Marathon training has been fantastic for me, as pushing my physical limits has also challenged my mental capacity.
One week, I was thinking, “Wow! Do I feel fantastic, and I might be in the best shape I have been in my life!”
And immediately after that moment, I thought, “Enjoy it while it lasts because you know a crash will eventually come.”
It came the next week with an almost injury, decreased time, and feeling incredibly out of shape.
And when that came, do you know what I thought? I will be better soon.
So when I am up, I know a down is coming; when I am down, I know the up shall return.
Why is that?
It is because I saw this video from Olympian and author Alexi Pappas on the “Rule of Thirds”:
Connor Swenson shared the following quote from Pappas and the accompanying image that puts this all into perspective:
“When you’re chasing a big goal, you’re supposed to feel good a third of the time, okay a third of the time, and crappy a third of the time…and if the ratio is roughly in that range, then you’re doing fine.”
Alexi Pappas
Honestly, I have nothing more to add than what I have shared.
Except that if you think this only applies to “running,” you might be missing the big picture. As Pappas shares, the “Rule of Thirds” is about “dream-chasing,” whether personal, professional, physical, or anything else you can imagine.
I will leave you with the final thought from Pappas, as I know this has really helped my thinking in so many facets of my life. A good lesson for
Be a dream-chaser.
