What a Difference a Day Makes

Yesterday wasn't a great day ... in my head. I had decided on Friday to make Saturday a complete rest day, since I hadn't had one in more than a week and it messed with my brain. Bad. Then I ate a few things I shouldn't have and even though I didn't blow it, I started pummeling myself for it.

By 4 p.m., I was in a funk and that's when I wrote a post for CC.

It was sort of pathetic.

Whiny. Sappy. Over-dramatic.

It was about how it feels to beat yourself up. There was a great deal of "poor me" in it. Life is so hard. Losing weight is so hard. Beating yourself up for not losing weight is so hard.

Wah-wah.

And I was getting ready to post it, pretending I was justified in doing so because I knew some of you face these same feelings ... blah, blah, blah.

And then I remembered a story I had just read in Runner's World magazine. It was about a guy they call Backwards Bill.

Bill Reilly is 62 years old and just completed his 29th NYC Marathon ... representing his 38th marathon overall.

But wait. There's more.

Bill also has cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheelchair.

But wait. There's more.

Because of his disease, he does not have full use of his arms, either, and therefore can't push his wheelchair with his hands.

Read this carefully: He uses his feet to push himself backwards. For 26.2 miles. And he's done it 38 times. At 62 years young.

Suddenly, my whiny, sappy, over-dramatic ditty didn't seem so soul-baring, noble or commiserating. It felt just like it was: BS.

So I got up this morning and did a half marathon. 13.1 miles. I didn't run them all. In fact, I ran "only" 7.5 and not all in a row.

That's not even a good training day for Mr. Bill. And I've got two good legs.

Imagine how far I could go if I chose to not carry the load of excuses and headgames along on every mile.

This photo is from a news story about Bill and was credited to a
non-profit group that encourages disabled people to remain active.