On 100% Sustainable Effort; or "Tell Us About Yourself"

Running my first marathon radically changed my approach to life in general. Before that 42.2km run, I went after life with 100% effort. Everything was a sprint. Consequently, I'd burn myself out again and again. My life was characterized by big achievements followed by long recoveries.

In taking on the marathon, I learned something very important: you can't sprint 42.2km (well, maybe you can if you're from Kenya but that's another story). To get through that long distance, I needed a new mantra. So, I changed my chant from "faster! faster! faster!" to "100% sustainable effort". This meant that at any given moment during my 4 hour run, I had to be giving 100% but that 100% had to be sustainable into the next moment and then again in the moment after that. I couldn't afford to burn out in the first 10 km and I definitely did not want to arrive at the finish line with any gas left in the tank (in retrospect, I don't think I need have worried too much about the latter). In the end, this was the perfect mantra for me. 100% sustainable effort became my motto for everyday life.

But, there's a big difference between life and a marathon. For one thing, when you start a marathon, you know exactly how far you have to run. Life's not like that. I could kick the bucket this evening on my way to get groceries or maybe I won't bite the dust until I'm 112 years old. How do you know what's sustainable for 1 day vs another 60 years? Well, believe it or not, running still holds the answer. Running- for me at least- is not about getting to the finish line as much as it is about covering the distance. It's like that age-old quote, "It's not the destination that matters, it's the journey". And when I ask myself while I'm running, "Is this a 100% sustainable pace?", my answer is always defined by the following terms:

1. Is my breathing full and rhythmic?
2. Is my posture upright, with my chest up and my heart open?
3. Am I psychologically focused with a feeling of well-being?

100% sustainable effort requires a mindfulness of the present moment. Because sustainability doesn't mean: how was I feeling at the start line? or how will I feel once I cross the finish line? so much as, how do I feel right now? Can I perfect this present pace, this present posture, this present focus, right now, in this very moment? For these reasons, at various times during my run, I might run slightly slower or faster than at other times. It all depends on that moment and how tired my legs are or how focused my mind is. The goal, however, is to never quit or burn out. 100% effort means no giving up. Sustainable means no burning out.

So, how I do practice 100% sustainable effort in my everyday life? I do it through mindfulness of the present moment. It is important to acknowledge that our linear interpretation of time is an arbitrary construct. In living, there is no past and there is no future. There is only right now.

If I feel as though I am not achieving 100% effort in my daily life, I ask myself the same questions that I do when I'm running. Am I breathing deeply and rhythmically? Is my heart open? Am I focused on a feeling of well-being? If any of those questions prompt a no answer, I ask myself why and correct the problem. It is an on-going, moment-to-moment, self-evaluation. It is with the 100% sustainable effort motto in mind that I run at life, heart first, exploring each moment to its fullest. You see, that's the crazy thing about mindfulness: it dissolves the barriers between moments and let's your life flow- unobstructed by past and future tenses- through you. It is only by letting go of time and living in the now that we can hope to reconcile our deepest desires with the finitude of our lifespan.