I have a confession to make.
I am not special.
I thought running a half marathon would mean I am special, but it doesn’t.
I am not special.
I DID something special.
You could do it.
If you wanted to.
If you were patient enough.
If you gave yourself enough time.
Started small.
Started slow.
Wanted to do it.
Accepted your failures as growing pains, and not as a sign of who you are.
Took the time.
Put in the effort.
Little, by little.
It took me over a year, from my first running steps, to my 13.1.
A lot can change in a year.
You can change in a year.
Do you want to?
Because you could.
You could change a little.
You could change a lot.
I did.
And I am not special.
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There are plenty of excuses why you CAN’T do something; all you need is one reason why you CAN. On October 20, I am running my first half marathon; less than one year since I started running. I enjoy reading your blog!
Congratulations, Chris, and I hope you have a wonderful race! Thanks for reading. That’s so true about having a reason you can do something. I’m glad you found your reason, and your running, and I hope you’ll let us know how your race goes in October!
Oh, Kelly…this came at just the right time for me! I had a not-so-great 10 mile training run this weekend and it beat me up and I began doubting myself for registering for my first half (7 1/2 weeks away now). I’m going to print today’s post from you and pull it out REGULARLY to remind myself that tough runs are NOT a failure and that I just need to keep putting one foot in front of the other…….
Michelle – I am so glad to hear it, isn’t it funny how sometimes that happens, that you hear or read something that’s just what you needed at the right time. I remember stumbling upon an article about tapering for my half marathon just when I needed it most.
I had a horrible last long run before my half marathon… and yet a wonderful race. I was supposed to run 10 or 11 miles, I ended up running 8, and it took me over two hours. Probably my worst long run ever. I was lucky enough to have had enough long runs so that my confidence wasn’t too shaken, I recognized it for what it was, a tough day.
I hope that as you keep having more key runs, you’ll have many more good days than bad, and you can channel the feeling from all of those good runs and all of that progress and success as you stand at your start line in seven and a half weeks. You are doing something amazing 🙂
Love it!
Thanks Courtney! I’m pleased that there wasn’t a backlash because I’m saying that none of us are that special 😉