It's all in my mind

Have you ever felt like you know you are capable of so much more than what you are doing now but you just don't know how to tap into your full potential? We see others around us hitting their goals, setting personal records and they don't seem any different than you. How do they do it?

I'm dealing with that right now. So I had to stop and remind myself of something. I believe it all starts in the mind, especially when it comes to running or any kind of athletic routine. Your mind can play a big part in how you are going to finish. When I set out for a training run, my mind plays games with me the ENTIRE TIME!! It can drive me crazy sometimes. For example, just the other day I went for a short jog around the lake which is 2.5 miles. I struggled...I struggled, yet 2 days before that I did the same run and had no problem at all. And hello, I have run marathons before...why is this so difficult!!!!!!

When you feel like you are having a bad training day or a bad day trying to reach what ever goal it is you are aiming for, slow down and have a little conversation with yourself. Tell yourself how good you will feel when you are done. Remind yourself that you are capable of anything!! And most of all...challenge yourself. When you challenge yourself you reach goals that you never thought you could get to.

From the words of a great leader here in Orlando:

"It's all what you put out into the universe dude!"

I feel the need for speed!

Over the past couple of months, I have been watching some of my friends train intensely for the Ironman Florida. For those of you who don't know what an Ironman is let me explain it. It starts with a 2.4 mile swim, then you move on to a 112 mile bike ride and finish it up with a 26.2 mile run (a marathon), all in one day. Yea, I know what some of you new runners are thinking...ARE THEY CRAZY!!!! I don't think they are crazy, I think they are heroes. It requires some HARD CORE TRAINING!! They all have their own reasons for why they are doing this and it has inspired me to get back into training

The past couple of weeks I have felt like something has been missing. My day's are pretty busy but apparently I don't think I am busy enough! So I decided I need to get back into training for something. I realize I have not really been doing too much since my last marathon which was this past November. So I have decided to train for a couple half marathons. I want to do 2-3 half marathons at the end of the year. But I am taking a different approach to my training this year. I know I can run this distance and that won't be too much of a challenge for me. So this time around I am going to focus on speed. I want to be able to run a half marathon in well under 2 hours and I'm going to take you guys on my journey with me. So that's my plan! We will see where it takes me or should I say where I take it!

Learning from Champions

"Never let the odds keep you from doing what you know in your heart you were meant to do."
~ H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

For the past 5 months I have been working with champions who have decided to take the plunge into the running world. I must say that I have been so impressed with the dedication that some of these people have shown. They are out there for every practice and won't let rain, heat, thunder and even lightning get in their way (although I do argue with them when I see lightning to go home!).

So what have I learned from these champions? Well let me first go back to why I created this group. For those of you who have never heard of the website meetup.com, I highly suggest you check it out if you are looking to meet new people and get active. I became an organizer and created a beginner runner's group (you can check it out at www.meetup.com/MichelleRuns). I wanted to start this group because I felt their weren't too many running groups out there that were geared towards people who have never run before or haven't run in a few years (basically people starting from scratch). I wanted people who had a desire to start running but were too scared to start either with a group or on their own to feel welcome and completely comfortable in my group and to learn something while they were out there. I think it actually worked! I have over 130 people in the group and it keeps growing every day!

So back to my initial question. What have I learned from these champions? At the beginning of every session the group does introductions and I ask them to tell the group why they decided to join this group. Here are the top 5 most common reasons:

1. To get fit
2. To become a better runner
3. To participate in a 5K, 10K or even a half marathon
4. Lose weight
5. Meet new people

Every one's reasons were pretty similar and what I had expected to hear. But what I did learn from these champions is the how dedicated they are!

There is Naseem, who was running 10 minutes late the other day and managed to catch up with us on the course. And I believe he has only missed one session!

There is Nicole who is always wanting to go out and run again after our session is over. She is also one of the ones who fights me when its lightning out! :)

There is Carol, who comes out to run with us usually after running with another group in the morning!

These are just some of people who are part of the group and I know there will be many more stories to come. I have really enjoyed working with these champions. The most wonderful part about this journey is that I did not expect to learn so much from them!

Do you have a hobby that you have always wanted to try but have been too nervous to dip your feet into it? I encourage you to break out of our comfort zone because the results could be bigger than you expected.

Happy Running!

more inspiration

I'm having writers block....so I thought I would post some inspiration. Great video..

Slim down America 2009

I have just discovered the most AMAZING campaign! I am so passionate about helping people get their health back whether it be weight loss, energy or performance. I'm so passionate about it that one of my new years resolutions was to help 100 people get their health back! Seriously...ask my friends! Seeing as I used to be 30lbs over weight and had zero energy, I hate to see others that way! I guess that's one of the reasons I am so passionate about running and working out!

Anyway, on to the campaign. It's called Slimpact and its purpose is to SLIM DOWN AMERICA! I have yet to find a company that has designed a campaign that targets the United States weight problem. Did you know that 2/3's of the US is overweight? The company is called Advocare. They sell great nutritional supplements (I have tried them and they got me off my red bull kick so I'm sold). They have come out with this product called Slim. Slim is a 2ox bottle that has an appetite suppressant, gives you AWESOME energy and helps enhance your metabolism. I have been using it the past couple of days and I'm sold! My energy has been off the charts and a friend of mine has already lost 2lbs in 4 days. And to top things off, once I found out that world class doctors make this product and NFL football players take it, I was sold!

So I have decided to take the "Slimpact Challenge" I signed up last night! 4 winners in the U.S. will get a FREE MAKEOVER! How cool is that! So I'm sharing it with the world. If you or anyone you know wants to sign up or get more info you can visit my Slimpact page Spread the word and lets get this countries weight problem under control!

PS Sorry for all the excitement in this email....I am just in awe with this campaign!

No matter what others say...Carry On

I run for....

I'm sure many of you have heard the song I Run for Life by Melissa Etheridge. The song about running to find a cure for cancer. The song just popped up on my iPod and it inspired me to write about my interesting run I had this morning.

I went to go meet a new running group that was organized by the church I have been going to. One of the reasons I was interested in meeting this group was because of where they met and their purpose for their runs. Every Monday and Wednesday a small group of people meet at the Coalition for the Homeless here in Orlando. This running group was formed back in August to help people at the coalition in recovery programs. The purpose of the group was to help these people turn to something healthier (like running!) I read an article about this group in the church magazine and found myself very interested in the program...

So at 6AM this morning I met the group. It was small group today; 2 group leaders, 2 people from the coalition and myself. I had never been to the building...nor did I have any idea where it was, so when I got there I have to admit that I was pretty freaked out that I was in one of the worst parts of the city. I mean don't get me wrong...I wasn't expecting gold paved streets! For those of you who live in Orlando, I was on the corner of Paramore and Central....enough said. But when I met the group I did not feel uncomfortable at all. They welcomed me with open arms. And I think the people who stayed at the Coalition enjoyed having some "guests" there.

This morning was an eye opener for me. My purpose of going out this morning was to meet new people and do something good. However, seeing these people and how they lived had a bigger effect on me than I thought it would. When we were finished with the run and started walking back to our cars, a women with her baby in a stroller started heading towards us. It suddenly clicked with me that they had been out there all night long. This run made me think about all the different reasons people run and how important those reasons are.

When I first got into running and decided to train for my first marathon, I trained in memory of my grandmother who passed away from Lymphoma. I raised over $2200 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. To this day she is still in my heart when I run. I have other reasons for running too. I guess you could say that they are selfish reasons after all I have written. I run for speed, I run to fight stress, I run to stay in shape, I run to be a part of something.

So what are your purpose for running? Do you have a purpose? It seems like that is a trend these days and such a great trend it is! A purpose might even give you the motivation you have been looking for!

Today was a life changer for me!

Happy Running!
Michelle