Be Amazing

After a pregnancy-hormone filled weekend, the hubby and I settled into a quiet sunday night and watched Race Across the Sky – 2010 Leadville 100. I’m a sucker for a good documentary that captures tiny moments in human life. Even if you have never sat on a mountain bike in your life, even if you don’t know the difference between a road bike and mountain bike, even if you don’t have a single bicycle in your garage – watch this movie.  It is so much more than a mountain bike race.  The Leadville 100 is a mountain bike race that covers 100 miles over 2 miles above sea level starting and finishing in Leadville, Colorado (with climbs up to 12,000 ft).  The documentary highlights racers and their story. The race attracts everyone – Tour de France winners (Lance raced in 2009), pro mountain bike racers, bikers riding in honor of friends struggling with cancer, a 62-year-old man, a woman recovering from being hit by a car while biking.  Everyone has a story.

The documentary highlights the human spirit.  We are all capable of so much more.  We all have levels of determination, fight, and hope that we never blow the dust off of.  Unfortunately many of us never know what we are capable of until we are faced with illness, loss, or tragedy.  It is in those moments that we learn that we are so much more than we think we are.  Why wait for sadness to figure out that you are amazing? Push a little harder. Dig a little deeper. Get uncomfortable.  Be amazing.

The only way I know to truly test myself mentally is by pushing myself physically.  When I push my body to a point that I think I can’t go any further, and I go further – I know I’m capable of so much more than I think I am. We box ourselves in. We put parameters around what we think we can do.  We limit ourselves.  While I enjoy my time on my mountain bike, I love my time in my running shoes. I have days that 10 mile runs seem easy.  Lately, I have had days that 1.5 miles seem impossible. This week my race training is back to normal.  No more recovery training.  I’m in full training mode until the Rock n Roll half marathon.  It’s time for me to trust that I am amazing too.

The reward is worth every ounce of suffering. It’s worth every mental battle I have with myself.  At the end, I know I can do it.

While I have a big running challenge ahead of me, I have an even bigger challenge of getting through my pregnancy gracefully.  I need to translate all the lessons I’ve learned from running and turn them into pregnancy lessons.  Someone, anyone, please tell me you have a hard time with the hormones too!!!  Some days I can feel so overwhelmed by it all – the happy emotions, the love I already have for this little plum sized baby of mine, the frustration I have with myself because I struggle with letting go of my body, the frustration I have with myself because pregnancy hormones do get the best of me. I can be mean. I can be moody. I can be sad. And sometimes I can’t do anything about but let the emotions flow through me and get out of their way.  But the reward is worth every ounce of suffering! Before the year is over (or a few days into the new year), Maute Moo will be here to remind me why I love this journey so much.

Like every race goal I’ve every set for myself – yes! I do have time goals too! – I always want to make it to the finish line with grace.  Please let me make it to my due date gracefully! I think I might need a training plan for pregnancy too!