A good lesson learned today

I pride myself on being very structured when it comes to my running. I like to do little things before each run and if one of those isn't exactly the way I want it, then I'm not a happy camper. Unfortunately, life doesn't always co-operate with this plan and that is exactly what happened this afternoon.

I wasn't able to run in the morning, my preferred running time, so right away I wasn't happy. Then, to make matters worse, I only had about 10 minutes to get myself ready for my run (I usually like to take close to an hour). Finally, just as I was ready to leave, my mp3 player stopped working. I thought for a second if I should even bother to go as it seemed that everything was working against me. Then after giving my head a shake, I realized that I don't NEED those things to run. I may prefer to have them, but the reality is all I need is my shoes.

The run today was surreal as I was able to hear things that I normally wouldn't when I have my music on. I actually felt a little uncomfortable and even felt like people were watching me more than usual. There were so many more people out on the streets than what I'm accustomed to and obviously more cars as well.

Throughout the run, as I became more relaxed, my Garmin stopped working. This was yet another "toy" that I really didn't need. I'm a big believer in the running Gods and I think they were trying to send me a message today and that is that I better stop relying on gadgets to keep me going, especially with my 100 mile race coming up. We tend to lean too much on "things" and when they aren't there then we quickly give up and use that as an excuse for not working hard. I can't tell you how many clients who have told me that if their trainer calls in sick, they don't bother coming to the gym. Whenever I hear that I know that these are the people who in all likelihood will fall short in achieving their goals. Look within yourself to find your inner strength. Today I got a good lesson in that!