Is It Hard or Is It Uncomfortable?

Do you remember in gym class when you had to run the mile? For me, it was this big scary thing that we talked about in class as we kept adding laps around the gym each week so we’d be prepared. We prepared for it to be hard, and when the day came to run that mile, it did feel hard.

Today I went for a run. (I actually enjoy running now.) I’m not training for anything. I just like to run 3-4 miles once or twice a week as part of my rotation of fitness activities. I decided that today instead of setting a speed or distance goal, I’d see how far I could run in an hour. At about the 30 minute mark, I noticed the thought in my head was, “This is getting hard.”

One of the great things about running is that you have time to have conversations with yourself. So I asked myself, “What’s so hard about it?” Think about it. We naturally start running when we’re toddlers. Running is not hard; it’s uncomfortable. One of the things I preach about as a personal and professional development coach is that you have to get out of your comfort zone in order to grow.

Mindset is everything. 

Flash back to gym class. Running the mile was hard because we had the mindset it was hard. As a result, for years I thought a mile was the extent of my running distance. That was the very edge of my comfort zone.

Today I was able to monitor my thoughts as I ran and quickly replaced “this is hard” with “this is uncomfortable and I grow from uncomfortable.” It’s a subtle shift that takes you from defeatist attitude to “challenge accepted!” attitude. Today without a distance goal, I ran 5.5 miles in that hour…and it felt uncomfortable but still WAY easier than that gym class mile ever did.

You are capable of doing MUCH more than you’re currently doing.

Your subconscious will want to tell you that it’s too hard. Be strong in your mindset. Whatever “it” is may be uncomfortable, but you CAN do it. Accept the challenge, grow from getting out of your comfort zone, and then take time to acknowledge your achievement!

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