Markos Geneti and Kelly Gneiting both set inspiring new records in the LA Marathon on Sunday. Running in drenching rain and strong winds from Dodger Stadium to the ocean, Geneti from Ethiopia set a new course record in 2:06:35. His time is the second-fastest time in the world for 2011 and a new record in California history. His pace was 4:49.7 minutes per mile--for 26.2 miles. But that's not all--this was his first marathon! That's stunning. But what about Gneiting?
Gneiting finished in 9 hours, 48 minutes and 52 seconds. He was so slow that the traffic had returned to the streets and he had to walk on the sidewalks in the rain. But if you weighed 400 pounds, how fast would you get there? A former sumo wrestler with a current 60 inch waist, Kelly is now in the Guinness book of world records as the heaviest person to complete a marathon. The previous record was held by a mere 275-pounder. Plus, Gneiting beat his last marathon time of 11 hours and 52 minutes by 2 hours. As he joked after the race, "I'd like to see the Kenyan improve his marathon time by two hours!" Gneiting walked with shooting pain from blisters in his feet and felt delirious after ten miles, but he pressed on. "I was really struggling in the last five miles," he said, "but I said to myself, 'If I have to crawl, I will.'" (www.latimesblog.latimes.com, 3/20/11)
What goals are you trying to reach in life, and how is your pace going? For me, I wish that I was like the Ethiopian...but I often feel more like the sumo. Although Gneiting ran (walked) a very slow pace, at least he kept going. He wasn't embarrassed, and he didn't stop or quit even though he was tired.
What goal have you felt embarrassed about? A personal one for me is to reach the finish line with my next book--now over three years in the making. One last edit of the final draft and I can finally publish it. Although I'm feeling tired by now, Gneiting the-determined-sumo inspires me to just keep going anyway until I get it done. Even though he finished his marathon on the sidewalks, at least he finally finished.
How is the progress on reaching your goals in life? What's been weighing you down or slowing down your journey? Negative thoughts and emotions are the usual problem. Past memories, hurts, losses and regrets can also weigh you down. Fear can make you stop in your tracks. All of these burdens can feel like a thousand pounds. But forgiveness and hope can outweigh them all. What do you need to get moving again? What goals are you determined to reach in your life?
In my next post, we'll talk about a little but powerful boost that helped Gneiting and helps all of us to keep going strong.
Rick, your story resonates with any father, husband, laborer or CEO. There is a very good lesson here. Get started on your next goal, work at it, even if it means practicing the piano for 20 minutes at a time, clearing out a 1/4 of the garage on a Saturday, or writing a letter of thanks to clients who have made your business prosper. These are all "baby" steps which ultimately help one cross the vast gorge of beginning and the end. Life is about a journey, not inertia. So get off whatever sofa is holding you back and think about the 400 lbs. man in the L.A. marathon who put one blistering foot in front of another in spite of the rain. Like the ancient Chinese proverb says, a long journey begins with a single step.
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