5 Life Lessons I Leaned From Running 5km Every Day For 30 Days
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The scary part about starting my personal fitness challenge of running 5km every day for 30 days was thinking I could fail. There were days when I felt unwell and that maybe it wasn’t a good idea to go for a run but I did it anyway. It was on those days that I was most proud of myself and I quickly learned that running made me feel better. I told myself that if I can run on the hard days, when I’m not feeling well, then this 30 day challenge stands no chance of defeating me. I remember repeating to myself “I’ve already completed this challenge” even though I was only on day 10.
Of course I didn’t want to fail. Knowing that holding myself accountable would make all the difference, I decided to tell everyone about what I was doing and posted daily updates on my Instagram account. If I hadn’t done that I probably wouldn’t be writing this today.
Before I get into what I learned, it’s important to understand that no matter where you are on your fitness journey or in life, you can challenge yourself to improve. To some, 5 KM might not seem like a lot. To others, it may feel like an impossible task. Challenging yourself to get outside for a 10 minute walk or bike ride is a great way to start. This wasn’t the first time I tried a 30 day challenge but it’s the first time I succeeded. If you want to improve and feel better about yourself, all you have to do is start. What’s great about all the lessons I learned from this challenge is how they apply to life, even if you’re not a runner.
Here are the 5 lessons I learned:
Getting started is the hardest part. I started every run feeling slow, tired and sore and somehow I always made it through to the end. I learned to expect not to feel great at the beginning. I knew that if I could make it through km one I would be able to finish. Around the half way point, this incredible thing would happen in my mind and body. All the stiffness, soreness and doubt would slowly disappear. Some days it was a battle to get out the door but I would tell myself “All I have to do is make it through the first km.” I would build momentum and confidence with each stride from there on.
When I don’t feel like doing something I can still push myself. Exercise has always helped me feel better mentally and physically. Before starting this challenge I already had a consistent exercise routine with lifting weights. I use lifting weights as a form of daily therapy so I knew I could apply the same principle to running. This can be done in any area of life but it takes practice. Even when I don’t feel like waking up at 5am, or doing that extra set of reps, or writing that email, I can still get it done. Learning from the smaller tasks helped me build character in becoming the type of person that gets stuff done. Building that skill has been one of the most powerful and impactful tools in my life.
Pushing myself to improve in the moment is the goal. It’s not about the destination or finishing fast. We often hear the saying “all you have is the present moment.” During my runs, this saying became more true than ever and it’s probably the most important lesson I learned. When I focus too much on the larger goals it can become paralyzing. When I think about how many more runs or km I have left it’s discouraging. There is only one thing that really matters and helped push me forward and the same is true for everything in life. It’s taking action and doing the best I can in the moment to improve. I would break up my goal into smaller, more manageable tasks. Getting that extra hour of sleep, stretching, staying hydrated or planning and organizing my day the night before set me up for success. Success lies in those moments and habits. Doing the small things, that’s the goal.
Sleep, recovery, stretching and nutrition are the most important for performance. This was the hardest lesson I learned because of how time consuming it was. Each run would take approximately 25-30 minutes but took hours of preparation to perform my best. It doesn’t matter what you do or who you are, if you’re not taking care of your body at some point it will begin to break down. Getting 8 hours of sleep, daily stretching and fuelling my body with nutritious food not only improved my performance physically but mentally and it put me in a better mood.
Not everyone will understand me and my goals. At 37 years old, one thing that I have grown comfortable with is being misunderstood. I occasionally have moments where I care too much about people’s perception of me so this is an ongoing practice. I constantly remind myself of how freeing it is to be doing what feels right in my heart, doing what I love and moving towards my goals and not being held back by what people think. I heard a saying once that now lives in my head and that’s “other people’s opinions about me, is none of my business.”
You don’t have to create your own personal challenge but if you’re up for it I guarantee you’ll learn something about yourself. It can be scary to self-reflect, be ambitious or step out of your comfort zone but it’s worth it and I’ll be here rooting for you no matter what.
-Phil