Sense of Accomplishment

This weekend my spirits were lifted. No, I didn’t win a race or have a rock star workout. I didn’t discover a new diet trick (unless going to a beer festival counts?!). I simply soaked in the excitement of many

Time to get these laced up and ready to go!

friends who participated in a race this weekend. Many miles away back home, I saw that Trisha, Jana, Melissa, JoAnn, Ashley and Meg all competed in some version of the Dam to Dam running race. I imagine many other people I know also competed; I just saw postings on Facebook of these runners who had that post race glow that I know and love.

I love the sense of accomplishment of crossing a finish line. I could be first, last or anywhere in between – each time there’s a feeling of excitement, relief, pride and a desire to do this again! Well, let’s just say most races end that way for me :) After having focused so much attention on races in 2013, my lack of competition this year has bothered me. Couple that with an inconsistent, mostly non-existent workout routine and I feel like a letdown. Last week I finally got outside to run. It felt disastrous. I only managed a two mile run each time. My baseline usually starts at three.

Despite what feels like a poor performance of late to me, seeing the smiles, the sweat and the words of these runners reminded me of all that I too have accomplished. I have much to be proud of and so much more work I look forward to completing. With a number of life changes, I’ve decided that simply making it, enjoying it along the way and squeezing in a hike, strength training or a short run is an accomplishment. Using the same standard of measurement over and over, year after year, just doesn’t work. Journeys rarely follow a straight line and really, after a while, it becomes boring if it does.

I’ve always found it exciting to hear others talk about racing, especially those newer to competition. It builds my enthusiasm and helps me establish and analyze my goals. My friend JoAnn shared with me that she set a PR in her race, having just competed in another race two weeks ago. She knocked 3 minutes off her time. It got me thinking about my PRs and how I feel like there’s some unfinished business in the half marathon and 10k distances. In the short term, all of these racers have motivated me to get back on a consistent schedule. I’ll worry about distance (and time) another day; for now it’s about getting out there and getting the job done!

CONGRATS to all racers who’ve ever stepped foot on the starting line and pushed themselves to the finish! What an accomplishment!      

Miss FitGab