Marathon Training

Marathon training can be a daunting task. Many people have said to me, "I could never do that! I can barely run a block!" My reply to them is, "I used to feel the same way!" In fact after finishing my first half I determined I would NEVER do a full marathon because the half was sooooo hard!!! Two years later I finished my first marathon! So much for NEVER!!!

I don't know how many people have ran a marathon and failed. I'm sure there is a good number of people who have. Without the proper training and a mentor or friend to keep you on track most people will NEVER complete a marathon. You have to WANT a marathon! If you don't want to complete a marathon you won't train and training is ESSENTIAL to completing a marathon.

I have had several different running partners over the years. Most people struggle to complete three miles! Three miles is a great accomplishment. It takes about three miles just to warm up your body and get into your running rhythm or what I call "auto pilot". Most people quit before they ever hit three miles because "it's hard". Of course it is hard! Your body is learning something new! Your body needs to become accustomed to running and build it's stamina for running. If you want to run a marathon you need to commit to knowing it is going to be hard, there will be some pain or discomfort, and you will get tired! If running a marathon were easy everyone would do it....and we probably wouldn't be that amazed at the people that did! You don't see people standing around clapping, teary eyed, and handing out medals for people who walked to the end of the street....and why? It's not that amazing! Anyone can do it! We applaud those who accomplish great feats. We applaud them because we know they had to make sacrifices to reach their goals. Check out Dick Hoyt http://www.teamhoyt.com/ If that isn't sacrifice and accomplishing something almost "impossible" I don't know what is. It's amazing what we can do if we put our minds to it!

I remember when I was training for my first marathon and I did the first 20 mile run of my life!!! It was hot. I was in a lot of pain. I had given birth to my first child six months previously and the strain it caused on my body caused me a lot of pain running. My stomach muscles were in pain, my feet hurt, my head hurt. I was so tired I could hardly talk. Negative thoughts set into my brain, "If you can't finish this, you can't finish the marathon. If you feel this bad at 20...how will you ever make it to 26.2?" My mentor, my dad, was with me. He gave me encouragement, "Jess, just keep putting one foot in front of the other and we'll get there." How profound!!! If we just keep putting one foot in front of the other. Don't stop. Don't quit. Don't back track. Just put one foot in front of the other.

Nothing in this life that is worth while is easy. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and eventually you will reach your goals. When you set a goal follow through with the training necessary to reach that goal. It will be hard. People may doubt you. When you are struggling to reach your goal make sure you have the proper examples or friends to lift you up and encourage you. Don't stop. Don't back track. Keep on moving forward and you will get there!

Tapping Into Our Negativity

I had another first today. I had my first EFT or "tapping" appointment. One of my good friends is a foot zonologist and an EFT specialist. She taught me that our bodies have an inner energy that works like a light bulb. If something interrupts that current the light bulb won't turn on. Our bodies are the same. There is energy in our core and when that energy is interrupted we don't function like we should. Stress, anxiety, anger, sadness, and fear can all cause a break in our energy circuit. By tapping on certain acupressure/acupuncture points on our body and repeating phrases such as "I deeply and completely accept myself" and "I felt bad, but I'm letting it go" can remove the breaks from our energy system. By removing these breaks we can more clearly see our worth and what our purpose is in life. Our bodies and souls are so connected! It was a very enlightening experience! Found out I was holding on to things I thought I was over! I found my breathing changing, my body changing, and my thoughts changing as we continued through the appointment. I am a believer in this art! If you find yourself overwhelmed, hurt, or discouraged find someone who can teach you this art. It truly changed my thought patterns and reaffirmed my belief that we need to take care of our bodies, minds, and spirits. They are connected. Sometimes we need a little bit of physical help to help free our minds of the negativity. We need to get rid of negativity to excel in life. If you are having trouble doing this on your own, find an EFT specialist. It truly can change your life.

Sewing Seeds of Accomplishment

Today I sewed a piece of clothing for the first time in my life...ok, second time...but the pajama shorts I made in 8th grade hardly count as clothing! Anyways, on another blog I found a tutorial on turning a women's skirt into a little girl's dress. I thought..."I think I could do that." I have a couple of skirts that are getting a little old...why not try it?
I gathered up my skirt, pins,and embellishments. The tutorial seemed really simple. I felt pretty confident in what I had gotten myself into. Twenty minutes later that feeling had vanished. "How do I know wich way to cut? Wich side do I pin?" I began to worry, "what have I gotten myself into?"
An hour and a half later amid the endless rounds of unpicking my creation I thought, "Is this worth it? Do I really care about finishing this dress? I could just buy one". Yet, I pressed on. Literally, there was a lot of pressing!!!
Why did I keep going? Even though the dress was not the beautiful, flawless dress I had dreamed? Why did I keep going even though it was hard and I was NOT enjoying myself? Because I knew what the end result would be...SUCCESS!!! When I tried the dress on my little girl and her face lit up and she didn't want to take it off...I knew this is why!!! My end result was to make my daughter happy! It didn't matter how I got there. The point is I got there. There were many bumps along the way. Discouragement, doubt, and frustration, but I still got there. I learned a lot along the way. Now I could help someone else reach that point and accomplish the goal that I obtained. Most things that are worthwhile take time and patience and a lot of work. We MUST push through the rough times to reach our goal. Why give up? If I had "thrown" in the towel at my first mistake...or my second or third...I wouldn't have learned anything, except how to quit. ANYONE can quit!!! Only the tough make it through the rough times and they almost always come out on top.
Remember what it is you are sewing! Push through until the end. It may not be perfect but it will be worth your time!
Pictures will be coming...I just need to add the embellishments!!!

Mind Over Matter

"Mind over matter" is a quote most of us have heard throughout our lives. As a person who has struggled with anxiety and panic disorders I have heard this quote more than most! I have always KNOWN the effects of a NEGATIVE mind.
As a child I struggled leaving home for ANY reason because it was SCARY and out of my COMFORT zone. As soon as I knew I was really away from home I would panic. Panic would lead to headaches, nausea, sweaty palms, dizziness, heart palpitations, and sometimes numbness. This anxiety has followed me through to adulthood. As I experienced new things in life the anxieties would seem to follow. Anything could set off this negative pattern in my mind. Once the negativity entered my brain, the body quickly followed with its response of headaches, nausea, sweaty palms, dizziness, heart palpitations, and numbness.

I always thought "if I could only harness this negative energy and change it to good...how powerful would it be?". VERY POWERFUL!!! If my mind can cause such a horrible reaction in my body doesn't it make sense that the same kind of POSITIVE energy entering my brain could cause the same kind of POSITIVE reaction in my body?
Our minds are a POWERFUL TOOL! Think of all the negativity in our world. You can't turn on the television without hearing something horrible. We are pumped full of negative media and all the horrors going on in the world. What if the news were ONLY GOOD? What if we only reported the AMAZING things that are happening? People succeeding? People doing good? Jobs that are prospering? Why are we so set on sharing only the negative that is out there?!!! No wonder our economy is bad and the world is in turmoil. We are bombarded with negative and we see no way out.

I propose we all change our thoughts. Look only for the positive. When we think positive we attract positive. When we talk and look and act negative, we attract the negative. Let's change. Just a little. Each little thing we do helps. As a woman who reaches a height of 4'10" I can tell you.....little things CAN bring about great things!