26.2
You’ve probably seen the sticker, and chances are you know someone who actually earned the sticker. 26.2 This number represents the amount of miles run to complete a marathon. It takes the average marathon runner 4 ½ hours to do it.
As a runner… well, a slogger (slow + jogger)… my sticker would only read 3 which is the number of miles I am able to complete a few times per week – and it takes me about 30 minutes. But even on my relatively short shuffle, I have to pace myself – If I tried to run my 3 miles in 15 minutes, I would fail.
So, you know that bright shiny feeling of power you feel facing this new year? Perhaps you named a few new behaviors you were excited about incorporating? You feel full of potential and able to achieve your most elusive goal?
Pace yourself.
The positive changes most of us want to incorporate are BIG changes – otherwise we would have made them on a random Tuesday last November. And big changes are like a marathon. You can’t sprint a marathon. Don’t expect to hit mile markers every day, every week even, but do keep moving toward the finish line.
If you start to feel the familiar urge to chuck it all and revert back to old habits, or think “Holy wha! Look at the pile of stuff on my to-do list, how did I think I would have time to make a change?!?” Please don’t give up the race. Rather, step off to the side for a quick slug of water and a hamstring stretch. Then take a deep breath and get back in there, moving forward, slowly one step at a time. Even if you find yourself back at the starting line – keep starting!
It may take all 52 weeks to complete your goal or institute your positive behavior change. So what if it takes all year? At the end of 52 weeks you will have achieved a major accomplishment. Which is a heck of a lot more than you will achieve if you step out of the race because it takes longer than you would like.
You decided on this positive change for YOU. Don’t let anyone or anything muck up your marathon. Now, lace up and let’s get going!
