The Right Frame of Mind

Quest Task: Get Fit

Sunday's run was uneventful, in that it didn't happen!

So what happened? 

Milly just didn't feel like running......

You would think ....

With the marathon just around the corner, and all the training Milly had done, that she would be up for running given any opportunity

BUT NO

In fact, she felt like a pair of Trackkie Bottoms

• Comfortable Would you want to be complimented on how "comfortable" you look? 

• Boring Like watching the paint dry....

• Unsexy:  Running tights accentuated her frogs leg; Sweat was always dripping down her face whilst she was out running; She smelt so bad after a run, that even Prince Charming would comment! The ultimate passion killer!

Her motivation had come to an abrupt end.  

She had lost her

• Mojo
• Va Va Voom
• Stilleto from her shoe

She had morphed into her worst nightmare.... 

A pair of smelly, sweaty, trackkie bottoms when all she wanted was to be a beautiful smelling flower!

So Milly didn't  bother running on Sunday, instead she went off to her Fashion Design course.

And do you know what? 

She started to feel sparkly again. 

Whether it was her hormones making her feel unusually reflective and deep 

(men don't know what they are missing out on.....), 

She knew that she had lost sight of what her real motivations were

Milly realised that the reason that she was NOW running was because she either 

• Felt Guilty for not training
• Scared at failure 
• What other people would think of her

 She had forgotton her reasons for wanting to get fit:

• She wanted to do lots of cool activities such as kite surfing or mountain biking down a steep hill! 
• She wanted to be free to 

Just like Maria had done in the "Sound of Music"


That was why she wanted to get fit, to learn to swim, and to learn to ride a bike, and nothing else!

She had forgotten about the fun stuff.

So Milly turned around to "our friend" the dark, cloud, called Reality and said

AND instead of listening to Realities negative thoughts about the stuff she hadn't done yet, 

Milly looked back upon what she had achieved over the past 6 months, and 

she LOVED WHAT SHE HAD DONE!

• I can now run 13 miles when I could barely run 1 mile before!
• I have bags more energy, and focus
• I'm not stressed with life - Exercise has helped me to release my angst and frustrations
• I've had some some really cool adventures in Kilimanjaro and South America
• My skin has cleared up, and now it glows without the need for a facial (extra tick because I can save on facials!)
• Best of all I have uber cool muscles in my arms and bum!
• Milly has never had muscles in her arms or legs before ever!

Wow Milly had come so far!

She sat back and let her achievements sink in.

• She basked in her glory, lapped it up!
• She celebrated, sang, danced around the flat much to Prince Charming's amusement

It was a fantastic feeling!

She felt so light and free as if a huge weight had lifted from her shoulders 

(Even with her new found muscles, she could feel the heavy burden she had been carrying!)

She realised that she had been a hamster. 

That she had been trapped in a cage,    

running  round, 

and round 

and around

Chasing her  tail - that never ending goal! 

What had meant to be a fun activity had turned into a chore because 

• She had forgotten to celebrate her successes
• She kept comparing herself to other people 
• Feeling rubbish because everyone else was better than her

I mean you wouldn't expect Gigi The Snail to move as quickly as Lou The Ladybird would you?

How silly!

Just look how different they are in both size and shape; 

They have their own strengths and cool things about them which make them unique!

Milly realised this.

She realised to keep the the right frame of mind she had

• To celebrate her achievements
• NOT compare herself to other people

With her new found frame of mind, guess what happened? 

As if by a magic, Milly found her Va Va Voom again!

So with the Voom back in her stride, and celebrating each step she took, off she went for a run on Monday:

And do you know what? 

She managed to run 17.2 miles! And she did it in under 3 hours!
Unbelievable I know. 

That's the longest she has ever run been on her feet in one go

(Apart from when she's out boogeying!)

Wow, she realised, focusing on the the things she did, and ignoring what other people got up to, put her in  right frame of mind where even the impossible was possible!

Perhaps she would be able to be able to swim by Easter after all.....

So Milly's Top Tip is to Get yourself a Diary!

Milly has found a great way of keeping track of 

• All the cool things she has done
• All the cool and fun things that happen to her

She jots it down in her diary planner - just a quick note.

So when

• Prince Charming bought her some beautiful lilie,s she wrote this down
  
• A lovely lady gave her two free Aero bars, she wrote this down
• When she swam 10 metres in one go, she wrote this down

So now,when those negative voices start talking in her head, she can banish them because all she needs to do is look at all the fun and cool things that have happened to her.