I have neither been an athletic type, nor was I good at sports. I have always been one of the slowest and worst in gym class. I know, I know … you must have heard this a million times, but bear with me please. I would like to grab the opportunity to state here and now, I am still not a Fitness Guru. I do not own a certification or have any education on proper training, so whatever I mention in this article it is based on my individual experiences and therefore, it might be different from yours. So…where was I? Got it … that I have never really been interested in sports. I had my few tries, but never really evolved into anything. On the top of this, I am an over-thinker. As the years passed by it got worst, because I didn’t turn of my mind, therefore ‘the voices in my head’ got louder and louder. It sounds crazy, I know, but before you judge me or label me, relax…you have them too. At some point of my life, I felt I need to do something for my body. I need to start taking better care of it at some point, and it is better to start sooner than later. So there I was in January 2018, I have started running. I must admit, I was pretty terrible at it at first, but my goal was to get out and do it. Even if it is only for 10 minutes. I was cheating from time to time and skipped a couple of occasions in the beginning, but around half year in I had my turning point.
My turning point came when I truly understood why I should run. I was talking to my therapist and she suggested me to start running, because it helps to keep me in the present moment. Furthermore, it helps to ground my energy, which would otherwise float anywhere but where I need it the most. Here comes the over-thinking in the picture. Since I have a problem with it, my energies got out of hand. On a long term this can and will cause a lot of trouble. There and then, I understood that I need to run for my health and not just the physical, but the mental and emotional as well.
To me, this was the moment what made me understood why running and sports in general are amazing. This is where my view on doing sports has changed. Before I was judgmental, and I saw it as something that only people, who want to look good would do. Don’t get me wrong because there is nothing wrong with someone wanting to look good and that is their motivation. When it comes to me, it isn’t motivating enough. As I have started running regularly and I have started to seriously keep myself to my schedule, I have realized that doing sports is so much more than I have thought before.
I felt better physically, mentally and emotionally. I had success from doing it regularly and keeping myself to my plan. Slow and steady, but I was showing some progress too. As months turned into years did I see how I could do more and more. So the weekly 2 occasion turned into 3, then the weekly 3 turned into every second day. When it comes to the length, 10 minutes turned into 15, later 15 minutes into 25 and now I am happy with my 30 minutes run that varies from time to time depending on the distance I feel up to at that time.
My goal was … actually it still is to build persistence and continuity. I wanted to create a lifestyle, because I dream about still running in my pensionist years. I’m running over 3 years now, and I have my ups and downs. It is hard to build endurance and keep going even if this is the last thing you want to do. I have to skip once in a while, but I keep getting back to my routine and keep on running. This is where I gain most of my confidence. Even if I need to skip some occasion or stop for some time, I just get back to it.
The fact that I run regularly is also a big confidence rush, even though my performance fluctuate from time to time. Running regularly, and my success from it, has taught me that it can benefit me in the most unexpected ways. Building resistance helps me in my private life or when I face struggle. It provides me with the emotional and mental strength to cope with life when I have to.
After a while, maybe a year or a bit more, I stopped listening to music while running, and I have started to stay present during my runs. I observe the things around me, I focus on my breath….basically I have started turning running into an active meditation. Throughout the years, I was getting better and better at it. I still have ways to go, but I can do a couple of minutes of meditation while running.
It is funny, who a disliked thing can turn into something great and a very much loved hobby. Somehow over the years, I have found spirituality in it. I realized how much I can benefit from running on all level (body, mind, soul). I have found my inner strength and my inspiration in running. I learned about the other aspects of sports, where it is not just to exhaust you but to evolve you as a human being. It teaches you dedication as well as how to stay present. It has so many valuable lessons. I wish I could have explained this to my younger self, who hated going to gym classes and disliked every minute of it. I wish I could show her the various ways she can benefit from it. Though, I wonder whether or not I would have listened to myself … Maybe I had to grow up to understand the concept.
