Is This Half-Empty, or Half-Full?

Week 7 Day 2, Weather - Pouring down (for a change), 15.6 degrees C, wind WSW 13mph

It may seem like a strange question with which to begin today's post, but then it is my post, and I like strange, so I'll just be asking whatever questions I choose. Seriously, though, perhaps it's a question we just don't consider enough. And, amazingly, I see it as being fairly relevant to today's run.

Today was another day of firsts: it was the first time that I'd ever woken up on a run day and wanted to go straight back to bed (this feeling wasn't helped by the sound of torrential rain coming from outside the window); it was the first time that I'd ever knocked a bottle of water over myself whilst groggily stumbling around the kitchen trying to find the bananas for my pre-run snack; it was the first day that I had ever run my usual course in reverse; it was also the first day in C25K where I have run more than 2 miles!!!

My point here, I guess, is that you can never judge a day, an hour, or even a minute, as being consistently good or bad. Had I gone with my mood this morning I wouldn't have even made it out of the bedroom. However, I think you reach a point, when you have a goal and you cherish it, that nothing - NOTHING - will stop you. As I walked out of my door this morning - banana in mouth and fidgeting around in my very soggy kit - I only had the goal in my mind. And the beauty of exercise, and particularly running in my humble opinion, is that it opens your eyes to the positives in life. I saw this morning's setbacks for what they were - obstacles - rather than the insurmountable blocks that my former self - the 270lb, smoking and unfit self - would have used as an excuse to get back into bed.

You can get around obstacles; obstacles make you stronger. It's only by pushing or pulling against resistance that a muscle gets stronger. Only by pushing yourself out of your comfort zone can your will to succeed get stronger. If you're lucky, and I consider myself to be blessed this morning, you get to see the funny side as well.

Take heart comrades; keep running!

PS - as an afterthought, yesterday was also the first time that I had ever swallowed a fly whilst running. I say swallowed: it got part of the way down before my choking and spluttering ejected it back to where it belonged. To my credit, I believe, I barely broke stride.

G

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