I am Jude. I ran outside every day in December.
I somehow convinced myself that I could do it and that persistent belief eventually developed into a 31-day personal challenge.
Then I just started running.
I have a regular 5k route that I follow most mornings but I like to mix up the length, scenery and location, depending on my mood and motivation.
However, it wasn’t about distance, personal bests or even my improved health. I simply made the commitment to run every morning, regardless of the circumstances.
Over the course of the last month, I learned some valuable lessons about myself and how to realize my goals. Here are five things I discovered during my daily runs in December:
- I am a runner
I have been running semi-regularly for the past five years. It has become my exercise of choice since I stopped weight training.
My health and back issues have prevented me from running as consistently as I would have liked in the past, so I never really defined myself as a runner – until now.
With this accomplishment, I turned a proverbial corner. In my mind, I am unquestionably a runner now.
And if I can become a runner through commitment, focus and determination, what else can I become?
- When you change your mindset you change your life
Understanding and adapting your thinking will help you improve your health, reduce stress and create better outcomes in your everyday experiences.
You have to believe that something is possible before you can achieve it. It has to exist in your mind before you can manifest it through your actions and intentions.
I am convinced I was able to run everyday because I had the faith and confidence I could do it – and I enjoyed it. There were mornings when I was tired, sore and cold, but I always wanted to run.
- Expect adversity. It’s an unavoidable part of the process
You will experience setbacks, obstacles and unexpected challenges anytime you attempt to Break Free from old habits and commit to Be Better. It’s inevitable.
For me, there was back pain, minor injuries, fatigue, the weather and competing priorities. Overcoming these difficulties were the small victories that made the experience worthwhile.
What inconveniences and resistance do you anticipate in your efforts to change? What might get in your way?
- The universe will provide you with inspiration
Once you begin actively working towards your goals, you will find support and unexpected inspiration along the way.
All we need to do is take the first tentative steps and our efforts will be rewarded by the universe.
Mine came in the form of my wife’s constant encouragement, an aunt in Florida, the invaluable benefits of getting outside every morning – and my growing belief that I can do hard things.
- I can do hard things.
Our minds and bodies are able to do incredible things, especially with the right mentality and motivation.
Once we unshackle our minds, we are truly capable of doing the impossible, or at least what we believe to be impossible.
There were moments last year when I genuinely wondered whether I would ever run again and in less than a year I completed a 10K road race and have run outside for 31 consecutive days.
I am realizing that, many times, the only limits we have are the ones we place on ourselves.
We can truly do hard things.
Understanding my ongoing back pain and the condition I was in after the surgery, I can appreciate what I have done.
However, even more importantly, if I can get up and go out into the cold every morning for a month, what can I accomplish in 2023?
What other consistent behaviours can I adopt over the next year that will support my efforts to Be Better?
If you want to have more, you have to become more.
For things to change, you have to change.
For things to get better, you have to become better.
If you improve, everything will improve for you.
If you grow, your money will grow; your relationships, your health, your business and every external effect will mirror that growth in equal correlation.
Jim Rohn
I believe this to be absolutely true. We must continue to grow and evolve if we want to Be Better.
However, we only change through considerable effort. It requires action. We have to do the work, one small incremental step at a time.
The great thing is that the rewards we experience along the way are beyond measure and the outcomes always exceed our expectations.
I am already considering my next challenge and the ways it can help me Be Better.
What changes can you make, what can you accomplish and who can you ultimately become in 2023?
I encourage you to begin wherever you are, take the first step and just start running.
The results will surprise you. I am Jude.
