I lean towards having an all-or-nothing personality. If I am not running the entire stretch of my run, I feel like a loser. I’m slowly getting over this mindset, but it takes time and a lot of realizations. Like this one:
A few Saturdays ago, my husband and I went out for our first 12-mile jog of the season. Admittedly, we were not in good enough shape to jog the entire 12 miles straight through. But this is our long day running distance and it’s what we’ve decided on for our half-marathon training this season.
Right away, I could tell that we were going to be doing a lot of walking during this “run”. The furthest distance I had run prior to this 12-mile run was only 7 and a half miles. My husband had not run much at all this season and tends to have knee issues. So, we were in for a challenge for sure.
I love running outdoors for many reasons, but the biggest and best reason is because I honestly feel like I inspire people when they see me run. I do not have a runner’s body and never will have. I am built more like a sprinter than a long-distance runner. But, I know that when other women see me out there running, they might think, “You go girl!” or “If she can do it, I can too”! But how could I inspire these imaginary women if I were merely walking half of the time with my husband instead of running? I started to feel a bit troubled.
As we were walking up a steep hill, a young lady came up behind us…. Running fast. Running all of the way up the hill without stopping. This only added to the feeling of defeat I was starting to harbor. I thought to myself, “She must think she’s pretty awesome for passing us by like that.”… My feelings were kind of dark in that moment.
After we made it to the top of the hill and started jogging again, it dawned on me. Yup, she probably did feel pretty good about herself for passing us on that hill. Is that a bad thing???
That is when I had my epiphany: It’s great to inspire others by being an example of what a healthy life looks like, but it is also good to allow others to inspire you too. Instead of continuing to feel resentment towards the young lady that put us to shame on that hill, I turned it into an aspiration.
Sometimes, I’ll motivate others and feel good about myself for it. Other times, people will motivate me to become better and they will feel good too.
Have you ever had a moment of jealousy turn into admiration like this? Please share your own experience!
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