21 January 2019

Motivation Monday: Shutdown

I figured out how to add my stats to a photo!
This week the shutdown really started to get to me. We are not as bad off as some other families but it is definitely affecting our moods and our spending habits. And we have our own sort of survival guilt over the things we have to be thankful for, because other people don't have some of those things.

I'm continuing with my training for my spring races. Every day I say to myself that I could be using the time for one more hour of work that could make us a little more money. But then I say to myself that the race registrations are already paid for, so not training and then not being able to run the races would be a waste of money. And, realistically, my brain needs that hour off from writing and emails and worry.

If you see someone running or working out, in real life or on social media, don't roll your eyes and wonder why they're doing that when they should be working / parenting / whatever else you think they should be doing. Twenty-three hours out of the day, they may be doing those other things, plus hopefully getting some sleep. A lot of us are hustling right now for a variety of reasons. Give people their hour to run and shower. And examine how much time you're spending on social media before you question someone else's use of time.

Winter is socked in here. I did get outside this week and I plan to whenever it's feasible. I also finally figured out the trick of getting your running stats printed on the bottom of your photo. This has eluded me for years and it may be a small thing, but I'm tickled by it.

I'm not a huge treadmill fan but I'm warming up to it and can do about an hour if I have a good podcast to listen to. I've said this before, but one thing I will never do is call it the "dreadmill." I will also never use the term "junk miles" to refer to any run. Using negative terms puts my mind into failure mode before I've even started the run. I'm reframing it as a mental challenge. This is what has to be done in order to get in the training I need or the workout I need. It should be no different than any other workout that I'm not in the mood for. Why should I put an additional layer of negativity on it?

Thanks to those treadmill miles I reached my goal for this week, and a little extra because I felt good.

No comments: