Tag Archives: running

How Hard Will You Push Yourself?

Tonight, as I watched The Biggest Loser on the treadmill while doing a tempo run, I thought about pushing myself.

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[source]

I think all the times I started down this path of healthy living before, I failed because of a self-fulfilling prophecy: I was afraid I would fail.


I was afraid I’d put in all that work and not be able to lose weight.

I was afraid I’d lose that first 10 or so pounds that’s pretty easy to drop when you start and not be able to go any further.

It wasn’t till I decided failure wasn’t an option that I succeeded. I started this blog. I went to a trainer who wouldn’t let me fail (even if pushing through those first few embarrassing workouts when I felt like I couldn’t do anything right felt like a failure.)

Pre-weight loss, I’d run three races, half-assing the training each time, subconsciously giving myself an out if I failed. “It’s okay–I didn’t really train for it.”

But now that I’m not quite as afraid of failure, now that I’ve accepted that taking risks always pays off, whether immediately or down the road as it teaches you something, I still find myself afraid to push myself. Especially in running. ESPECIALLY doing speed work.

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[photo via Tina]

Those old days where I was afraid to push myself for fear of failing come flooding back when I try to push the speed. Even though I know I’ve lost a ton of weight, I still sometimes see myself as the overweight girl I used to be, who couldn’t run. I ran with Tina and Monica at Fitbloggin’, and I was terrified. They are fast! How was I going to keep up with them? Again, i didn’t give myself a chance to fail. I was going to run with them, and I was going to keep up. (And I did.)

It took five half-marathons for me to reach my sub-2:00 goal last year. The first half, I wanted it so badly, but I just wasn’t ready. I missed it by just under two minutes. The next two halfs,

I just couldn’t pull it together and try hard enough to do it. Katie even paced me for the More | Fitness Half, but I was afraid for her to see me try and fail, and I gave up pretty early in, before I could fail.

My point? Take a chance on yourself. You’re worth it, and I’m pretty sure you’ll surprise yourself. (Also, if you’re a runner, do the damn speed work. It helps. Sigh.)

What did you think you couldn’t do and found out you actually could when you just wouldn’t let yourself fail? Do you love to push yourself or does it scare you?

Or…what are you afraid of failing at?

Right Under My Nose

You guys, sometimes I’m not the brightest.

I know this is shocking.

Today, I desperately needed to go grocery shopping, but it was cold and I was very happy to sit on my warm couch with my sleepy little dog.

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Who very badly needs a haircut. I didn’t feel like walking…well, anywhere, so I went to a few little markets in my neighborhood.

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They are just a few blocks away from me and dirt-cheap, but I always forget they’re there.

I started off at the Stiles Farmers Market (and yes, the inconsistency of spelling on those signs does drive me nuts, thanks for asking)

Sure, it’s no Whole Foods, or even Trader Joe’s, but hey, it has good, cheap, FRESH produce. (Finding fresh produce in NYC outside of Whole Foods/Trader Joe’s is not a fun, or cheap, pursuit usually.)

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All of this (uh, except for the bracelet) for $15!

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I also stopped at a fish market and got half a pound of scallops and half a pound of salmon for $12. If you’re adding that up at home, that’s $27. And awesome. (And, no, mom, I’m not going to get food poisoning from these fish, but thank you for your concern.)

I also went running this morning–thank god. I had a “45-60 min easy run” on my schedule, but I decided to go for gold and go for 60. I met up with Leticia, who lives just a half mile away from me, and we ran over to the East Side. She was worried that she was slower than me, but my legs and lungs were tight from the cold (it was 27 degrees but felt like in the teens) and more than happy to go slowly. We ran a total of 5.2 miles together, and I ran another .5 mile home for a total of 6.2. By the way, you know that when I say I ran “home,” I actually mean the bagel store, right? Because every single Saturday run is followed by a bagel.

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