Marathon Training Is Like … Investing
NOTE: If you are a runner or athlete of any type, you will know exactly what I mean by this post.
Ever had days where you feel invincible? I had one of those days on Monday. I went to the gym for my planned lunch hour run, and I felt incredible. I cranked up the treadmill to a fast pace (for me), and I ran for five miles. I felt GREAT! I ran five miles at a pace of 7:54/mile. No stress. No problems. Cake.
Have you ever had a day where you feel like you were up to your neck in concrete? On Tuesday, I went to the gym for my planned lunch hour run, and I felt awful. AWFUL. I cranked up the treadmill to a speed slightly faster than a turtle could craw, and it hurt so bad. It was dreadful. It was so bad that I wanted to stop after running one mile. ONE mile. I was thinking, "If it is hurting this bad to run one mile, why on earth have I signed up to run 26.2 miles again!!?!" I stuck it out and ended up running three miles before quitting. It felt horrible. Even after I had stopped, I still felt horrible.
That is exactly what it feels like when I am investing. My money is there for the long haul, and I continue to invest because it makes a lot of sense to do so. There are times that I want to check the investment account every day because it is going up up up up up … There are other times that I can not even bear to look at the account. It takes everything in me to check on it because it is going down down down down …
See marathon training is like investing! There is a long-term pay-off even with all of the ups and downs. At the end of all this training, I will be able to run 26.2 miles and celebrate with an awesome dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. At the end of all of this investing, I will be able to leave a legacy for my family. There will ups. There will be downs. The joy of the journey and the pay-off is worth every up and down.