As I tied on my sneakers to go to the gym this morning for my normal workout, I took a moment to reflect on the first person I met who had ever run a marathon. It was 1984 and they had just run the NY marathon, they took off the next few days after the race and when they came into work they were hobbling around for a few days. Blisters and sore muscles got the best of them and I will always remember the “pain” they were in. Fast forward 30 years later and the day after the marathon my legs felt great, was able to do squats, take a run and do my normal workout. The typical question that comes at me is “why don’t you take a day off?” My answer is that I feel good and don’t see a need for a day off from exercise. It has become part of my life and who I am and so I continue with my routine regardless of the fact that it is the day after the marathon.

I further reflected on the suggestion that others make…. just to make sure I am listening to my body, and my friends and considering their input. And it is in this context that I realize that while legitimate, conventional thinking is self-limiting. If I were to always go with the “conventional” mindset we would not find out what was possible and our THPL journey would be limited from the start - this then defeats the idea that we can indeed improve our performance each and every day. Days off are good, it just does not get the same outcome when you do such a thing.

Loving life when not thinking conventionally