Be Healthy and Relax

We all aspire to see ourselves somewhere, doing something in the future that we haven’t done in the past. Or maybe we would like to relive something in the past that we never thought we’d see ourselves do again. Whatever the occasion may be, setting personal goals is like laying the foundation to a skyscraper or mapping out a business plan for a future venture. Everything starts out with a plan; without this plan the future is unclear, allowing you to steer away from the path that you should be taking. I often catch myself beginning to write a paper for school, going on a 50-mile bike ride, or going on a date with my girlfriend without a definite plan. All of these can lead you to a destination that we don’t want to be at, so I’ve learned to set some goals, but also follow a plan to achieve them. Just always remember that goals are meaningless, unless they are achieved.

Running is a very important part of my life because it opens so many doors and allows me to get a feeling like none other. Going for that early morning jog or that evening, after-work de-stressing run always does the trick of freeing my mind. For a couple of years I had a very lackadaisical attitude for keeping a running schedule under my belt. I always had the urge to hit the pavement and get as many miles I could under my belt, but the difficult part was leaving the house. Finally, I had enough of it all and felt like I needed a good kick in the butt to keep me running on a routine basis. To do this, I decided to sign up for my first half-marathon, three months down the line. With this goal in the seemingly distant future, I found myself a decent 12-week training program online that was to keep me pounding pavement on a 6-day-a-week schedule. For once, it worked!

After successfully running for 12 weeks and completing my first half-marathon, I craved for more. After realizing this, I noticed that I needed a goal, such as the half-marathon, to keep me on the path that I’ve always wanted to be on. This mighty race, along with the training program, gave me the motivation to keep trekking ahead.

After completing three half-marathons this year, I am now setting my sights on a full marathon in January. This is a distance that I have never thought I would attempt, but now I have full confidence that I can achieve it. I begin my 18-week training schedule tomorrow, and can’t wait! Through all of this I have become a much better runner, have set many personal record times, and covered distances that I never thought my legs could handle at one time. The only way I could achieve this was to clearly set my goals and use the tools to keep me along the right path.