Showing up
at the Starting line is actually more important than the finish
line
Couple weeks ago I ran a half-marathon. This year my goal was
to encourage a few more friends to achieve their goal. Even though
some who started were not able to go through the training for
one or the other reason, I was glad that a few did stay with it
and made it to the finish line.
I was one of the people who could have dropped out if I did not
have the determination to show up at the starting line. I had
flu most of the week prior to the race date. Morning of the race
day was very cold. My family and even my body said that maybe
I should stay home and not go. But I knew that for the last four
months I had been encouraging some first timers to run/walk the
13.1 miles. I could not disappoint or discourage them after I
put them through all the training. Actually, putting them through
might not be the right phrase, because after a while I could see
that they were enjoying and feeling good about being able to go
longer than the time before and were feeling healthier. Some even
lost some weight, which was the bonus benefit.
I am so delighted to report that all my friends who showed up
at the starting line also crossed the finish line. I am so proud
of all of them. I think they might be hooked for life now. They
will miss their regular routine and I am sure that they are not
going to quit feeling healthy. They are going to continue walking/running.
Some of them are already talking about entering in the next marathon
and encouraging others to join. I think I might have started a
healthy chain, just thinking about is exciting.
The miracle isn't that I finished...The miracle is that
I had the courage to start.
-John Bingham
Have a fun workout! Stay healthy!
Veera Mahajan