What keeps you going?

 

YOU keep us going.  I don’t often open up about personal challenges to anyone other than those in my inner circle which consists of fewer people than you can count on one hand.  So...  staying true to my all or nothing way of doing things, I'll  share it in a blog!  The last few years have been rough for me as an “aging athlete”.  I ran semi-professionally for a number of years and part of what has defined me is my running.  But as is inevitable with aging, we can’t quite do at 50+ what we were able to do in our 30s and 40s.  Add to that some nagging injuries, and not being able to run at all for periods of time, and you have a lethal combination; an aging, cranky person who no longer feels like a true runner.  With the days of being able to win marathons and set PRs (personal records) long behind me, many of the things that used to motivate me and drive me to push through my workouts are now merely a source of frustration.

So what keeps me going?  As your trainers, we know as well as anyone that life happens and we can either let it derail us from our fitness routine and goals, or we can let it be a motivator to keep moving forward.  Over the many months to years that we have known some of you, you have shared with us your everyday challenges.  They are big and small, some are temporary and others are ongoing, but they are the same life challenges that we all face at some point; job stresses, family illnesses, scheduling conflicts, injuries, surgeries, and on, and on, and on.  What inspires us is your dedication and your determination to not let the inevitable ups and downs of life keep you from taking care of yourselves.

One of our participants recently told me, “Once I get myself here for the workout, the battle is won.”  How true.  We can all find an excuse to skip the workout, but making the time and making it a priority makes us successful.  Some days will be better than others, and some days just being there is the best we can give, but when we take care of ourselves, we are better at everything else we do.

You inspire us when we see you make it a priority to be at an early morning training, or make the effort to come to the training at the end of a very stressful and long work day.  You inspire us when we know that you are dealing with very serious and challenging issues, and yet you take the time and make the effort to take care of your health. You inspire us when you ask how you can become stronger at a certain exercise.  You inspire us when you push yourselves through a tough workout.  And you make us smile when we hear and see that you are making progress toward your goals. 

So maybe I can’t run as fast as I once could, and I may or may not run another marathon, but I will continue to be encouraged by your efforts and success stories to be the best athlete I can be. 

"You have a choice.  You can throw in the towel or you can use it to wipe the sweat off your face." ~ Gatorade