Passion?

The other day, someone was asking me about the marathon, the training, etc. She asked me something that got me thinking: what motivates you? During our conversation, she also said, "well, running is your passion."

I've never really considered what motivates me to run or that it could be my passion. I don't know that running by itself is my passion. I think running is a part of the global "taking care of myself" concept, which might be more of the "passion". The concept of making changes now, so I live a healthier, longer life really clicked when my Dad was diagnosed with lung cancer. Yes, he was a smoker, so the diagnosis really wasn't a shock - but that didn't lessen the blow any. Anyway, all of a sudden, preventative measures now - me not visiting the tanning spa anymore (yes, it was bad), eating right, exercise, etc., all meant a much healthier life down the road. (Okay, it might have also had something to do with too many Oprah shows & Dr. Oz, but hey, whatever works...)

Now, that doesn't mean that I eat right 100% of the time. I shoot for 85%, and I am a believer in the "everything in moderation" concept (ie. Portillos chocolate cake, which I will NEVER eliminate!). And I don't love every run and every workout, but I always, always feel better afterward.

So, maybe it is my passion. Maybe what motivates me is a long, healthy life or maybe it's something as personal as running my 20 miler faster than the year before. Or maybe it's that 5 years ago, I never, ever thought I'd be this excited about the thought of running 26.2 miles.

The human body is an amazing machine. The human mind is even more amazing. Set your mind to something, and you will not fail.