Last week marked the unofficial start to the cross country season for the team I once helped coach. I have to admit I am more than a bit bummed out about missing out on another season. Every sweaty season offered an incredible roller coaster ride of laughs, tears, celebrations, challenges, and life lessons.
As I reminisced about all of the ups and downs of my 4 seasons as a coach, I started thinking about all the lessons these runners were going to experience. The list seemed endless, so I decided to write them out and see just how many I could come up with. In just over an hour, I was staring down at a list of over 170 lessons.
I won’t list them all right now, but I’ll share some of the bigger ones:
- Don’t look back.
- Your level of commitment determines your future opportunities.
- You control whether you meet your goals.
- You get what you work for, not what you wish for.
- Be intentional.
- Dress for the weather.
- Keep your head up.
- You won’t see any progress if you don’t record where you started or where you’re going.
- Hard work isn’t always about doing more, but being smarter about what you’re doing.
- Your thoughts become your reality.
- The amount of pain you can endure is determined by your mind, not your body.
- Your limiting beliefs are your biggest obstacles.
- Waiting for the perfect time is a waste of time.
- Do what you’re supposed to do when you’re supposed to do it, not just when you feel like it.
- Get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable.
- Excuses or results: the choice is yours.
- Run through the finish line.
- Setbacks are only as powerful as you make them.
- Choose your running buddies wisely.
- Nothing goes as planned. Keep calm, adapt, focus on your goals, and keep going.
- You choose whether your PRs haunt you or inspire you.
- Run for your own reasons.
- Don’t miss out on the journey by focusing only on the destination.
- Hard work trumps talent.
- Pace yourself.
- Comparison crushes confidence.
- You’re stronger than you know.
- Breathe.
- Watch for opportunities.
- Believe in yourself.
It’s pretty amazing to think about all that running has to offer, both mentally and physically. I really hope this year’s runners will take full advantage of their season while they can.