Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Holier than thou…

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Do you guys know anyone with this attitude?  Part of my journey has been about trying my hardest to be a more compassionate and understanding person.  To be less judgey about other people’s choices.  Trust me, I don’t always get there!  But it’s an ongoing effort.

Recently I had a friend of mine who was up on his high horse about how running on a treadmill isn’t really running.  That you have to be out there – in the cold, pounding the pavement to be a “real” runner.

That’s not the first time I’ve encountered that attitude.  I even believed it.  Just a year ago I found myself running outside in the teens – freezing my fucking ass off and dodging ice patches.  I came into the building where I work and had to ask a security guy to open a door for me because despite heavy gloves I couldn’t move my fingers.  It took about 30 minutes for the feeling to come back.

But I had in my mind that I had to do this. 

Not anymore. 

I have run 117.6 miles so far this year.  And every single one of them has been on the treadmill.  So does that make me a “fake” runner?

That same friend, who told me that my treadmill miles didn’t count, also chose to scrutinize what I was eating last week when we were at a conference.

“You’re going to have to run 30 miles on your treadmill to burn that off!” he said staring at my plate.  “Why don’t you not worry about what I am eating and how far I’m going to run?” I said back to him.

I don’t get why some people feel the need to sit on their high horse and judge how other people eat and exercise.

Now taking someone to the side and having a frank discussion out of concern for something like an eating disorder is different.  OR if you make a pact with a friend and ask that he or she tell you when you are veering off course – that’s totally different.

As you all know, I am struggling with my weight right now.  But I am trying.  And how I chose to go about it?  I would think that people would support ANY effort someone makes to get healthy instead of judging them.  

And I’m going to remind myself of that the next time I get an attitude towards someone and how they are choosing to run their lives!

2 comments:

  1. Running on a treadmill is still running!!! Don't let this friend rent space in your head. Maybe you could have a discussion about the way you would like to be supported in your efforts.

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  2. I'm not sure this person defines "friend." Acquaintance, associate, co-worker, maybe.

    Stick with the treadmill. It is indeed real running!

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