro Fitness Series. Whether you ran the 5k, the half marathon, or the full marathon on Marathon Weekend and/or the Dogwood Canyon Trail run the following weekend, you’ll probably agree with me that there was something to be gleaned from your experience, whether it was good, bad, or downright ugly; something that can be used to make all of us better runners and all-around better people. That's what running does though right? It teaches us things about life.
This was something I was meditating on Sunday morning after wrapping up three weekends of amazing races and priceless time spent with friends. By God’s grace, I paced the 5 hour 30 minute Bass Pro Marathon group on November 8, completed the 25k/15k Dogwood Challenge the following week, and the Honoring our Heroes Marathon last Saturday. And what did I learn from all this? Among other things I learned that by His strength, I can do exceedingly more than I think I can, that pain really is temporary, that good training pays off, that good friends truly make the experience more fun, that volunteers are worth their weight in gold, that there’s always something to be grateful for, and that I will never know the why’s of life. I could write a novel if I included all the lessons running has taught me, but I’ll leave it right there.
Speaking of running, friends, and lessons learned, check out what my dear friend Leah Nelson (pictured above, who is in our Bass Pro training group) wrote after finishing her first marathon last Saturday—a finish I was blessed to witness since I was at the same race:
So, I did a thing this weekend. I completed a marathon! I was fighting some sort of an IT band issue and spent the last month trying to cram eight weeks of rest into four. When I started the marathon, I was hoping for the best. Unfortunately, "the best" ended up being 23 miles of trying to keep my knee pain manageable rather than excruciating. A balance, that I'm pleased to say I mostly managed. My time wasn't awesome, but I did finish.
God reminded me of three important truths during the marathon. (As it happens, I had lots of time to think.) I haven't included chapter and verse on any of them, but I think they're all biblical principles. (I've written a whole essay, but this will be the Cliff's Notes version.)
1. At times, everybody does something that they stink at. When you've worked hard and you want to do your best at something, and you still stink at it, it's a little bit humbling. But that's okay. It stung my pride a little bit to walk most of the marathon when I wanted to run. But I think it was good for me to push through and finish, even though it didn't go how I hoped it would.
2. You never know what people are going through. It would have been easy to assume that I hadn't trained or that I wasn't trying very hard, when in reality I really was doing my best and my best was just really slow. Just because someone looks fine on the outside, doesn't mean they are. It doesn't cost me anything to be kind or gracious to the people around me.
3. Mindset really matters. It happened more than once, but the most distinct time was at mile 24. I was thinking about how rough the race was going, and I was hurting, and I was tired, and I was hungry. Focusing on those things almost made me cry, and in that particular time, crying was only going to make things worse. I had to change my mindset and focus on positive things. It didn't make the bad things go away, but it helped me get through them. In life, your mindset doesn't make your problems go away, but it can help you through them.
Leah went on to say, “Am I going to do another marathon? Not anytime soon! But I'm glad I did this one.” That totally made me laugh because like many marathoners (especially first timers) she said she’d never do it again within minutes of completing her first 26.2 mile run. But as time went by and the pain subsided, her feelings changed a little bit. I have a feeling we may be seeing her out on another marathon course really soon. Which is another lesson we can glean from running… when we dig deep and make the determination to press on, we can all do hard things and will continue to do hard things as long as we value the lessons we learn from doing them.
So there you have it friends. Running is a blessing in so many ways—something that we sometimes see only in looking back. Which is the very reason, I urge you to look back at your time and think about what you learned and to be grateful for it. You’ll be glad you did. After all, it’s the season for thankfulness.
Happy Running and Happy Thanksgiving!
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