The art of suffering

One thing that I came across yesterday while running was on the days that I don't feel so good be it not having enough sleep, legs feeling tired, my mind isn't always with my body and that brings me to today's post.  If you talk with any professional cyclists and long distance runners, there's no secret to them being so good.  It's not that they have some magical training regiments or magical way to make them so good, granted their training does probably have something to do with it.  But the one thing that they all talk about is suffering, and if you can learn to suffer and if you can enjoy suffering, then the rest is easy.

“That’s what you get when you suffer – you get results.” Paul Sherwen Tour de France 1999

Pain vs. Suffering
So you are probably sitting there thinking what is the difference.  I think pain is something that's temporary, like the feeling you get in your legs when you push to hard, or the burning in your lungs or stuff like that.  Suffering is the pain that you endure and just keep on going.  I was running the other day and i just didn't feel so good and usually I'll just push through it and continue the suffering, but I just didn't have it in me.

How to enjoy it
It's a question of motivation at the end of the day, because if you suffer and you keep at it there's something at the end.  I went through this during the marathon you have pain everywhere, you're cold and it's miserable but at the end of the finish line when you cross it, nothing else matters because you've done it and then the pain sets in.  Things like mantras do wonders for getting you through, some of the ones I liked.

Do or do not, there is no try

Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional

Run, the pain will be over sooner

Don't stop, people are watching

If you are going through hell, keep going

Keep running Bitch

Suck it up Princess

Personal Favorite:
Pain is temporary, Pride is forever.

So whatever gets you over that hump, it's one thing to have a body that can keep up with what you want to do, but it's another thing to have a mind that can keep up with your body.  So next time you feel like giving up, tell yourself that you're feeling good, push through and keep on doing what you're doing, you look great.  It's fine to be able to prevent these days from happening but when they do... deal with them, once you learn how to suffer, the rest comes easily.

~Cheers