Excuses are Crap ... And Diana Nyad is a Rockstar

You know it and I know it. And there's proof in the world today:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/02/world/americas/diana-nyad-cuba-florida-swim/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

That's right. 64-year-old Diana Nyad completed a 53-hour, 103-mile swim from Cuba to Florida today.

It was her 5th attempt. She first failed in 1978 when she was a mere 29.

Let that roll over you.

• 64-years-old. AARP first contacted her 14 years ago. 
• 53 hours. That's two sunrises, two sunsets and a bit more. 
• 103 miles. SWIMMING IN THE FREAKING OCEAN. With sharks and jellyfishes and waves and currents and goodness knows what else. 
• And she FAILED four times before. 

I don't even know where to begin. I have no idea how you train to get your body to that place ... at any age. I have even less comprehension of how you get your mind locked in to allow this to happen. What on God's green earth do you do to keep yourself busy for 53 hours, knowing such a thing has never been done before and knowing that you have failed, several times, before? How do you drive on past pain, complete and total exhaustion, quieting that roar in your head that says, "QUIT NOW!"?

Just goes to show you that excuses are complete and total crap. Because in the end, they're just lies you tell yourself.

Don't believe me? The next time you think you can't possibly manage 30-minutes of cardio, or the next time I whine about being sick, we should remind each other to go ask Diana Nyad what she thinks of our excuses.

I'm pretty sure that tough bitch would have some choice words for both of us.

(After she gets done taunting all Ironman finishers, that is. In my fantasy world, every boastful Ironman finisher should have to walk past her. Especially those that are under 30 years old. All she has to do is hold up a sign on a stick that says, "Hey Ironman ... stroke this.")