Teddy Geiger sang “Life is a marathon…”
(This is a featured post. If you want an entry of yours to be posted here at Planet Slate, please send them to livecreatively@slateplanner.com!)
by Ailee Canlas
For me, to run is always a challenge. It’s so easy to say and believe “I’m tired today, I’ll just run tomorrow.” And the challenge doesn’t end there. The harder ones, you encounter while you run.
While running, you can feel your calves get heavier and heavier, your breathing getting quicker, and something at the side of your tummy starting to hurt. (Or maybe that’s just meeee). Tonight I learned again that there’s a better solution than stopping… or quitting. Or panicking. When things get tough and then tougher, you’ve got to learn how to breathe. If you have to slow down just to breathe right again, slow down.
Slow it down just to continue running. And from here, I realized that when you need to “go the distance”, you need endurance. More than speed. Speed will only take you so far. When the road is long and you intend to finish strong, train to endure.
For me, races are tough. That’s why on top of all the pep talk on repeat in my kokote, I run with a friend. Sometimes you lead, sometimes you follow. When you cross the finish line, victory’s always sweeter when you finish together. When you’re part of a team, isn’t it supposed to be that way? Sometimes you lead. Sometimes you follow. Win together.
The realizations are simple but they cost you too much when you forget.
-When things get tough, maybe you’re forgetting how to breathe. So breathe.
-If you want to last, endure.
-And it’s better to run, it’s better to laugh, it’s better to travel, it’s better to love, it’s better to live… when you’re not alone.
There’s a song that goes “Life is a marathon…” Now I understand.
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