My Running Mantra for the Wrightsville Beach Half

Success with exercise and a positive attitude go hand in hand. Ever notice how great your workouts are when you're angry about something? When we get mad, we get determined. When we're determined, the thoughts, "I can't," never really cross the mind. Having this attitude in which the focus is on getting the work done, rather than how hard it is going to be, changes the entire outcome.

It's actually pretty simple. 

Either you DO IT, or you DON'T.

Last night at running practice, I was struggling. With the majority of the group running The Wrightsville Beach Quintiles half or full marathon this Sunday, I was expecting last night's practice to be pretty laid back. I don't know about all you runners out there, but last time I checked, 4.5 miles in 45 minutes isn't exactly a breeze. We warmed up with a mile jog, and were instructed to follow that up with 30 minutes at "conversational, easy pace." Somehow, I got placed with a group who considers my intermediate-hard pace to be pretty easy. All my huffin' and puffin' aside, I got through it. Just when I thought I couldn't take anymore, we had to complete four quarter-mile sprints. Despite the fact that I was breathin' hard and pretty much done, my partner and I somehow got faster every single sprint.

Last night was one of those nights, if I had been by myself, I probably would have just called it quits about halfway through the workout. Thanks to my positive group (and a bit of my competitive issues) I was able to stick with the faster group. It is insane how the right mindset, positivity, can truly get you through almost anything.

That's my running mantra for this weekend!