Episode 103: How Can You Master Challenging Moments?
OMG, you guys. I got handed a serious piece of humble pie this morning by my running coach.
I’ve said it many times, and I swear I mean it: None of us is special. And holy cannoli, if I didn’t get a reminder of that today.
Over the last few months, I’ve taken up running again. I used to run. I haven’t in years. Ever since I grew people, I pretty much let my running world disappear.
I did this to myself because I’ve been working hard to stay as healthy as possible over the last several years, and I’m so grateful I have. It’s helped with my autoimmune diseases, my sleep, and my ability to remain as productive as I like.
And this morning, we were working on speeding up over longer distances. Not my strong suit, to say the least. I’m not good at this.
I was running my little heart out. I was huffing and puffing but keeping my chin up, butt tucked, arms at a 90-degree angle, and I thought, “OMG. How much longer do I have to hold on to this pace?”
It was right at that moment I heard my coach say, “You’re going to stay here for three more minutes. Don’t back down. Don’t slow your pace. Stay. Uncomfortable.”
Rude.
And brilliant.
She went on, “Everything you want is on the other side of this discomfort. Everything you say you’re going for is happening right now. In this moment, when it’s hard. Stay here. Tell yourself you’re in it. Don’t stop. Don’t slow down.”
I hung in there. My head fell a little for a second while I laughed to myself. I thought, “Who does she think she is — me?”
We all need to hear it sometimes, right? We don’t want to be uncomfortable. It sucks. In fact, we do everything we can to NOT be uncomfortable for most of the day.
But when it comes to your goals, most of the time, you’ll have to do something you’ve never done before to reach them. And that’s not comfortable.
To be honest, I almost missed it. I almost let my thoughts pull me out of the game, and I would’ve missed that moment. I would’ve missed my best running day yet, all in the name of staying comfortable.
Today matters. Get out there and challenge yourself to go further, go faster, and work toward what you say you want.
Pop in those earphones, and let’s get to it.
Other Game On Girlfriend podcast episodes you might want to check out:
Are the Results You Want Taking Too Long?
Don’t Believe the Hype: You’re Not Special (so mean, right? LOL!)
What’s Causing the Results You Have Right Now?
You can check out our podcast interviews on YouTube, too!
