Just Keep Running

This year I decided to start training and competing in some triathlon races. You can read about my first one here. I did two races in the spring and just completed my third and final race for the season a couple weeks ago.

Throughout the spring I trained really hard. I swam regularly, focusing on continually getting faster and going further. The bike portion is my least favorite, but I worked hard to get better. And I went for a run consistently, training on our neighborhood’s killer hills.

I was really proud of my times in the first two races and set my sights on this last race, for which I had three more months to train. 

And then it got hot outside. No more runs over lunch, or even after 7 a.m. And then we went on vacation. And then we got back and had to get caught up on life. And then life got busy trying to get back into a school routine. I’m trying to say that I basically didn’t train for the entire two months before the race. Yikes. Maybe a swim or two here and there or a bike ride with my son but nothing like the consistent training I had been putting in.  

Race day arrived, ready or not. The whole thing was exhausting and totally beat me up. By the time I got to the run, my thighs were burning so badly, and I really wanted to walk. I made myself run the whole thing, but my pace was over a minute slower than the previous race. 

I kept thinking about all of those days that I didn’t train. If I had three whole months between races, imagine how much better I could have done had I kept training consistently!

But that thinking was of no use in that moment putting feet to the pavement. This is where I am. All I could do was think about the next step. I had to quit checking my watch to see how much further to the finish line. I couldn’t focus on how long this hill was in front of me. Just think about the next step.

We get into this predicament with our finances all the time, as well. We decide to make some changes so we set some goals. We’re committed. Tracking our expenses, cutting back in areas where we’re overspending, making some investments and starting to save more each month are all part of our new financial story.

Then for multiple reasons like busyness, laziness, or any number of financial curve balls, our discipline wanes. We start over-spending again in certain areas we had tamed. We save a little less to compensate for the spending. We lose sight of the long-term goals to focus on the wants we have now.

When you find yourself here, don’t just give up altogether. Even if it’s not the pace you want or the finish line seems too far away, keep moving. If the overall goal is too much right now, you can still keep moving in the right direction by just focusing on the next step. Don’t get discouraged and so disappointed that you stop. If you need a coach who will run with you and help you figure out your next step, that’s what I do! Maybe your next step is to reach out and let me run with you to get you across the finish line.