Well, I think I went off the deep end. After watching a documentary about marathon runners, I registered for the Philadelphia Marathon, which will be in late November!
I am SO excited to do this.
Russ and I will be running together, which will make this experience more enjoyable, more memorable, and we definitely run faster together than alone.
What are those lyrics…
Anyway, moving on 🙂
In The Happiness Project, Gretchen Rubin says that, “To be happy, I need to think about feeling good, feeling bad, and feeling right, in an atmosphere of growth”. She goes on to support this statement with research and experience by saying that, “It isn’t the goal attainment but the process of striving after goals–that is, growth– that brings happiness…The satisfaction gained from the achievement of a large undertaking is one of the most substantial that life affords”.
Some people build things, and some people write things or draw things or cook things, and those are all their atmospheres of growth.
Before I read the book, my plan was to not really train for the marathon. Sure, I would go out and do longer runs, but I wasn’t going to push myself really. My only goal was (and still is) just to finish the marathon. After reading this book, I realized that one of my atmospheres of growth comes from running. Sure, I love the races, as they act as milestone markers for how far I have come as an athlete, but what I really enjoy is getting to that point. Not to say that crossing the finish line after 26.2 miles won’t be one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life, but building up to that point is also something that I am looking forward to accomplishing, even more so with Russ.
It’s going to be an exciting journey and I hope you’ll stick around to read about it!
What’s your atmosphere of growth?