Everything that we do as runners can coincide with how we approach other aspects of our lives.  I just recently came to this realization.  During a conversation with a friend of mine, he asked “Have you ever dropped out of a race? Just quit?” “No…I refuse.”  As soon as those words escaped my mouth it was like a light bulb had just illuminated every inch of my brain.  I am relentlessly driven when it comes to my running and workouts.  No matter what the weather is like outside, no matter how lazy I’m feeling, no matter how bad it hurts, I do it.  I don’t make excuses, I work around obstacles.  I ran my first marathon in the pouring rain, did not stop once and qualified for the Boston Marathon.  I ran the Boston Marathon in record high temperatures and finished extremely dehydrated and in a lot of pain but I finished it.  Weather patterns and seasons do not change the capabilities of our legs or bodies.  True, they may present obstacles, but it’s how we face them and overcome them that make us the badasses that we are truly capable of becoming.

When you think about it, the purposes behind different types of workouts and exercises can parallel with what we tend to encounter in life.  A speed workout is designed to help you push through walls and learn to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.  Long training runs are meant for enduring fatigue and pain for long periods of time.  Cross training adds variety and prevents burnout.  Body weight exercises force you to pull your own weight and plyometrics give you explosive power. 

Life is not always comfortable.  Sometimes, like in a speed workout, we have to push ourselves beyond our own preconceived limitations to accomplish something we wouldn’t be able to do if we “played it safe.”  Life isn’t always filled with happiness and void of pain.  There are times where, like a 20 mile training run, we have to endure physical and emotional suffering for extended periods of time.  Taking chances when the opportunity presents itself is like the cross training of life.  Break up the monotony and open your mind to everything possible.  The body weight exercises of life are those times when you take responsibility for your actions and pull your own weight.  And like plyometrics, provide yourself with the power to explode with relentless passion for what you truly believe is best for you.  The end result can amaze you.