1. All runs are different
Say you go out on Monday and have a really crappy run. You feel deflated, tired and stressed. “What’s wrong with me? I was rested, happy, and healthy. Why did this run suck?” Sometimes runs stink for no reason. Could be emotional, physical, weather-related. Sometimes there’s a cause: rehabbing from injury, you raced a few day earlier, you lack sleep and rest. But guess what: its over. You have a fresh start the next day. Shake it off. My Tuesday run was not good. I was cold, I was tired from staying up late studying with Preston. I wanted my bed. Today I felt like a Kenyan. I had pep, joy, and I enjoyed this run. No two runs are the same
2. Bad runs make us appreciative of the good days
Without a crappy run yesterday, I wouldn’t have been so thrilled about today. Yah, sure, yesterday I was thinking to myself: “You got out of a warm bed and ran in subfreezing temps for THIS?” So I take some pride that I got out the door. Proud that I ran regardless of how I felt or the quality of my run. Yogi Berra once said “baseball is 90 percent mental and the other half is physical.” The same goes for running. Training the mind is so much harder than training the body. Bad runs teach us to focus, to let go of the bad, and to look to the good.
3. Letting go of a bad run is good training for running, and life
Life has ups and downs. Running has ups and downs. Parenting has ups and downs. Our jobs have ups and downs. EVERYONE has good days and bad days. Expect bad days, push through them, grow from them. Let the bad days teach you about perseverance. Let them teach you that life is not always a unicorn rainbow festival. If you expect to go out each day and run like Meb, then you will not have a long and happy running career. We all struggle. And dealing with the struggle and pushing through it is as valuable as the hardest workout you can do.
So next time you have a stinky run, let it go. Pat yourself on the back for getting it done and move on. The next day gives you afresh and hopeful day with endless possibilities.
This Running Life 