I DID IT! I Know You Can Do YOUR “NEVER” Too!

by Karen Elizaga | Posted: April 5th, 2010 | 1 Comment »

After the nerves and doubt about whether I could finish a half marathon, I did it! This past Saturday, a tremendously beautiful and sunshine-y day in NYC, I woke up with butterflies in my stomach and headed over to Queens, New York at the site of the US Open tennis tournament and the World Expo. I was still in a bit of disbelief that I was actually going run 13.1 miles, but I was excited, too.

I started the race with my dear friend, partner, and gazelle-like runner, Patricia, whose bright idea this all was (12 hours earlier, I was growling at her). I high fived Jay, Sloane and Finn at a number of points (it was so awesome to see their excited faces!). I ran behind a woman (Michelle, 1369) who caught me catching her singing out loud. She was actually going through the motions of and singing Beyonce’s Single Ladies (I loved it!).

At 10 miles, I yelled for Hicham, my trainer, as he got his kids out of the car. I passed a grandmother whose family cheered her on excitedly! I ran with runners who were fitter, heavier, taller, faster, less able, older and younger than me. I ran for a few minutes with a mother who was also running for her kids – two grown daughters whose fitness and activity she wants to keep up with. I witnessed a mother-daughter running team. Amazing.

Then 2 hours and 19 minutes after we began, Patricia and I crossed the finish line together! She, despite her faster pace, waited for me to run the last mile (how amazing is that?? I adore this woman!)! Yippee!

I have shared my journey to the half marathon because it has been a real exercise in overcoming self-limiting beliefs. Here were mine pre-race (some of them longstanding and deep-seated):

• I am not a runner. I don’t run.
• Patricia, are you kidding me??
• I could never run even 13.1 miles. Or 8 miles. Or 7. Or 6.1.
• [Approaching a tough hills training workout]: OMG. I am not going to get through this.
• [Approaching the first 8-mile, 9-mile, 10-mile and 11-mile training runs]: OMG. That is LONG! What the BLEEP am I doing??
• I don’t have a runner’s body.
• I have bad knees (not since college).
• I have asthma (not since I was a little kid!).
• I detest running.

These thoughts were so embedded in my head for so many years! To combat them, I diligently completed my training program. With every run, I gained confidence and belief that I AM, in fact, a runner. As I slogged through some of the longer training runs, I relied on the singular positive thoughts to feed my conscious brain. I AM a runner. This is easy peasy lemon squeezy. Just three more miles – that’s only a half hour. Girls CAN run the marathon.

It was my goal to illustrate to my kids that it is possible to do absolutely anything you set your intention for and to make my little three-year old Finn eat his words (he’s 3 – he thinks his mom just ran a whole marathon, at least for now). Training for and finishing the race was not a choice. So whether I wanted to or not, I did not give myself an out. I simply had to train so that I could finish.

And you know what? I now know that I am a runner. I have a new belief system that overrides all those thoughts I listed above. I LOVED running on Saturday. It felt surprisingly effortless. I just typed that, and I’m a bit incredulous that I feel that way, given my old patterns of thinking. But I had so much fun.

The sense of accomplishment that I feel, the pride that I felt from my family and my trainer, and the new way I think about myself – really priceless. And I’m honestly thinking about when my next race will be. (Did I just type that too?) All I know is I have to make myself an honest woman vis a vis Finny and run the New York marathon in November…

I share all my thoughts and experiences with you not because I feel I have bragging rights. I share because I want you to feel like I do – that “NEVER” is just a state of mind. Never in a million years would I have thought I was going to run such a distance. NEVER. EVER. EVER. Now I know – “never say never” is not just a cliche. I’ve majorly shifted my state of mind. What are you going to make YOUR ex-”never”?