Writing and Running

When I was in the Army, I absolutely despised running. Looking back, I’m pretty sure I hated it so much because we had to do it. It was literally part of our job. But, after leaving the Army, I learned to love it and even crave it. Over the years, running has become a form of therapy for me to help cope with my PTSD.

I find that having goals for running, such as trying to hit a target pace, or training for a race or pushing myself to run a farther distance has helped keep my mind focused and keep my body healthy. When I am training, I pay attention to what I eat, what I drink and my sleep habits. All of this directly impacts my PTSD as well. Over the years I have ran distances from a 5k, all the way up to a 100k. And no matter what distance I am training for, there is always a training plan in place to get me across the finish line.

The other day while I was running, I began to think about my journey as a writer and writing Always Forward. It occurred to me that writing a book is so much like training for a marathon. At first, you have this idea or dream to write. You might envision what it would be like to see the finished product. But you are scared of beginning. You don’t know where to start or how to go about it. This can be the same feeling when dreaming about running your first marathon. You want the end result to be able to say you ran 26.2 miles, but the thought of running all those miles is daunting.

You finally muster up the courage to take the first step. You pick up a pen or open your laptop and begin to write. Perhaps you have a friend or loved one that gives you the encouragement you need to begin. You plug away at your story and get into a rhythm. Before you know it, you have written several chapters and truly feel like a writer. But now you think you might need a plan or an outline to continue. So, you map out your plan and set a goal for when you want to complete your manuscript. You make daily goals for how much you want to write or for how long you will write each day. Step by step, word by word, you get closer to your finish line.

Like in running though, you might stumble upon roadblocks, or hit the proverbial wall that many runners literally hit on longer runs. But in the case of writing, your wall is writer’s block. You’re cruising along, feeling all the creative energy flow through your body and then BAM! All the ideas are gone. So, you take a creative rest day. You let your brain recover and give yourself the grace to pause and reflect on how far you have come.

Or maybe keep trying to push through the writer’s block, like when as a runner you continue to run with an injury. You know deep down that nothing good will come from pushing yourself like this, but you march on. Eventually though, the fatigue of mindless work will catch up to you. And that rest day happens no matter what.

Eventually, after months of writing drafts, editing and seeking out professional help on the publishing process, you are ready to release your work to the world. The finish line is in your sights and you lock in on it and sprint to it. It may have taken months of work and training to get to this point, but you see your finished product and you can’t help but become emotional at all the love and dedication it took to bring you to this point.

And you realize that even thought the finish line, the shiny medal or the completed book is glorious, the journey to get to this point was the most memorable part of the journey.