I'm training for my 3rd marathon.
It's not my first rodeo, but that funny feeling still slaps me in the face whenever I lace up a pair of running shoes.
"You don't have to do this."
"You can take the day off."
"It's way too hot outside anyway."
The writer Steven Pressfield calls this the resistance. The desire for relief that people feel when they know they have to do something but just don't wanna.
I don't have Navy SEAL-like discipline by any means, but I've developed a few tools to help quiet the resistance and get me out and running even if I don't feel like it.
1.) Use this ancient philosophy on procrastination.
The Roman Emperor and stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius wrote about procrastination in his journal, which we now call Meditations.
I have this excerpt from Meditations copied in my own journal:
"At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: "I have to go to work — as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I'm going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?"
He doesn't talk about psyching yourself up for a 10-mile run. He's basically having a conversation with himself about getting out of bed. We aren’t made to huddle under the blankets and sleep all day, he argues.
I swear, now every time I think about complaining about the weather or that I'm tired, I'll think about this 2,000-year-old guy saying to himself, "Hey dude, others are doing their job. What makes you so special?"
It’s an ancient kick in the teeth.
2.)Surround yourself with people who will text you when you don’t show up
I don’t care if you’re as disciplined as Tom Brady, willpower will only get you so far. The resistance and that new Netflix show will eventually win out.
That’s why it helps to belong to a community that will hold you accountable. Send you a text if you don’t show up, or talk you through the days when you just don’t wanna.
My pace and mileage per week have dramatically increased since I moved to Austin. I’m convinced it’s for this one reason: It’s the run community capital of the world. No joke.
You could run all day every day in some run club if you wanted to.
So If you’re serious about running and sticking with it. Then do one of these two things:
1.) Sign up for a race with friends.
2.) Join run clubs and make that a part of your weekly schedule.
It’s that easy.
3.) Put your running shoes close to the door
We often won’t do something because the steps to get out the door overwhelm us.
Our room needs cleaning. Clothes need folding. And what about that email?
We know how easy it is to procrastinate when everything isn’t perfect. I suggest creating an environment that makes it super easy just to get out and run.
Always have a pair of running shoes by your door.
Have a drawer specific to running clothes and have three or four outfits so you always have enough.
Block schedule your run and write it down. You’re more likely to do something if it’s on your calendar.
Have your route planned, or better yet, just do the same route every time you run.
The author of Atomic Habits, James Clear, says that the environment is somewhat like an invisible hand that shapes our behavior. “Therefore, any change in behavior that you seek must start with the environment.”
3.) Don’t worry about results. Just let compound interest work its magic
I was named after Cal Ripken Jr.
Who's that? He's a Hall of Fame Shortstop who broke the record for the most consecutive baseball games played at 2,632.
Cal Ripken was a great fielder and a decent hitter, but his superpower was his consistency. The idea of showing up every day because you know deep in your gut that there's an invisible magic to compound interest.
The same goes for running. You won't see results after two weeks. It takes months, years, and decades to see results. There's magic in that longevity because it doesn't require talent. It just takes hustle and grit.
It's what made Cal Ripken a Hall of Famer. I try to remind myself that.
As Ryan Holiday once wrote, "Numbers are only interesting if they accumulate in large quantities.
4.) Running is one of the few things you have complete control over
There's a reason why many people get into running after a traumatic event like a divorce, death in the family, or addiction.
I don't think it's an escape, either. Of all the things out of our control, we have complete control over running. No matter how we are feeling, we can make the choice to go for a jog and remind our bodies who's in charge.
Personally, it's been life-changing. It's given me structure, discipline, a routine, and friends I would never have otherwise.
I figure my job is to pay back the debt to the running gods.
It's a bill I'm happy to pay.
That’s why I lace them up.