Overpowering Our Excuses - Running 500 Days in a row

"There will be many reasons for not making it, but only one to make it happen".

Today, i completed a significant milestone in my fitness journey - "500 days of running every day (without a leave/break) - 4,100 Kms in total".

It’s been a remarkable experience. This fitness journey has taught some of the key life-lessons and has brought so much richness to physical and mental health.

In this article, i am compiling some of these key life-lessons.

Dreaming is not enough, You need to Act

We all have dreams and desires about life and work, but is dreaming and believing enough?

We have seen so many motivational quotes mentioning below life-cycle for achieving our goals -

DREAM => BELIEVE => ACHIEVE

But, i strongly feel that this life-cycle has missed two key events -

DREAM => BELIEVE => PLAN => ACT => ACHIEVE

“It’s not enough to dream. It’s not enough to try. It’s not enough to set goals or climb ladders. It’s not enough to value. The effort has to be based on practical realities that produce the result. Only then can we dream, set goals, and work to achieve them with confidence.” – Stephen R. Covey

Consistency is the Key to Success

Running 20 Kms in a single day/on weekends V/s running 2 Kms per day for 10 consecutive days ?

While consistency is the necessary, it is extremely important to ensure that we shouldn't overstress ourselves and burnout during this long journey.

Also, we shouldn't focus on the pace or the distance. Once consistency is established, pace will automatically improve. Consistency will increase the stamina which in turn will help to cover long distance runs.

“Small disciplines repeated with consistency every day lead to great achievements gained slowly over time.” – John C. Maxwell

Giving-up is Way Harder Than Trying

If we do nothing, we will get nothing . But if we try to do something there are chances that we may fail or we may succeed. But this time the chances had increased by 50% and it is a lot more than the former 0%.

“Don’t be afraid to fail. Be afraid not to try.” - Michael Jordan

When we run keeping a target distance in mind, sometimes the feeling of giving-up tries to overpower us. But, the key to reach the goal is keep telling our mind that i will keep trying. When i planned my dream run of 50 Kms, i started experiencing this feeling of giving up after completing the Full Marathon distance (42.2 Kms). But, i kept trying and was able to achieve my goal.

Flexibility, the key to stability

Flexibility is the capacity to adjust to short-term change, quickly and calmly, so that we can deal with unexpected problems or tasks effectively. We can't always predict when changes like these are going to happen. That's why flexibility is so important. When we're flexible, we're versatile, resilient and responsive to change.

Flexibility played an important role in achieving my running milestone. It happened many times that due to professional and personal commitments and demands, i couldn't complete my run at planned time. Flexibility helped me to complete my run at a different time, place, city etc. I ran at 2 AM in very early morning when i had a train at 4 AM, i ran late night at 10 PM after a travel.

Running on Airport (IGI T3). Sound weird ?? Yes, it is. When you have a early morning flight and you need 3 hours prior check-in, what will you do ?

Since i didn't want to miss my planned run, got this opportunity to complete my indoor run. Although, got some weird looks from CISF security personnel and people in the waiting area.

Excuses can be Overpowered

All of us deal with different types of challenges in everyday life. But, this should not stop us to do make efforts to achieve our goal. Often, we give up to these challenges and then take this an excuse.

We will not get our favorable conditions everyday. Unlike indoor sports, running has its own unique and extreme challenges.

Waterlogging during monsoon season, fog in winters and extreme heat in summers are such challenges which generally result in an excuse to not run on that day.

I also faced this challenge multiple times this year but was able to overpower these excuses to reach my goal.

"Every one of us faces challenges and life events that can put a halt to the things we love to do. So, while we can't run away from them, we can undoubtedly run with them."

Yes, it's common for people to face challenges and hardships in life. These can come in many forms, such as personal struggles, professional setbacks, health issues, or difficult life circumstances. While overcoming these challenges may not always be easy, it is certainly possible. Many people find strength and resilience within themselves, seek support from others, and use various resources to navigate through tough times and come out stronger on the other side. It's important to remember that everyone's journey is unique, and the ways in which challenges are overcome can vary greatly from person to person.

I would like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt gratitude and sincere thanks to Manoj Sharma a.k.a. Guruji and Nikhil Sharma for their regular guidance and motivation in this journey.

Special thanks to Raghu Ramamurthy and my awesome team at 英特尔 for their encouragement and support.

I hope you will also start a regular fitness activity whichever you like - walking, jogging, running, swimming, or any form of active sports in your daily/weekly routine. Believe me, it will make you feel more calm, clear, content, engaged, and energized at whatever you do, both professionally and personally. You will also observe positive effects on your physical and mental health.

“If it doesn't challenge you, it won't change you.” - Fred DeVito