What I Learned From Running The New York City Marathon
It all started with Twitter and a glass of wine and the end result changed my life.
Had I not given away the end result in the title, I’m sure that could’ve gone down many an interesting route of Choose Your Own Adventure. This adventure ended in Central Park, in the driving rain, freezing, exhausted, starving and….blessed.
You see, I had just completed 10 months of training to run 26.2 miles through the 5 boroughs of New York called The New York City Marathon.
Not only had I completed one of the most prestigious races in the world, I did it EXACTLY how I envisioned it all through my training. From the first step of my first training run to the last lean through the finish line, I learned a ton about myself and how to leverage this experience to become a better person.
That’s why I want to share it with you all.
Now, don’t think for one second that I wasn’t nervous about the whole thing. Watch this short video:
I will share the 6 key lessons I learned while training for, and running, The New York City Marathon:
Opportunity will find you in the most random places
Start, especially if you’re terrified
Create a vision in your mind of success
When you’re near your breaking point, push a little further and chase small increments
People are inherently awesome
The physical body is a means of transportation for the mind and heart
I’m sharing the insights I took away so that you can find the source of drive within you to complete whatever marathon you’re currently running. Losing weight, job hunting or just hardcore trying to make your dreams happen, I want my words to help move you along and get you across your own finish line.
The podcast for this is also available on my podcast page.
Opportunity will find you in the most random places
As the intro described, this whole thing was total happenstance. While I'm constantly a proponent of the "Why not?" theory when it comes to experiences and goals, this was the last thing that I thought would come about during a moment of decompression. What I took from it though, is that you always need to be ready for chance and opportunity to come knocking. I could have very easily said "Oh, no thank you, I was just kidding," but that didn't feel right.
Was I marathon ready right away? Absolutely not. I was, however, challenge ready right away. The same thing happened when I was offered the chance to emcee the Kansas City Royals World Series Parade at a moment's notice. I said yes, then took a deep breath and figured it out.
Always be ready. Ready to be willing and able to take on a new and different challenge.
Start, especially if you’re terrified
Also, as the video will show, I was nervous and a bit shell-shocked that, within a 24 hour period, I went from relaxing on my couch to training for my first marathon in January, not the most ideal weather month to get going. Plus, this was not only about training for the race, but also raising money for a great cause. Even in instances like this where you know that any money raised is a positive step in the right direction, there's that feeling of potential failure, not raising enough, trying to do more. All of this was swirling around in my head when I finally told myself, "Knock it off, get your shoes on and get out there."
The same goes for any and all goals and/or change. It's anxiety producing! Stepping out of your zone, doing something new or trying to grow through a large goal all put us out in the open emotionally. The fear of potential failure will ground you, and keep you stuck, as long as you let it. As the amazing Mel Robbins would say, count down from 5 and launch into it. Once you start taking those steps forward, you will find your voice, find your groove and find your confidence to succeed. If you stand there paralyzed, you'll never know what you're truly capable of.
Create a vision of success in your mind
If you've known me for two seconds, you know that my imagination is constantly going and you're likely to hear me say something to the effect of "I'm picturing......" as my thoughts become vivid and visual as they start to form. If I'm trying to think of a solution to a long term project, I start visualizing project flow charts, I can picture what I want an event to look and sound like, etc. etc.
I've also been a big goal person. From losing over 100lbs, to becoming a published author and launching my podcast, I love challenging myself. Whenever I've found success, it's come with some sort of visualization through meditation or creative brainstorming.
This was no different.
Every second of every mile I ran and every ounce of every pound of weight I lifted in training, I visualized crossing the finish line. Not just that I wanted to do it, but I imagined being on FaceTime with my family when I did, the feeling of pride that I showed my sons what's possible when you persevere and the feeling of elation as I completed what I set out to do.
So you can imagine that when that exact scenario played out, I was sobbing as I crossed the finish line. I had done it, almost to the detail.
Then I got proof:
If your goal is something like a new job, consider these questions:
What is your new title?
What does your office look like?
What are you actually doing on a daily basis?
What is the feeling of the culture.
Always create a clear, descriptive vision of what you truly want when you set out to achieve a goal and don't ever settle until it gets to that point.
When you’re near your breaking point, push a little further and chase small increments
You will hit a wall at some point in your process of chasing a goal because bigger dreams usually take more time. What are you going to do in that moment?
I hit that point so many times during training and especially during the race. My body just hurt, my lungs couldn't go fast enough, my mind couldn't get focused. It was in those moments that I thought to myself, "Go one more mile. Take one at a time."
I remember hitting the 18 mile marker and thinking "Dammit, I've got another 8.2 to go!" But, I took a deep breath and thought to myself, "Don't look at the 8.2, focus on the 1. Just get past the 19 mile marker." Those 1 mile increments made it possible for me to finish both mentally and physically.
If you're trying to lose weight, don't look at the big number, take 1 pound at a time. If you're trying to write your first book, 1 chapter at a time.
Those smaller markers will have you standing on the other side of the finish line before you know it.
People are inherently awesome
I have always looked on the positive side of people as I know for a fact that we all have goodness in us. Through this experience alone, I saw some energy that brought me to tears (Yes, evidently I did cry a lot in 2017!)
It started when people begun learning what I was doing and why I was doing it. To not only run the marathon, but to also raise money for cancer research, the messages, support and donations came out of the woodwork.
From my friends and family at Fox 4 giving me a week of spotlight segments to One Life Fitness giving me a free membership to train and prepare to the countless calls, texts and dollars donated to my fundraising. It was truly touching to realize that I am surrounded by such wonderful people.
The race itself was awe-inspiring.
If you've ever watched 10 seconds of a marathon, or race of any kind, on tv, you see masses of people lining the course typically yelling support, waving flags, holding signs, etc. As I traveled through the 5 Boroughs of New York, I saw everyone. By everyone, I mean every walk of life, color, race, religion, sexual orientation and more. Keep in mind, it was pouring down rain and around 40 degrees at the race had been going on for hours at this point. Yet, hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets of New York just to cheer on strangers, to give hope, to share positivity and a laugh (there were some creative signs!)
It reminded me that deep down, we were all born good people with good hearts. We all need to exercise that intentionally more often.
The physical body is a means of transportation for the mind and heart
I have read about, watched stories about and heard stories of amazing things that people have done with their bodies thanks to sheer determination and focus of the mind and heart. I myself felt this while training for, and running the race as there were many times that I wasn't quite sure I could feel my legs and that they may have just been put on autopilot.
What I realized quickly is that your body is simply in charge of carrying around your mind and heart. When your mind and heart align, it allows you to override pain, fear, hesitation, doubt and other elements that might otherwise stop you in your tracks.
Spend time exercising your mind and heart. Get to a point where the strength of those two can override any emotional or physical pain that is trying to limit you. Your desire to grow and achieve will shine through and get you across that finish line, no matter what your goal is.
