What is your "Why?"

Snow in mississippi

WHY HAVE A WHY?

Before we get into the nitty gritty of running, I want to offer you some advice one of my good friends offered me, "Don't worry so much about the 'Hows,' but find a really good 'Why' and everything else will happen." No, this isn't me trying to fill you up with some happy-go-lucky motivational nonsense. This is me trying to help you accomplish your goals. Often times in life we are faced with arduous tasks. Whether it be the brutal speed workout at 6am on a Saturday morning in the snow, your boss making you work late hours multiple nights in a row, or you deciding to quit your job to travel the world for 10 months. Before my friend posed this question to me, I always looked at situations through a "How" perspective. I would sit down and say to myself, "Okay, how am I going to get this done?" It is easy to be overwhelmed using this mentality, and any of you who have reached mile 20-22 in a marathon know the hopelessness of saying "How" when faced with this obstacle. How am I going to make it 4-6 more miles when I am already cramping? My friend suggested that before I ever start training, before I ever get to the obstacle, before I ever even take action, to root myself in 3 solid "Whys." 

THE 100 MILER

To use an example where I challenged him with his "Whys:" He was running his first 100 mile race in Baton Rouge, LA. A crew of us had been cheering him on all day. I was monitoring his nutrition, hydration, pace, and mentality. He was really strong coming into the 56 mile mark. We'd see him again at the 62 where the race director said it was okay to start pacing. He came in neck and neck with the first place individual after chasing him all day. It was easily in the 90s all day, and my friend had been running through cane fields, across levies, and in the woods. When I began with him he was tired, but spirits were high because now he had company. The sun was beginning to set and we longed for some relief from the heat. We ran some 30 miles together before he finally reached a breaking point. We were so exhausted we had given up on using head lamps, and even though our bodies ached we mainly needed sleep. He stopped in the middle of this cane field around 1am and refused to run. I beckoned him to continue, no avail. I begged him to just take a step, nothing. I got down on my knees and started massaging his legs just to give him some sort of pep, still no response. Finally, I looked at him, as his head swiveled around like a ceiling fan, and said, "Arrmon, remember your 'Whys.'" He jolted back to focus. Knowing what they were I continued, "What example do you want to set for your son? Do you want him to know that possibilities are endless if you put in the work? Or do you want him to think it is okay to quit when things get tough? What about the family that you are running to raise money for? Do you think what you are going through now even compares to their situation?" After these words it was as if his mind traveled to another planet and back in a split second. He said, "Okay, lets go." We started with a walk, left foot right foot. Then a shuffle. Eventually we were at a full blown trot. It wasn't breaking any land speed records, but it was more than enough to finish the race. He finished sometime around 2:30am. Check out the story here.

Not everything in life is a 100 miler. Sometimes it is a 5k, a mile, getting off the couch and going outside. Sometimes it is a relationship, your spouse, your kids, your job, some jerk in traffic. I mean the task can be as big or as small as you want to make it. However, the "Why" never loses significance. Before you begin running, training, or whatever the next step is for you in life, think about the "Why." Why do you want to accomplish it? Why do you want to do better? Why is that the goal? Why are you reading this? If your "Why" is shallow your commitment will be shallow, but if your "Why" is something very important to you I guarantee you won't relent until you do what you set out to do. 

Thank you again,

Josh Moore (Coach)