Superior Commitment

My message is commitment.  That surely means something different to each of you reading this today.  I've written a interactive ebook called "Empowering Commitment".  I live my life according to my commitments.  I'm going to talk a little bit today about my commitment to finishing the Superior 100 Mile Trail Race coming in just a couple of weeks.  

I leave soon for the track.  This weekend, I'll cover almost 63 miles on the course where I'll toe the line with over 200 others on the 5th of September for my third attempt at the 100 mile distance.  I will finish in less than 38 hours.

We've all got commitments.  Some of us have commitments that we talk about and we have separate commitments that we live about.  What we do determines what we are committed to.  What priorities do we live out?  Are we committed to work more/less, our family, to workout more, to eat better, to stay married or train for a certain event.  

Commitment isn't doing what you set out to do only when it's easy.  In fact, commitment only shows its true colors when it gets hard.  How bad do you want it?  How committed are you?  I've heard it said to "burn your ships".  That's right.  Step out and commit to it.  

I am committed to completing 100 miles on foot in under 38 hours on September 5th and 6th.  That's why I'm taking a full weekend to try and get my body to a place by Saturday afternoon where I will want to quit.  I'll likely want to quit.  I won't though.  I'm committed.  Where there is commitment, there is surely action.  We ultra endurance athletes are a stubborn folk.  We don't easily give up.  We don't easily quit.  We find a way to overcome.  

I go towards pain and the real possibility of failure just so I can prove to myself that failure fuels me.  The closer I get to stopping when it's hard, the sharper my focus, the more refined my approach.  The longer I live, the more I realize that the closer I can push myself towards failure, the more I will be able to achieve.  After all, we will never know how far we can go until we risk going too far, right?

My commitment is strong.  I am committed.  I am focused.  I am intent on keeping a positive attitude and moving forward even when the going gets tough.  Even when the ground gets rocky, the roots get rooty and the hills get steep and difficult to navigate.  In fact, that's when I come alive.  That's when I'm at my best.  

What are you committed to and how committed are you?  Do your actions reflect where your commitments lie or do your words speak of a life you are not truly prepared to live?  I don't know you or your circumstances, but I do know that you are capable of living a life according to your commitments.  

Jon Howard - Husband and Father of 3 | Ultra Endurance Athlete | Owner - Training Edge Sports