Fitness
slowly embracing this thing called working out.
Living with Some regrets in Order to Live without Regret.
The triathlon is in 2 weeks.
This is how I feel:
As I set off to run in the Texas heat my entire being thinks,
“WHY ON EARTH AM I DOING THIS?”
and then I regret my impulsive decision to register for TriWaco.
But the other half of me knows that I will never regret registering for the death of me after I complete the triathlon.
Half the things that we will never regret doing are the most difficult things to do. Like, right now Clayton is regretting agreeing to take a Country Western Dance class that starts tomorrow, but when we graduate the class, we’ll be so proud of ourselves. No, but really– good relationships, attaining knowledge, thriving churches, happy living– everything worth it takes work, and the work we momentarily regret will be eternally worth it. We’ll never Regret that.
What is something that was tough at the time but you’re now glad you didn’t quit?
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there’s no pause button
I thought I would get super inspired and complete multiple half-marathons. Training for the race taught me discipline and I promised I would always have something like a race in my schedule. It gave me focus and drive and even confidence.
Then I ran it.
Since March 27th I’ve run maybe 5 times, and those 5 times left me dumbfounded as to how on earth I actually ran more than 2 miles. 1 mile and I am wiped x 100.
Since friends and family followed me through the training process, read about it, and saw my beat red face come in after long runs, they somehow got inspired. Maybe it’s because they saw a non-runner actually run.
That’s great. I’m glad they picked up running & found/find joy in it, but here’s the sting: they still tell me when they run. At first I loved it; I found that people who never ran all of the sudden were giving it a try, but then they bypassed me like crazy. They were finding joy and happiness in a ridiculously monotonous sport. They’d send me their mile times and were running faster than I ever even aspired to run! When I was sitting on the couch their mileages were skyrocketing.
No one’s life was really changed forever because I ran a half-marathon. I should probably start working out again and regain discipline, but as I’ve thought of this part of my life I’m reminded of Moses. Looking at Moses helps me make sense of those moments that seem to have little impact or relate to other areas of my life.
Here’s what I mean: Sometimes we are a deliverer, and we are the rescuer in the moment with our words of wisdom or heart of servant hood; we lead others out of slavery in Egypt. Sometimes we’re the encourager; we lead others as we follow behind the cloud and fire of God. Other times we’re a provider; we show others how to receive the goodness of God whether it be manna or contentment or endurance. Sometimes we’re all those things; sometimes we’re just one bleep in someone’s life; sometimes we don’t even see ourselves as anything.
Moses wandered with his people and he died right before the Israelites finally entered the promise land, but do we ignore his leadership of the Israelites? Of course not. He didn’t get to see the end, but his impact lived on. God’s story continued.
When we sit down to watch a movie, we watch a problem develop, a dramatic climax ensue, and a miraculous make-up all happen within an hour and a half. We like resolve. Ends. Finish lines.
Our lives, days, and little encounters are all part of a larger story that doesn’t revolve around our little lives. God’s story is so much larger and we’re invited into it, and even when we stop running, the impact continues as God orchestrates the larger story with precision, creativity, & SOVEREIGNTY. It’s beautiful. We may die before the Promised Land, but we hold the hope and live by the hope of the resolve that is promised in God’s ultimate conclusion.
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Commenthalf marathon lesson
Found some thoughts from my half marathon training. Such a great reminder for tonight.
January 9, 2011
Day 7-14
We add a bit to the verse and say something like
“I trust, but maybe I should help Him a little just in case…”
We keep on our plans, but in the back of our minds we start making up back-up plans in case God doesn’t act in the way we’ve prayed He would, and in some cases, the way He’s promised He would.
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Ramblings.
It’s day 3 and I already forgot my retainer. The fear is real yet the discipline is weak.
The spirit is willing, but the body is weak. Matthew 26:41, yeah?
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Thankful for grace this morning.
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Grace for those times my mouth runs off and I’m caught chasing after it with my brain.
Grace for those times my attitude is far less than pleasant and pretty spring flowers seems to shout, “we’re happy! Why aren’t you??”
And grace for far more that I’m willing to admit right now that my Father in heaven chooses to offer not based on merit but by His unconditional, unfaltering love.
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Perhaps I’ll offer a little grace to myself too.
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In other ramblings,
- My half marathon is in FOUR days. My excitement is growing and my nervousness is FREAKING OUT.
- I’ve had Mr. Snow snow cones 3 times this past week (in preparation for the race, you see). The first time this year was with buddies Nincy &Christabelle.
- I want to spend every moment outside.
- I watched the movie Bladerunner for class and the teacher asked if I were ok. I guess me burying my head in my arms triggered some alarm on his part.
- I’ve been praying Psalm 23 each morning and each evening and it has changed how I live.
- I played Twister for the first time since like 3rd grade.
- I still accidently dress like Clayton and yes, we still LOVE Sonic (though now that I don’t drink Diet Coke it’s not quite the same. With 168,000 combinations I found a new favorite: Ocean Water)
- I graduate in 51 days. Too much freaking out for one post or I’d freak out. maturity, Caroline. Maturity.
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CommentNew Endeavor
I’ve decided to run a half marathon.
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Like, I’m actually going to do it. No more of these goals floating around in la la land. I, Caroline Gear, will be running a half marathon on March 27th.
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As accountability and motivation I’m going to blog throughout the process of me– a challenged runner– training for the day. Instead of bombarding my blog with mini running posts, I’ve started writing at
http://laziness2craziness.blogspot.com/
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Lazy to Crazy it is.
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Join me.
Support me.
Encourage me.
Ask me how it’s going.
Yell at me if I quit.
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Thank you in advance, friends.
Caroline
the newbie.
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Raggedy Ann
Today I am Raggedy Ann. My legs are shaky and wobbly… like jelly.
Maybe I should work out a little more often. Ouch, lower body.
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Hey There
In a matter of days I'm going to marry my college sweetheart Clayton. I'll be the resident chaplain at a girls dormitory this year... which will add a few quirks to our first year of marriage. I've been adopted into Texas culture and I keep Sonic in business. I blog about faith and the struggles with faith. My first name is Jane; I'm Caroline.
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To my single friends, I just posted a cute picture of Clayton and I on Facebook. 10 minutes later we were sitting in my driveway talking about how his stress was overwhelming me and how he was stressed because I was overwhelmed. Dumb. […]
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