With all the snow melting in the mountains, the Boise River has been running very high and very fast. As I was heading over to the running path the other day, I could actually hear the river rushing from a block away. Although I knew the power and swiftness of the water, it was a soothing sound.

I looked at the rushing water and the ducks as I started running along the river path. Some Canada geese were struggling against the current, and I realized that everything in nature has its daily challenges. As I was still recovering from my marathon, I felt the challenge of getting back “up to speed.” I thought of the challenges that the Chinese people were facing in the wake of the devastating earthquake. I thought of the challenges that families face with illness and disabilities.

As I reflected on the many challenges that all things in nature face everyday, I realized that these challenges belong to all of us. We’re all connected. We’re all part of nature. We all originate from the same source.

And, we all have the same instinct to deal with the challenges we face, but it’s how we deal with them that determines our success in overcoming them.

That goose doesn’t allow the swift waters to just drag him along and take him under. The Chinese people don’t say, “Oh well, our town is destroyed, there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Think about the way you face challenges in your life.

Remember: The way you do anything is the way you do everything.

Running coaches, elite runners, running “experts” – most of them will tell us that the approximate recovery time after a hard race is one day per mile. That doesn’t mean you should not run for 26 days after a marathon – it means that you should probably refrain from really hard or really long workouts.

After the initial soreness wears off – usually in 4-5 days after a marathon, you sort of feel like you can get back out there and put in a hard workout or long run only to find that your legs just don’t have the zip they did before the race.

And, when you do try to get back into your hard training too soon, it can be frustrating because you think you should be running faster because you feel “fine.”

Last weekend, I ran a 1/2 marathon (I planned to do it as a training run – nothing hard). Whether I wanted to take it easy or not, I found I still had heavy legs, and it just wasn’t as “easy” as I had planned it to be for a pleasant training run.

But today was a different story.  I went out for a 5-mile run, and it was the best run I’ve had since before the marathon – 25 days ago! Hmmm…the experts say one day per mile of recovery. I guess that’s why they’re experts!

Do you have a friend whom you talk to or see only every few months – or even once a year – whom you consider to be a very close friend? And, when you do catch up, you reconnect instantly – as if no time has elapsed between visits? I know I do; in fact, I have a number of friends like that.

Many of my close friends are scattered throughout the country, but the distance doesn’t keep us from connecting on a regular basis. I recently got 2 calls from people I had emailed a couple of months ago. I knew we would eventually connect, and I talked to both of them within 2 days of each other.

Staying connected doesn’t always just happen. We have to make it work. I have moved several times in the last few years, and I make it a priority to keep in touch with the people I care about.

Is there someone you have been meaning to call or write?  With cell phones, email, and all the other ways to get in touch with people, there’s no excuse not to communicate with friends. Decide today to reconnect with someone you’ve been meaning to call. You’ll be glad you did – and so will they.

Women’s running pioneer Kathrine Switzer will be joining us for another live teleseminar on June 3, 2008. This live call is the second in a series of calls connected with the Women on the Move Conference and Retreat and Leading Ladies Marathon in Spearfish, South Dakota. If you would like to ask Kathrine a question and be on our live call, sign up at Women on the Move.

Our first call was so popular that some folks have asked us to do another one. Kathrine answered questions about her personal running career, both past and present, and also many issues that women runners face.

Don’t miss this opportunity to talk live with a running legend!

What started out as a short trip to Sun Valley, Idaho, to run a half marathon turned into more than just an inspiring run in the mountains.

Our original purpose for going to Sun Valley was to run the half marathon; however, when we got there, we discovered that the Sun Valley Wellness Festival was going on. And, a bonus that we weren’t counting on was being able to get tickets to hear Dan Milman speak on Friday night. Dan Milman is a former world champion athlete and author of 13 books, including Way of the Peaceful Warrior.

Most of us already have what we need to be successful, happy, and fulfilled in our lives. It’s just that sometimes we don’t know it and need to have it pointed out. So, we go to seminars, we listen to speakers, we read all the books, we listen to the CDs…all to learn how to get motivated to be successful, happy, and fulfilled.

But it’s not the KNOWING that is the problem – it’s the DOING. The challenge is turning what we know into what we do. Taking Action is the key.

So…

• Do you KNOW what to do to get healthy? Are you DOING it?
• Do you KNOW how to be successful? Are you DOING it?
• Do you KNOW what it takes to be happy? Are you DOING it?

Taking small steps everyday is a start. Although starting is usually the hardest part, it is about  Taking Action. Do something today – A little bit of something is better than a lot of nothing.

Excellent advice – I should take it. Patience has not always been my finest virtue. But like many other things, I have many opportunities to work on it and get better.

If you are like many people, you practice patience in categories. I’m very patient when it comes to listening to other people and understanding their feelings.

I’m not so patient when I am “waiting” for someone who is late. Or when someone tells me that they will do something and they don’t follow through. Or when people are not nice to other people. These may be areas that you could practice patience, too.

I heard a speaker recently who gave the example of being impatient while standing in line. Wanting to be in the front of the line implies that it is a better place than where we are at that moment. But really, it is not better – it is just different. And, since we can’t be more than one place at a time, we should practice enjoying wherever we are at any given moment in time.

It is an interesting viewpoint – one that I continue to implement as I practice being more patient.

Pick an area of your life in which you are not as patient as you could be. Practice with this one area for a week, and notice how you become more peaceful.

There’s no other feeling in the world like crossing the finish line of a marathon – relief, pain, accomplishment – pure happiness. I do believe it’s the finish line that keeps us coming back to the marathon over and over again.

People often ask in disbelief, “WHY would you put yourself through that?” My first response is usually, “because it’s fun and I love to do it.” But on a deeper level, I really think it’s that special moment when you cross that finish line.

Even though we say it’s just one moment – it’s one of those “moments” that lasts a lot longer than one second. It’s one of those “moments” when you realize that all your hard work was totally worth it. And, it feels so good to be done! At that point, it doesn’t matter if you just ran your personal best or your personal worst – you just ran another marathon, and 26.2 miles is a long way to run any way you look at it.

We experience many finish lines, both in running (literally) and in other things we do. (more…)

When you ask people for advice, do you really want to hear what they have to say? And, when they DO tell you what to do, do you make excuses for why it can be done?

When you give all the reasons that something can’t be done, it’s usually because you’re not willing to do what it takes to GET it done. Here’s a recap of a conversation that I had recently: (more…)

Why “Running 4 Your Life”?

When we hear the expression, “Run For Your Life!” it is almost always said with urgency, and it implies, “SAVE yourself – Do whatever it takes!”

“Running 4 Your Life” is about taking ACTION – present, ongoing steps to improve the 4 major areas of your life – physical, emotional, relationships, and spiritual – no matter what it takes.

Also, I love to run. So, for me Running is a metaphor for the way I do things. And the way I approach my running is the way I approach everything else in my life:

• I am committed to staying physically fit
• I am enthusiastic and have a positive outlook on life
• I plan ahead, manage my time, and am disciplined in following my plan
• I persist until I succeed, and I never give up
• I commit to a goal and then focus on the process
• I help and encourage other people to break through barriers
• I finish what I start

I will often use running examples to illustrate a principle, but you don’t have to be a runner to apply the teaching. It’s just that I learn so many lessons through my running.

So, in my blog posts, I hope that I’m able to help inspire you to make healthy connections in all areas of your life.

You can’t win if you’re not in the game. But sometimes, life events take us out of the game, whether it be from injury, family obligations, work, or family tragedy.

My friend Roz is a fellow marathoner. Roz was taken out of the game last year (and part of this year) with the deaths of both her parents. It was a very difficult time for her, and there was little or no time to train. What many people do not understand is that if you are a runner, you often feel guilty about not getting in your workouts. Add that to the stress of dealing with ill family members, and the stress is doubled.

Getting back on a training program is usually the hardest part – and it’s even harder when you can’t start at the level where you left off. Knowing you have to basically start from scratch can be extra hard and often discouraging. The mental challenge is probably greater than the physical challenge.

Roz has risen to the challenge – slowly, she has been able to start training, stick to her schedule, and “get back in the game.” I’m happy (and proud) to report that she is now training for the Marathon des deux rives in Quebec City, and yesterday she ran the Rockford Half Marathon. She’s back – and just about as strong as before! Look out Quebec City!

So, with less than 3 months to her marathon, Roz is back “on the path” to success. It’s all about getting back in the game.