It’s a chilly Oregon spring day, and an 11-year-old boy is about run his first competitive race, in all his 6th grade glory; the 800-meter-dash. The short shorts and tank-top barely cover his slight frame which is subsequently covered in goose-bumps caused by chill and nerves. Through the crackly bull-horn comes, “Runners take your mark…”
BANG!
As his blonde mop bounces on his head, what his dad said to him immediately before he took his place on the track repeats through it…
“Timmy, run your own race”

Mental health and running parallel each other in so many ways. With the annual marathon here in Chicago this past weekend, I figured I would point out four ways that running and mental health are metaphors for each other. For almost 30 years I have been running for physical and mental health; and it all is summarized by “Tim, run your own race” (only my family can call me Timmy).

Your mental health and mine, just like running, require that we be focused on our own journey, not that of the people around us; not our family of origin, our peers at work or school, or our perceptions of what our world believes what or where we should be. If any of the following mental health principles are to make any sense or apply to your life, you must first remember, it’s your race, not theirs. Here are the four running principles I chose from the many:

1. Put one foot in front of the other
2. Endurance is built slowly
3. Injury requires a pause
4. Coaching can really help

First, running is not teleporting. Several of today’s popular films feature superheroes effortlessly jumping from here to there through teleportation. It’s common knowledge that western culture favors the quick and the immediate over the journey. Mental health, like running, requires the individual to put one foot in front of the other…. Then, repeat. Accumulation of steps moves you forward. If you are seeking to understand yourself better, pay attention to the journey. The progress you make today will affect your tomorrow, which will affect the next day… Mental and emotional thriving will not come through immediate gratification. Keep running, let the superheroes teleport; they have mutated genes, magic belts, lassos and stuff.

Second, accumulating steps builds endurance. Ask any runner participating in a marathon and they will all say that although training took work, the miles got easier the more they ran. You can’t just buy the best gear, watch a YouTube video, and expect to hit the pavement for 26.2 miles. Endurance is built through consistent effort. Mental health takes time. Whether you battle chronic depression and anxiety, are recovering from loss, or struggling to repair a relationship; the more steps you take in the direction you want to go, the more strength you will achieve. Simply, thriving takes accumulated mental endurance gained over time.

Third, if you are injured, it is okay stop running… for a season. Every runner will tell you that it’s frustrating to pause for an injury. I tried running through a sore calf muscle one winter… resulting in a ruptured Achilles tendon that spring… resulting in a summer spent in a cast. If you are hurting mentally, pause. It may take a season of intentional care for yourself to heal. This season will undoubtedly save you from more injury later. Are you experiencing grief, loss, long extended depression or anxiety, ever-present anger, relationship struggles, patterns of failure, constant feelings of insecurity or unworthiness? Pause mentally to examine these hurts, don’t muscle through them. Sometimes you need to put intentional focus on healing your mental health.

Fourth, coaching can help. I know one of those crazy ultra-marathoners. He can run 50 miles at a time. He has been coached by a single running guru for 25 years. This guru has been watching, correcting, encouraging, and supporting his running through many seasons of life. I wonder if my friend’s running journey may have plateaued, stagnated, without his coach. Counsel and guidance are critical for mental health. It is helpful for others to watch, guide, encourage, and reflect back to us our thinking and processing. The guidance we receive from a mentor, pastor, or counselor can be the difference in growing throughout the seasons of life or remaining stuck on a mental plateau.

Whether or not you are a runner, laying down steps and miles on the pavement, treadmill, or track, you are a human, laying down minutes and days on the calendar. Your mental health is important. Trust this lifetime runner and human; you are on a long journey. Pace yourself and be sure to run your own race.

If you would like help training for life, get in touch with us at New Hope Counseling in Palatine!