Tag: running

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Exercise motivation Running

No One Wants to be Just a Number… or do They?

Man running into a sunrise

Man running into a sunrise

This morning, I did something I know most guys my age don’t do. I ran eight miles. I don’t say this to brag, because I don’t consider myself an athlete. I didn’t run in high school or college. I only picked it up in my thirties when my weight was creeping up on me and my father-in-law poked my doughboy’s belly!

I say it because it is possible to be active in your fifties and beyond. This came to my mind when I read this Runner’s World article the other day:

5 Runners who Prove Age is Just a Number

In this article, it quotes a study that claims people felt they were too old to start exercising after they turned forty-one years old. Yet the article had five runners who began to run between the ages of fifty and eighty-four. Let that sink in! An eighty-four-year-old decided it was time to start running!

We put too many limits on ourselves. We’d like to start something but we make all kinds of excuses like:

  • I’m too old
  • I’m too young
  • I don’t have the money
  • I don’t have the time
  • I don’t have any talent
  • I don’t know anybody
  • The timing isn’t right

We claim we don’t want to be a number, yet do we allow numbers to limit ourselves? Do we give in to society’s expectations that are neither correct nor fulfilling?

Check with your doctor. If he or she gives you the okay, I encourage you to start exercising. It’s made a big difference in my life since I began this good habit.

Categories
Bible Sermon Notes Sketch notes

Jonah, the Rebel | Sermon Sketch Notes

Sketch notes based on a sermon by Steve Chiles at Salem Church of God | Jonah 1:1-17

Sermon Copyright 2019 Steve Chiles. Sketches Copyright 2019 Kevin Spear

At least once in our lives, we are running away from something. Jonah was the classic example of someone who knew better. When he ran away from his calling, things went from bad to worse.

This is one of the Bible stories that has caught the attention of people for years. Today, avoidance is hardly an effective technique!

Categories
Running

Lessons From Marathon Day

Cartoon of a jogging coupleThe marathon is over. I completed the goal, which was to finish. The weather was cool until about two hours into the race. The sun began affecting all of us. For a time, I wondered if I was going to make it. My hamstring started bothering me around mile seventeen. Around mile twenty-three, I had to stop and a nice security guard helped me stretch it out. After that, I walked most of the way until I was within sight of the finish line.

There are a few lessons I’ve learned from this race:

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Categories
Running

Thoughts on the Day Before My First Marathon


The months of preparation are behind me. I’ve tapered off my practice so my body is ready (hopefully) for tomorrow. There is nothing left to do now but judiciously load up on carbs tonight and arrive at the race, on time, tomorrow. Then the real fun begins!

Here are some thoughts as I look forward to my first marathon.

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Categories
Marketing Running

Two Days Until my First Marathon: responding and planning

Cat in a car, staring at the viewer. The caption says, "2 days until the marathon. Let's go!I went out for my last run before the marathon this morning. And who was there to greet me? Our cat got herself stuck in the car. As she stared at me, I imagined her trying to get in the car on the morning of the race. It’s going to be an early morning, and she will probably be the only person up beside me. She may be up for the trip, but I doubt I could have her go the whole 26.2.

After I let her out and I went on my run, I pondered how social media marketing requires two very different modes of behavior. Sometimes, you have to be like a cat. Other times, you need to plan like a long distance runner.

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