Friday, May 28, 2010

Too Stupid to Quit

Two posts?  Must be Friday.  No really.  I was having some thoughts and I thought they'd be fun to share.

So back near the end of March, I realized I was WAY heavy for me.  I mean, when I was 25, I weighed about 150 lbs.  But there I was staring down the barrel of 32 at 220lbs. Whoa!  So I thought I'd take up running.  I'd run when I was training for the Fire Academy, and managed an average of 5-7 miles per day.  I was also in the best shape of my life when I started, but that's a different story.

Regardless, I began running.  I had my little GPS watch, good shoes, and an iPod loaded with motivational music.  My first distance was 3.5 miles.  I walked most of it and could barely walk the next day.  Over the next month, I managed to begin doing at least as much jogging as walking.  And by the end of the month I had managed to jog the entire thing.

Frequently, I suffered from shin splints and sore knees and lots of muscle stiffness.  But I kept telling myself that one day, I'd run a marathon.  I could barely go 3.5 miles without having to stop, but I was determined to run 26 miles.  It seemed like this completely unattainable goal.  But I kept going because I'm frequently too damn stupid to quit.

I am a rule breaker.  I probably don't stretch properly, I probably don't train properly.  I'm probably skipping about a dozen steps.  But rules only ever tell us what we can't do, never what we're actually capable of.  And here I am about two months later easily jogging six miles without stops or rests or anything.  My shin splints are mostly gone and the only major problem I have is a blister that has more layers than an onion.  I wasn't able to do it because I'm a great athlete or read a lot of blogs or books about how to run.  I got here, and I'll get into marathon shape, because I'm too dumb to know I can't.

And that's my approach to writing too.  There's a lot of information out there telling writers what they can't do, what they shouldn't do, what will ensure their book never sees the light of day.  You know what I say?  Turn up the music on your iPod, crank up the speed on, ignore the pain, and keep pushing forward.  Maybe you'll fall--no one's journey is the same.  Maybe you won't be ready in the time frame that you want to be.  But eventually you'll get there.  You'll only ever fail if you quit.

7 comments:

  1. That's a very motivational post you've got there.

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  2. Well said. Looking forward to release day, and photos of you jumping out of a plane. Running is awesome and oxygenates the brain, which in turn makes you more alert when writing. No doubt, I need to get back into running.

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  3. Woo hoo! Isn't it the most awesome feeling? I'm up to 5 miles without stops, and I didn't think it would EVER happen. If you haven't already, read ULTRAMARATHON MAN: CONFESSIONS OF AN ALL NIGHT RUNNER by Dean Karnazes. Talk about major motivation. Good luck with it!

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  4. Congrats on the ease of 6 mile runs. IMHO, if you can run 6 miles comfortably, you can run 26.2 -- you just have to fuel properly + play some mind games.

    Great point about not letting other people tell you what the journey is.

    Gonna check out that book BJ recommends...

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  5. What's the fire academy? Are you a fireman?

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  6. Congrats on the running I think I need to do the same but I will be pushing 2 but great motivation and that is what everyone needs. I started fit camp workout on saturdays and that is hard but getting better. Great job and can't wait for the book!

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  7. This is awesome, Shaun. I think the title is wrong though. This isn't stupidity. This is sheer determination. And man, I wish I had more of this all the time :)

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