It has been 36 days since I made it a goal to walk 10,000 steps per day. I am happy to say that I have successfully achieved that goal every day since I started. A big part of what has allowed me to be successful is the 30-45 minutes I take every morning and go out for a walk, a jog, or sometimes a mix of both.
As I was jogging the other day, I realized that if my goal would have been to run 10,000 steps every day, I would have quit after just a couple days. Running takes so much energy out of you and is too hard to keep up for an extended period of time. Jogging, however, is much easier to maintain for long distances. If you mix walking and jogging together, you can go even greater distances without killing yourself.
As I thought about this, I realized that I had been trying to run in other areas of my life and I was getting tired and worn out. It hit me that, if I try to keep up the pace I am currently at, there is a good chance I will just give up and stop working to improve those areas of my life.
I think this is true for most of us. We examine our lives, decide there are things we want to change, and try to run as fast as we can to improve them. The problem with this is that most of us give up long before we ever reach our goals. We start out quickly and then fizzle out not long after. Ultimately, running towards our goals kills our long-term progress and leaves us feeling defeated.
Think about your own life for a minute. What are some areas of your life you tried to improve, but have failed to achieve success? Did you start out great, but quickly lose your motivation and desire? Did you get worn out because you chose to run towards your goal? The things we want to improve in our lives didn’t happen overnight, but somehow we think we can fix them that way.
Until last week, I used to consider myself a runner, but now I am proudly claiming the title of jogger. As a jogger I can achieve success instead of giving up. As a jogger, I will eventually catch up to the people who start out running and did give up. As a jogger, I am able to keep working towards my goal without wearing myself out.
In Proverbs we are told that steady plodding brings prosperity. We don’t have to sprint, but we do need to plan and keep moving forward if we are going to reach our goal. So here is my challenge to you today. Think of those areas in your life where you have tried to make a change but have been unsuccessful. Now pick just one and choose to jog towards your goal.
I have created a worksheet with a sample included to help you achieve success.The small amount of time it takes to complete the worksheet compared to the improvement in your life is well worth the effort. I know you can do it! Just remember it’s the small steps you take each day that lead to great accomplishments in your life.
PDF Version
Excel Version
Don’t let society tell you that you need to reach your goal tomorrow. If it is something you want to change for good, choose to be a jogger and don’t let running kill you.
