The Resolution Solution

It’s that time of year again. People, like me, decide that the middle of the winter is the perfect time to get more active. That may work if you live in southern California, but here in the midwest – where the temperatures haven’t been above freezing in weeks, trying to get more active right now is a daunting challenge.

This is also the time of year that many of us decide to stop eating all the foods that we REALLY like and start eating food that we hate. We convince ourselves that we’ve suddenly uncovered an unstoppable discipline and commitment within ourselves. We also discover that we’re wrong. We’re just who we are, who we’ve always been, and by February 1 most of us are back to our old habits.

I know this because for many, many years I did this. My failed diets always started on January 1. I put out my last cigarette at least 10 times on December 31. I joined gyms, bought new shoes, shorts, and shirts, and boldly went forward into my new life. For about a week.

Even as a runner I thought there was some magic about the new year. In the days before we kept track of everything online we had printed running log books. Sounds quaint, I know. But, each January there was the ceremonial opening of the new log. Hours were spent identifying goal races and training schedules. For me it was an agonizing process. Staring at 365 blank training days was like looking into the abyss.

Having just completed my 17th year as a runner I have to admit I’m in a very different place. First of all, I no longer keep a log of any kind. Some people may object to that arguing that it’s important to know what you’ve done, what you’re doing, and what you’re going to do. I don’t disagree. But for me, running is now such an integral part of my life that keeping track doesn’t seem that important anymore.

I don’t need a schedule to tell me that I need to run. I WANT to run. I don’t need a schedule to tell me when NOT to run. I trust myself. I trust my sense of how I feel. I trust the physical, emotional, and spiritual part of me that makes me a runner. I’ve learned to trust my internal rhythms. There are weeks when I run a lot. Weeks when I don’t run that much. Days that I run long and slow. Days that I run short and fast. Days that I just plod along. And it’s all OK.

So, my resolution this January is to never make resolutions in January. If I need to change something in my life I resolve to do it right away. If I need to move more, or eat less, or eliminate some hurtful habit, I resolve to do it as soon as I recognize the problem. I resolve not to wait until my life is fully engulfed in flames to put out a small fire.

Waddle on, friends.