Motivations and Inspirations

I have a great life and feel very fortunate to have the things I do.  A lot of times, I need to remind myself of this because I get sucky when things don't go as planned.  So I look to my friends and family, near and far, real and virtual, for some added inspiration and motivation.

Biggest Motivation for 2013:  I am on a quest to qualify for Boston in May. 

To that end, I've embarked on a new training plan and trying to qualify is a huge motivator for me to stay on track through the winter.  I haven't raced a marathon (other than in Ironman -- and there's no racing going on there) in over two years.  This will be my first attempt at taking on a BQ and I'm overwhelmed at the support I'm getting from my fellow runners.  Their offers of pacing me on some of my training runs is much appreciated.  

I'm even making my husband pull out the treadmill from the corner of the basement and set it up because there will be no excuses this winter that it's too icy and snowy to run.  Just an FYI, I hate winter and I hate treadmills.

But I love to run and I love to run with people and on my own.  I'm inspired by new runners, especially when they have that first moment of  "Yes, that felt awesome!"  I want that feeling to stay with me as I continue to age.  I've started doing some solo runs on Saturday mornings on a path near my home, and the first time I went, I ran into three running friends I hadn't seen in years.  They are my inspiration to keep on keepin' on.  The "youngest" is in her 60s and the oldest is in her 70s.   I want that in my life when I hit their age and I hope to still be running with the people I run with now.

I'm also inspired by my friends who have had spectacular success in racing this year.   I want to see them continue on that path to greater accomplishments because they deserve it after all the hard work they've been putting into their training.

The past few months that I've been logging my workouts on Daily Mile, I've "met" a great group of people that also inspire me everyday.   A lot of them have children (I don't) and they manage to fit in many workouts nonetheless.   So I'm grateful to them for kicking me in the pants even though they don't know that they do.

I am constantly reminded that in this crazy world there are many people who have amazing souls.  We are fortunate to have our health and to use that for the good of others.  I am proud to be surrounded by philanthropic people who use their passion for fitness to raise funds and awareness for causes like The Ride to Conquer Cancer, The Healing Cycle (which raises funds for palliative care in Ontario), Craig's Cause Maritime Bike Tour (which raises funds for the severely underfunded area of pancreatic cancer), to name a few.   They inspire me to be a part of this incredible community.  I have participated in all of the above and will continue to do so in the years to come.   And if there's something else that has an event that strikes a chord with me and raises awareness and requires funding, I'll probably do that, too, because we can all use a little help sometimes.