Monday Motivation

Sometimes motivation slaps you in the face, and sometimes you need it more than ever. Other times you need to just look back to your past, even though they tell you never to look back. When you do look back at everything you have accomplished, it can help you more than you think. It did for me today.

I’ve been fighting a horrible migraine for a week and today it finally was at a tolerable level. I knew I was going to run, but I don’t mess around with my brain disease so I was just was just going to run, no distance in mind. But then I saw my ASICS 2015 NYC marathon capris. I started to think about the race and EVERYTHING that happened during my time in New York. Feel free to read about it here. << (It’s good. Trust me)

The NYC marathon is, and will always be my dream race. NYC has a piece of my heart and in 2015 I got in through the lotto and then ASICS approached me to represent them in the race because I love them and because the Gel-Kayano shoes are my “magical” shoes. It was the experience of a lifetime, including the breaking of my ribs at sometime of the race but I am guessing it happened about half way. It happened because of the deformity of my spine and the way my spine is curved that my ribs are curved and twisted inward and abnormal. Even though I knew something was wrong, I kept going and I even told Alpha when I saw him, I persisted until the finished line where one of my best running friends was happily keeping my medal nice and warm for me.

My point is, that today I reflected on the trials that race put me through. I still have BIG dreams and I work my butt off and don’t stop until its real. Nothing worth fighting for ever comes easy, but it’s ALWAYS worth it. And the goals I have set for myself now, may be bigger and may seem crazy but that is just how I am. I like a challenge and I like to fight for my dreams. I have always been a dreamer and the feeling of making that dream a reality is a feeling of accomplishments that I CAN NOT describe. Especially when I have been told my entire life that I can’t do anything because of my “disabilities. It is a personal sense of satisfaction that I get where I can do anything and feel untouchable. And that is how I felt when I crossed the 2015 NYC marathon finish line. And it happens every time I think I think about it, broke ribs and all. And I know when I reach my new goals, the same things will happen.

So never stop dreaming, never stop believing that you can’t do it because you can. No matter how long it takes you. We all have to start somewhere. Coincidentally, today, I held my fastest pace breaking into the 8s! When I first started running races 6 years ago, I started with a 16 minutes pace, then was at 12 minutes, then joked I’d never see 10 minutes, now I sit comfortably at 9:45 minutes. Today I was SO focused, I kept going and upped the pace and averaged at around 8:58! When the HELL would I EVER see 8???? I had negative splits and felt good. Did 6 miles, and would kept going but got off because the migraine came back and made me blind so, safety first. But it was nice to see those numbers. So trust me when I say, always believe in your true strength and you’ll go far!

-gelcys