I have a good friend who trained for a half marathon a couple years ago. He completed the training and was able to run/walk the half but when I asked him about the experience, he had almost nothing good to say. He said it was miserable. I was somewhat shocked to hear a runner say that they didn’t LOVE their first half marathon experience, so I asked him what the problem was. He said that the half itself was grueling. He was in pain and miserable from about mile 4 until the end. My next question was, “Did you complete all your training runs?” His face told the story. He explained that he HAD done the runs… most of the time. OK, if he was totally honest, he hadn’t been consistent. We laughed together over his experience, but this story always comes to mind when I start thinking about (or struggling with) consistency. And I’ve been thinking about it a lot. Because it’s something we all struggle with. To be human is to be in a constant state of change. Our opinions, our desires, our habits, our passions… they all wax and wane over time. Running (and fitness in general) is no exception. This month I may be motivated and consistent and on top of the world and in a few weeks I may find myself struggling just to get out the door. This doesn’t mean I’m a loser. It means I’m human. So if we, as humans, are inherently inconsistent, how can we possibly be consistent with our fitness? And if we can’t become consistent, how can we hit big goals… like getting back in shape or running a half marathon? Well, I’m gonna give you the bad news first. You can’t become completely consistent. WHAT? If perfection is your goal, I hate to disappoint you but it’s not going to happen in this lifetime. It’s time to give up on that goal and stop using it as an excuse to not do ANYTHING! Some of us fear “failure” so much that we won’t ever get started again because we can’t stand the thought of letting ourselves down. GET OVER IT! You ARE going to let yourself down sometimes. That’s life and it’s OK. Now for the good news. You can’t be perfect, but you CAN become more consistent. All the athletes out there that you admire are human just like you. Sometimes they’re motivated and ready to take on the world and other times they’re un-motivated! They aren’t consistent because they have some motivation super-gene that the rest of us didn’t get. They’re consistent because they’ve learned how to deal with their inconsistency. So, how can we deal with OUR inconsistency? How can we stay consistent through the peaks and valleys of our motivation?
- Let go of the guilt. Guilt can be an effective motivator, but ONLY in the short run. I’m sure you’ve noticed that anything you find yourself doing strictly out of guilt usually doesn’t become a life-long habit. It doesn’t take long for guilt and shame to turn something we love (like running) into another chore that we dread. So, let go of any guilt or shame you feel over past inconsistencies and make a deal with yourself to move forward!
- Make a plan! Those who fail to plan, plan to fail! This is especially true when it comes to your health and fitness. If consistency is your goal, then your calendar needs to reflect this. If you can’t look at your weekly calendar and identify HOW, WHEN, and WHERE you are going to run each week, it’s going to be a lot harder to stay consistent.
- Don’t rely on your feelings. I’m going to be honest. There are days when I just plain don’t want to run. I can’t even explain this phenomenon to you, because I love running. I love everything about it, but sometimes my feelings LIE to me! They say that it’s too much work and I’m too busy and there are a million other things that are more important…etc. If my weekly runs depended on my daily moods, I would be MUCH less consistent!
- Leave some room for flexibility. You WILL sometimes have one of those days where squeezing in your 4-miler is going to be virtually impossible (if you want to sleep, that is). Don’t throw your plan out the window just yet! Be flexible. Consistency is more important than anything else, so squeeze in a 2-miler instead. Or just do it tomorrow. The only thing that’s not OK is quitting!
- Fill your motivation tank! Motivation is like fuel in a car. It gets used up and you have to refill sometimes or you’ll run out! Figure out what fills your motivation tank and be ready to “gas up” as soon as your low motivation warning light comes on! Set a new goal, sign up for a race, find a new place to run, read a running magazine… whatever works! Those low motivation days WILL come, so you’ve got to be ready to pull out all the stops!
Finally, remember that consistency isn’t something you finally achieve and then can stop working on. Life is constantly moving and changing and we have to change and grow with it if we want to stay consistent through the peaks AND the valleys! You’ve got this! Comment below! What’s your biggest struggle with being consistent?