Imagine…WHAT IF motivation was a tangible object, say a homogeneous liquid. WHAT IF there was a formula to which motivation could be created. If motivation could be manufactured, bottled, and found on the shelves of a grocer near you, there is little doubt that it would be almost impossible to keep in stock. Imagine if there was a home recipe for motivation, that you could whip up in your very own kitchen when you were in short supply. How AMAZINGLY FANTASTIC that would be!
While there may be some Mad Scientists out there doing just that, the reality is, motivation cannot be manufactured. It starts with self. Self-Motivation is what is going to get you started. No one is going to get you PUMPED to PRIORITZE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. But WHAT IF starting is no longer the issue. WHAT IF you are BEYOND just getting started and need to keep moving forward or even LEVEL UP!
Marshall Faulk, NFL Pro Football Hall of Famer, said it best, “I don’t care how GREAT you are. You need to be PUSHED beyond the motivation that YOU have.”
Ok, so what exactly does finding a rabbit have to do with motivation? For those of you who may not be runners or into track and field, a rabbit is basically a pacemaker or pacesetter that typically leads out in front for a runner to follow. When a runner starts lagging, the rabbit is there for a visual representation of where the runner should be. If you have ever seen greyhounds race at a dog track, you may have noticed a mechanical rabbit that the dogs chase around the track. Rabbits push the pace!
One Rabbit, Two Rabbit, Three Rabbit, FOUR!
Last year, I was running long distances on a consistent basis, but I was finding myself stuck around a pace of about 8 minutes 30 seconds per mile. I could not breakthrough that time for the life of me! One day, a group of my colleagues invited me out on a Saturday morning run. I knew these men to be runners. I am a solo runner primarily out of convenience of not having to rely on other people, but I was HYPED about having faster runners to run with. Being a married man, with a kiddo, I no longer make decisions in a vacuum. So, I had a conversation with my wife (gotta make sure I am not inconveniencing her routine), got the go-ahead and I was IN LIKE FLYNN. That Saturday morning, with my rabbit in my sights, my rabbit help push my pace down to about 7 minutes and 45 seconds! TRIUMPHANT!
I don’t care how GREAT you are. You need to be PUSHED beyond the motivation that YOU have.
Marshall Faulk
Earlier this year, during my work-related travel to Peru, I visited Lima. I discovered there was a race, the Life Lima 42K Marathon, during my time there and I could not pass up this great opportunity. I signed up for the 21 kilometers/13.1 miles race. Despite barely making it to the starting line on time and having to hold my POOP the entire race, I honed in on two runners that were running side-by-side. I lost sight of them during hydration stations stops throughout the race, but somehow, they would reappear. These strangers pushed me through to the finish line. It was a fantastic experience!
Fast forward to present day, last Saturday, during my Annual Physical Fitness Test (APTF) that my service (United States Public Health Commissioned Corps) requires us to perform… I met RABBIT #3. I showed up pretty late to the track where we were to conduct our APFT and my fellow officers had already knocked out the upper body strength test (push-ups) and abdominal/core test (plank or sit-ups). Truth be told, I HAD TO TAKE A POOP! (Side note: begin tardy due to POOP is becoming a common theme here). So, when I arrived, they had to wait for me some more because…I had to take ANOTHER POOP!!! I’m not lying ya’ll. With empty bowels and an empty stomach, it was time for the 1.5-mile run! Now, throughout the year I mainly focused on longer 6-8 milers and had not trained for shorter distances, so I was not expecting to do very well. When a fellow officer stated his pace was around 7 minutes per mile, I knew I FOUND MYSELF A RABBIT! I locked in on his stride and pace and the end results were 9 minutes 55 seconds for him and 10 minutes 2 seconds for me! CRUSHED IT!
The Cool-Down
Until the day that someone discovers or creates the magic formula for motivation, until some scientist synthesizes motivation through laboratory experiments, we must rely on each other for MOTIVATION! There is a blessing in that, you get to connect with other HUMAN BEINGS. That is a reward in and of itself. Find yourself a RABBIT. Someone bigger, faster, or stronger, if these are your goals. Attach yourself to your RABBIT when you can and PUSH yourself. You will be amazed by the results. Connect with each other. Connect with www.ACTIVE-DAD.com, and let us be each other’s RABBITS! Wherever in the world you are located. Whatever level of physical fitness you are starting at or continuing, you are not ALONE. All dads should be ACTIVE-DADs. Start you journey and SHARE!