Trust the Process.

Spring has sprung, Hit&Runners!

We are coming to the close of the 100 Day Challenge, and I am thrilled to say I've whipped it into high gear.  I'm healthy, intact, and full of renewed spirit!

There is a phrase that has come back into my life recently, and if you are being coached by me or have been around me you've heard me say it:  Trust The Process.  This is something that goes back to my acting school days, where rolling around on the floor yelling numbers and deciding what color underwear your character might chose was process, and you'd be surprised at what happened when that process was trusted.  But I digress.

We are a result-oriented group of people, Hit&Runners.  Setting a goal takes a lot of courage, a lot of heart and a lot of faith.  You've dug deep into your heart and pulled out a piece of yourself that you may not have known existed, or maybe you've been embarrassed about or judged yourself for.  Once you've taken that enormous deep breath and given yourself over to the challenge and started putting the blood, sweat and tears into it, you start feeling discouraged that your goal still seems out of reach.

This is what I'd like you to do:  Every time you start to despair that you aren't fast enough or strong enough ("I SHOULD be faster!"  "Aunt Tillie is faster and she's 72!"  "I used to be an Olympic caliber curler!"  "That guy wears Chuck Taylors when he runs and always passes me!"), stop and think about what you used to think about running (or whatever fitness activity you are embarking on).  Did you think you could never run two miles?  Did you think you weren't built for it?  Were you one of those oh-so-original jokesters who told runners you only ran if a bear was after you?  And now look at you.  Look at what your body can do.  More importantly, look at what your mind and heart can do.

Physical fitness, weight-loss, marathon training...they are all processes that do not happen overnight.  Six weeks is not a very long time.  I have still edible dairy products that are older than six weeks old in my refrigerator.  Six months, a year...still not very long.  Instead of ruminating over where you still aren't, trust that if you are committed to it, your process is getting you there, and that you are truly only able to be who you are right in this very moment, putting that cliched one foot in front of the other that brings you literally one step closer.

I've been trusting the 100 Day Challenge process, which is surprising hard on my ego some days.  If you had asked me in December, I would have told you I already was moving for 30 minutes every day.  I was wrong.  It is also hard to let a 30 minute stroll count when a "challenge" to me means work really hard.  Just like I tell all of you, though, I can't believe what has been coming to the surface as I continue to stick with it.



Trust the process.  If you don't have a process and you would like some guidance, I'm an email or comment away.

Go Go Go!
Coach Andi

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Copyright 2011 by Andrea Whaley