Live it up. These are three words I've heard quite often recently. Normally they just roll through my psyche without much effect, but recently I've started to really dwell on this little mantra. If any of you know Jack Daniels then you know this is Jack's personal mantra whether he recognizes it or not. If you show up for a workout and feel unsure, Jack will just say, "Live it up". Got a big race coming up and you're feeling the pressure, Jack will say, "Live it up". Stop in Jack's office up here in Flagstaff and on your way out..., "Live it up".

When you're passionate about what you do and you want to excel to the highest level at what you love you'll begin to get wrapped up in it. Your daily routine, mindset and lifestyle will start getting built around developing that success and it can consume you. I don't think there are many people out there that are more dedicated, headstrong, and passionate about what they do than runners. Running is not a sport for us dedicated few. Running is our lifestyle. It's who we are. It's our culture or I should say sub-culture. Many of us live, breath, eat, and sleep running day in and day out all year, year after year until the last step. We're reaching for something more in our lives. In this way I think all runners are existentialists to some degree. Think about it, when you go out for run are you thinking about what you'll do when it's over or thinking about some work you need to get done? Chances are you're in the moment, you're letting you're mind wander and it's going to places of clear, unfiltered thought. When you're running you will most likely be focused on the air, your breathing, how you feel, the immediate environment in front of you. It's a type of meditation, mental, physical, emotional meditation. A type of meditation that yogis recognized, developed and have devoted their loves to for 1000's of years.

What happens when the run is over though. Some of us go on with the rest of our day, but those of us who live running are already planning the next run. Then you'll start planning your runs to build up to workouts and then races. It happens, It's the natural order of things. To get that feeling you get, that endorphin rush, that feeling of really being alive you have to keep stepping things up. You have to start pushing the body more as it adapts to the stimulus of running and training. As a professional runner my life is basically an extreme of this concept. I have taken my mind and body to It's greatest limits and I have to find ways to push even further and go beyond that. I have to go beyond pain, beyond fatigue, beyond weakness. As I get faster and faster this becomes exponentially more difficult. I start thinking about all of the little details day in and day out that might help me get to that next level. I may think about these things for hours or try to formulate plans, strategies and ideas on how to go further. This is when you start to get consumed. This is when you might start to lose sight of why you started running and what you're really trying to achieve.

Remember that you're not out to impress anybody, you're not a time, ranking or statistic. You are simply a person reaching for something better. A person reaching for something real, visceral and pure. It's easy to get lost along the way. It's easy to get wrapped up and lose sight of what's right in front of you. So, if you're one of the dedicated few like me and you can relate to these ideas, then take a step back for a second. Put your sneakers on. Go for a run on your favorite route and take a look at who you've become. Be immediately present in that run, even for just moment if you can. Take a deep breath, kick up the tempo a notch and say to yourself, "Live it up".

"The greatest of victories is the victory over oneself."
Pali Tripitaka, Buddhist collection of sacred texts, Dhammapada

-fam