No conditional love

Best run I've had in two or three weeks this morning.

I went a bit later, the weather was, and still is, just glorious, I did just over 5K and the sweat was pouring off me. I love that.

I spent a great evening last night with 3 other really inspiring coaches and the conversation was truly uplifting. That was what was going through my head on my run this morning.

There were several great reminders for me, such as that as a coach my job is just to hold the space for my client, and that there is no such thing as conditional love, there is either unconditional love or it isn't love.

I am excited about what this day will reveal.

Secret of success

The gaps between my posts seem to be growing.

This morning during my 2-miler I was thinking about why my experiment of running a mile each day, initially for a month, has been so successful, when this wasn't the first time I'd tried to see if I could run every day.

Here are the main reasons I think that it has worked for me this time:

1. By calling it an experiment, it has lessened the potential negative impact of failing. An experiment, by its very nature, has an associated link to the phrase "trial and error", which I love. How much more empowering it is to make an error and then try something a little different as opposed to failing, and possibly labeling yourself a failure.

2. By setting the challenge at something I knew I could achieve and yet was also quite a stretch. I knew that I could run a mile once, even though I had a groin strain when I started, I could hobble round, however slowly. I also knew that I could run it again on another day. I didn't know that I could definitely do it every day for a month.

3. The challenge was easily scalable. I went from "I've done my month" to "let's see how long I can keep it going?" Still very much an experiment with no pressure.

4. I didn't announce it to the world initially, thereby increasing the (self-inflicted) pressure of expectation, but I did tell several people close to me, so there was also some accountability. It felt like I could fall over (metaphorically, as well as literally) but not extremely hard and flat on my face.

5. The longer the experiment has continued, the more I have faced different challenges to keeping it going, and have overcome them, but as with the run it has been one small step along the path at a time. I have also combined the increasing confidence with increasing my sharing of what I'm doing. It's now on Facebook and my web site, and the Facebook page also comes up on the first page of a Google search, if you type in "a mile each day".

There's got to be lessons from this experiment that I can use in other areas of my life. After all, running is such a great metaphor for life!

Wisdom of your body

Completed my 200th day of running at least a mile each day. This morning it was 5K again.

Another glorious morning, and a relatively quiet week ahead with the family having left for sunnier climes (hopefully for them).

While I was running this morning I was thinking of what I could write in my blog today and as usually happens when I'm trying to think of something, my mind goes round in circles and doesn't come up with the goods.

However, if I let go of trying to think of a solution and get present to my body, my breathing, how my legs feel, how I feel inside, an idea nearly always comes to mind, as it did this morning.

It reminded me of when I was on my coach training and they taught us that our intuition is an extremely powerful feeling (think of your gut feel, or when you feel that your heart isn't in something).

In fact they also taught us that our intuition, usually in our guts or stomach but can be anywhere, is never wrong. The only mistake we make is misinterpreting the feeling sometimes, and that comes from lack of use. Like any muscle that you stop using, you have to practice and build it up gradually.

So anyway, my gut says that I'm going to have a good day today, and it's usually right.

Made her smile

Day 199 completed (I think it's day 199 anyway). Ran 5K this morning.

It felt like quite hard work. We were out last night but I was the designated driver so it certainly wasn't anything to do with drinking too much. Just one of those days. Still, there wouldn't be any highs without the lows to balance them.

I ran past a lady just coming down her path to the pavement who wasn't looking particularly happy, and I gave her a smile and a cheery "Good morning". She smiled back, which was fun.

It's a game I enjoy playing when running in the mornings.

I think that most people must be quite surprised when encountering a happy runner. They usually seem to be pleasantly surprised, and it always gives me a feeling of having brightened their day.

So good morning to you, whoever you are as you read this blog, even if it isn't now the morning.

Doubts are traitors

2 miles this morning and 5K yesterday in the drizzle, which I really enjoyed.

Only 5 days to my 200th consecutive day of running a mile. It seems an age ago when I decided to experiment to see if I could do it every day for a month.

I enjoyed meeting up with a friend for coffee this morning who reminded me again about the Shakespeare quote, "Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing to attempt".

It's such a great quote and so very appropriate as creating awareness of how much our (and my) avoidance of failing at all costs, impacts us (yes, and me) is one of my pet crusades.