NY Marathon
You are enough!
At some point in our lives we have told our self we are not good enough or not worthy. And we begin to believe it. We carry these feelings of self-worth into adult hood. For me it was probably when i was in high school. I told myself I can’t run, I can’t swim, I’m no good at athletics so I would avoid participating in any athletics carnivals, cross country or swimming carnivals.
It wasn’t that I couldn’t physically run or swim they weren’t my strengths. Looking back in hindsight it was the fear of coming last. The fear of being ridiculed for coming last. Or the fear of being teased in my swimmers about my body. So, I told myself I couldn’t do it and I started to believe I wasn’t good enough.
But you know what…. someone’s gotta come last right? Instead of booing or ridiculing someone for coming last, shake their hand and say well done you gave it a go. Give them a pat on the back and say “awesome job”.
With the many years I have been in the Fitness Industry my mindset has changed. I have put myself out of my comfort zone on several occasions which has allowed mt to grow and believe in myself. I have completed over half a dozen half marathons, half a dozen triathlons, a couple of mud runs and obstacle runs and in 2014 I completed the New York Marathon. Never in my life did I believe I could run 42.2km but I did.
With the many years I have been in the Fitness Industry my mindset has changed. I have put myself out of my comfort zone on several occasions which has allowed mt to grow and believe in myself. I have completed over half a dozen half marathons, half a dozen triathlons, a couple of mud runs and obstacle runs and in 2014 I completed the New York Marathon. Never in my life did I believe I could run 42.2km but I did.
After my first half marathon I came to the conclusion that running is 10 % physical the 90% is Mental.
When i did the NYC Marathon in 2014 I wanted to prove to myself that I could run. I wanted to show my kids that anything is possible if you just put your mind to it.
I completed that Marathon in 6 hours!! 6 hours of running. I was in so much pain but I did it, here’s my story…
I’m in the most amazing city in the world. It was 5 degrees. The winds were over 100km per hour. It was the strongest winds in history for the NYC marathon. And one thing I hated when i was training was running in the wind….and of course the universe gave me WIND. The windchill factor was -5. I was wearing skins, tracksuit pants, my Australian T-shirt, a long sleeve shirt, a jumper, a wind jacket, a beanie, a hat on top of my beanie, a scarf and i had those little hand warmers down my back and in my gloves. It was damn cold.
So anyway. I started the run. We started in New Jersey and ran across the Verazzano Bridge or should I say blown across the bridge. It was amazing to run through the city, people cheering on every corner, bands in every borough. If I was going to run 42.2km I wanted to do it somewhere special. So, NY it was. I had made it half way and my body was hurting. I had started to get blisters. I had ditched the track pants and jumper but still had everything else.
I got over the finish line. It was dark by this time, still cold and just before I crossed the finish line the officials wanted me to take off my jumper so they could see my Aussie Shirt for a photo. I did it. And when i crossed that line…. I cried…. I cried my eyes out…. I was so happy I finished….so proud of myself for not giving up…YES it took me 6 hour but so what I did it.
It was one on the best experiences of my life. To achieve something, you thought you couldn’t achieve. Proving to yourself that you are capable, you are worthy, you can do it is the best feeling in the world.
Anything is possible if you just believe in yourself. You are stronger than you think you are. You are more capable of doing things than you think you can. It’s about putting yourself in an uncomfortable position to achieve personal growth.
“If you’re not growing, you’re dying” ~ Tony Robbins
For me now this is where my positive, tough love attitude comes from. I see so many people quick to say “I can’t do that” and give up without even trying. All it takes is someone else to push you to do it.
What have you wanted to achieve but have always thought you couldn’t?
Reach out if you want support, encouragement, motivation and help with mindset to achieve your goals.
Always with Light & Love
Tracy