2017: A Year of Rediscovering Joy

I’ve talked a lot how I do a lot of my runs to a single song on repeat – past favorites include everything from Smashing Pumpkin’s “Tonight Tonight” to BabyMetal’s “Karate” to NEEDTOBREATHE’s “Keep Your Eyes Open.”

In 2017, the most played song-on-repeat has been from the musical, “Hamilton” – Aaron Burr’s theme song, “Wait for It.”

Not because I should want to end up in Mr. Burr’s position, but I found the lyrics particularly applicable to the current state of my athletic journey. Throughout the year, I wanted nothing more than to be back out with a full race schedule, competing in epically stupid events, but my body wasn’t there yet. So on run after morning run, I sang the words over and over again: “I’m willing to wait for it.”

Last year, I originally titled my 2016 year-in-review post “A Year of Injury,” and, after writing it, quickly changed it to “A Year of Healing.”

To keep a tradition running , I originally titled this post “A Year of Patience,” but as I wrote, realized that it really was a “Year of Rediscovering Joy”: both in racing and in life. Yes, there was a fair amount of patience involved, but by embracing that patience, I was also able to find joy.

A year ago at this time, as I slowly started my return to run program (whee one mile!), I sat there, making grandiose plans for my 2017 season. Surely, I thought, starting with that one mile “run” in December, I’d have plenty of time to get back up to speed by the time the season was in full swing come April.

HA.

I apparently underestimated the length of time needed to rebuild as an athlete after a year on the sidelines. But in this gray zone of “training but nowhere close to peak readiness,” I found an opportunity to rebuild not just my body, but my relationship with racing, from the ground up.  I’m not a resolution person, but I do like to take stock of what I have learned in the prior year (what worked/what didn’t work), and see how I can apply that to the coming year. So here are my biggest takeaways from the year:

Check the Ego

In the rebuilding stage as an athlete, you face a decision: when do I race again? This was a question that loomed over me for most of the year. I saw it in two ways.

I could wait to race until I felt “ready.” Until I’d regained all the strength I’d lost, until my running paces had come back. Until I was SURE I could go out there and dominate.

Or, I could set aside my ego, toe the start line feeling less than confident, and accept what my current limitations were. Accept that I’m rusty, accept that I’m scared, and accept that the results may not be what I would like.

Essentially, accept where I am in the process and be ok with that.

There’s no right answer for an athlete, but for me, the hardest thing I could do was to get back on that race course feeling less than confident, knowing I wasn’t where I “wanted to be.” Because I knew that the only thing keeping me off that starting line was my ego, and a few fears: (1) the fear that I would lose my perfect podium streak of 6+ years; (2) the fear that folks would talk about how I was “no longer a great athlete”; and (3) at the core (if we are going to get REEEALLLY deep here), the fear that if I didn’t win races I wouldn’t be loved.

Note to self: the first two happened. The third didn’t.

It’s a difficult thing for any athlete to fall off the podium, to no longer be the one that everyone fears, and to feel like your best days are behind you. I won’t lie – it’s an extremely humbling process, and one that I’m still working through. But by racing through these emotions and these fears, I learned something else: there’s great freedom in it as well. Freedom in realizing your expectations are only constructs you create in your own head. Freedom is learning that the world keeps spinning regardless of what that finish time says. And hell – a bit of freedom in being the underdog.

I Am Not Broken (so stop waiting for the other shoe to drop)

Somewhere along the line since the case of the femurs, I got it in my head that I was hopelessly broken (physically, mentally, emotionally). I became distrustful of my body – a body that had historically cooperated so well, and had seen me through so many tough adventures in my life.

I’ve never been a big positive self-talk person. Affirmations make me want to vomit. But by getting stuck in this cycle of distrust of my body, and the feeling that I was hopelessly broken, every small niggle suddenly became a catastrophe. Each ache and pain suddenly became a “OMG I HAVE ANOTHER STRESS FRACTURE.”

Don’t get me wrong – I firmly believe in erring on the side of caution (and, the creation of Rest Day Brags was by far one of the best things that happened this year – thanks JL and CB!). But the mind-body connection is a curious thing: if you believe something hurts, then you can make it 100x worse. If you fixate, you will find pain there.

At the core, I was fearful of another long-term injury. I was petrified that every small thing would then mean months and months away from doing what I loved: in other words, I was just waiting another for the other shoe to drop.

I couldn’t believe that I could be healthy, and that I could go for a year without major injury. Granted, it didn’t help to hear from internet commentators “jeez, are you ALWAYS injured?” So I lived in perpetual fear and shame of ending up “that injured girl.” And let me tell you – feeling like you are running    on borrowed time (“when’s the time thing going to happen?”) is incredibly exhausting.

Confession: I’ve had more MRIs this year that ever before (the MRI techs knew me by name…oy). I’ve had at least 5 separate occasions where I was CONVINCED I had another stress fracture in various parts of the body. All of the MRIs came back negative. And, oddly enough, once I saw that there was nothing wrong with me (according to the MRI), the pain went away.

But I can’t run to get an MRI every time something hurts for more than a few days – it’s frankly kind of shameful (and really…REALLY expensive). And it’s embarrassing to admit that the woman who made a name for herself in fighting through and loving pain was suddenly so debilitated by it. So a few months ago, I made a promise to myself to remember that I am strong.  Pains will come and go, but I can’t live in fear of being sidelined again for another year. That other shoe doesn’t HAVE to drop (but if it does, I’ll deal with it then, instead of projecting into the future). Now, when something flares, I’ll often repeat “I am not broken” along with other “affirmations” (written in my running  log – thanks Coach David!)  and it’s rather amazing how well it works. Injuries will happen, but I refuse to let the fear of injury debilitate me any longer.

The early return to running miles in the dark (thanks Coach David for capturing!)

Joy is not found in the accomplishment, but the journey  

In the beginning of December, I was fortunate enough to attend Tony Robbins’ “Date with Destiny” While there, we did a meditation exercise where we went back through moments in our lives where we felt pure gratitude, and pure joy. The idea was to let these moments flow naturally, and not force them.

Of course, I expected images of winning races, of standing on podiums, of crossing finish lines to flood my thoughts in this experience. Oddly enough, NONE of those came to mind. I even tried to force myself to think about, for example, winning the Spartan Race World Championship, and it felt hollow. The moments that did come easily, however, were moments of time shared with others – with family, friends, and loved ones. In fact, the ONLY moments that came to me related to racing were snippets of time out on the course shared with fellow competitors – a helping hand over Humpchuck at 3am, a post-race beer, a lap with #TeamFightClub.

After the meditation ended, I sat in tears, shocked at my experience, but forced to admit something to myself I’d probably known all along: true joy and true gratitude does not come from the victory – it comes from the pursuit of the achievement. The happiness from victory is there, of course, but it’s fleeting.

Because you know what? Winning is never going to be enough. I spent years winning race after race, and wondering why I still wasn’t happy. Why, the more I won, the less fulfilled I felt.

I was missing the point all along – I was failing to embrace the things that truly brought me happiness, that truly brought me joy: the pursuit, and the sharing of that pursuit with others.

It seems so simple now, and perhaps many of you realized this a long time ago (fine, fine – I’m late to the party). But it’s applicable across so many aspects of my life well beyond racing, and I’m determined to not lose sight of this.

I couldn’t race World’s Toughest Mudder, but this was one of the highlights of my year

There is No “Comeback”

As I wrote about back in the spring, I’ve learned to shun the word “comeback” (thanks in large part to my life twin Caroline Burckle). I cringe every time someone comments “I can’t wait to see your comeback.” While well-intentioned, they are missing the point. “Comeback” implies that you are trying to get back to a place you once were, and, therefore trying to recreate the past. The hard truth is that we can’t recreate the past. We shouldn’t want to recreate the past. We can only move forward, and write our new story. So for those of you facing an injury, facing a setback in life – I challenge you to rewrite your story. To let go of the preconceived notions of where you “should” be, and to embrace the new paths that can open when you are able to let go of the script you’ve written for yourself. Because that story is always in pencil, never in pen.

Race Happy 

At the beginning of the 2017 season, I vowed that my one goal for the year was to race happy – to reformulate my relationship with racing by making it the source of joy it once was when I first started out, as opposed to the source of stress it became.

While I had moments of doubt and a few tears, I’m happy to report that it worked. I raced sparingly this year – partly by choice, partly by trying to respect my body in the rebuilding process. And while, on paper, it looked like my “worst” season of racing, results-wise, it was also the sanest I’ve ever been during a season.

Nerves were still there, of course, but I didn’t let it dominate my life. I lived life outside of racing, and I found a peace I thought I had lost so long ago.

It’s rather funny – I finished 11th in the Spartan Race World Championships, by far my worst finish ever. But I crossed that finish line so happy, and so damn proud. I had a blast out on that course – hooting and hollering jumping into that ice cold swim, high-fiving others, and fucking stoked that I nailed both spear throws, finishing my year without a SINGLE missed spear throw (for those of you who have watched me since the early days of Spartan, you know that I was lucky to hit even ONE a year). But I let a few internet commentators get to me, throwing barbs about “how far I’d fallen as an athlete,” etc., and I felt the self-doubt start to creep back in. But while I could have chosen to dwell in that space, for the first time, I chose to focus on how I felt out on that course, not what it said on paper.  So while those comments stung, I realized it didn’t take away from my joy out on that course, or the pride I felt when I crossed that finish line.

I don’t get it right all the time, and yes, it’s something I’m still facing down and tackling head on. But slowly, I’m learning to run my own race, both on the course and in life. And throughout that, “race happy” will continue to be my motto.

………..

Now, after reflection on 2017, I turn to how I can apply these lessons to 2018. And while I could write for pages on that topic (and I have!), I will spare you all the long and gory details and simply say:

Focus on the journey. Focus on others. Be unapologetically bold. And continue to race happy.

(and…SAY YES)

Cheers to 2018. Life is amazing, and there are big things ahead for all of us.

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34 thoughts on “2017: A Year of Rediscovering Joy”

  1. So honestly written! Not always easy to fight the urge to keep the mask on and open up. Life is short and getting to “yes” sooner on takes control of the fears we all struggle with. Thank you for that reminder, often coming from places and people unknown but so often the best advice.

  2. Thank you so much for choosing to be vulnerable, writing honestly and emotionally about your injury and the process of growing into a new a stronger woman. I myself have had a year of injury of unknown origin. Reading your words has helped me re-frame my mindset and set myself up for mental growth and success.
    Being vulnerable is bad ass, and fucking hard. So thank you!

  3. Beautiful story ! So many inspirational thoughts. Happy for you that you have discovered the magic behind passion which is that the process is more lasting than the end result. Wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2018.

  4. Thanks for writing this piece, some really good pointers for me as I try and overcome some long term injuries. No comeback, just try to be the best version of myself i can be, one day at a time. Good luck for 2018!

  5. Well said! Love the Lion King. All of 2017, I’ve been telling myself to enjoy the jourey. It’s not always easy to enjoy, but I’ve been “training” myself to enjoy it and will work on enjoying it for 2018.
    Thank yor for sharing.

  6. Amelia you are so inspiring and I love that your main focus is racing happy and finding the joy in racing and having fun, instead of staying on top of the podium every race. I remember meeting you in Palmerton and you are sincerely a genuine human being who is nice and sweet and really cares about her Spartan community. Thank you for inspiring me and others to have fun racing and tough it out when the races get bad. You will always be the Queen of Pain and the Queen of Spartan races.

  7. Amen to this piece Amelia ! A very relatable feeling regarding the injuries. I have strugled with injuries for 3 years in a row so the fear of every little pain is so relatable.

    I Will take your experience in and with me this year focussing on the joy and not on the negatives !

    I hope this Will be a year of happy and great races for you.

  8. I’m about to sit down and reflect on my 2017 and pull together some thoughts for 2018 – so this was perfect timing to read!

    I hear you on the MRI stuff. I got into a fix a few years back where I started to convince myself that aches, pains, the odd lump etc. were fatal. I would have some pains for well over a month, yet the moment I had a test or was reassured by a doctor, it went in days (sometimes the same day!). I learned our mind is so powerful for creating and prolonging symptoms. So when you learn to control that and keep things rational, mostly everything falls into place.

    Sounds like you’re going to have a great 2018!

      1. Nope, not the only one, Amelia! I’m the same and will think of your blog post, especially the following quote when I begin trying to find aches/pains.

        “But the mind-body connection is a curious thing: if you believe something hurts, then you can make it 100x worse. If you fixate, you will find pain there.”

        Thanks for the stoke and have a great year!

  9. Amelia,

    This saved me this morning. I’ve been in the middle of a similar stress fracture saga since July, and reading your words felt like therapy – all of it so true and continual moments of, “OMG yes, thank god I’m not the only one feeling like this.” Beneath the layers of fear, frustration, anger and heartache, there’s a tiny voice pleading for patience and self-confidence. Thank you for reminding me not to ignore it.

    Run strong and race happy,
    Amy

  10. Amelia,

    I just want to say thank you for your honesty and your strength throughout your injury journey. I’ve been battling a bizarre knee injury that has had me sidelined for the past two years, and it was during a particularly dark period a that a friend of mine turned me onto your blog. To read about your experience, and to see how you battled through the non-linear frustration of injury, made me feel a lot less alone. And I really, really needed that.

    Although I’m not up and running yet, hearing about your progress and the perspective that the last year has given you is immensely helpful. I’m at the point where I’m starting to push my own rehab exercises, and although it is a wonderful freedom, it’s also terrifying! I don’t want to make it worse, but I need need need to get back to racing and playing outside. It’s a delicate balance, and one that I’m happy to hear you’ve gotten (mostly?) past.

    Anyway, long story short, thank you. You’re an incredible athlete and an incredible human being, and I have so much respect for what you’ve been able to accomplish and how you’ve conducted yourself throughout this process. Whoever has said that you are “no longer a great athlete” could not be more wrong, and quite frankly I think we need more great athletes being open and honest about the struggles of injury and recovery. It’s helped me tremendously, and I think there are a lot more people who could benefit as well.

    Happy New Year, and keep crushing!!

  11. This was so spot on for me. Learning to trust my body again after 28 months of injury (excuse me, healing) has been so frustrating. Thank you for sharing what this process has really been like for you. The post-injury victory laps and posts about how great it is to be great again are maddening. Your honesty is refreshing (and ridiculously comforting).

  12. I also find your blog inspirational and insightful. Being honest with yourself is so critical to where you’re going, and you seem to have that nailed down. I haven’t suffered a major injury (knock on wood) but your thoughts still provide motivation for doing things the right way, and enjoying the journey. Thank you again and again.

  13. I’ve been battling through the mental battle of recovery and being sidelined from exercise, racing, etc. I tore my ACL and meniscus in August and just had surgery in December.
    Reading through your posts is helping me frame some of my thoughts and calm my freak outs.

  14. Great blog post Amelia. Congrats on everything you have learned through this process. Your love of the sport is apparent in every photo taken of you. Keep doing what you do best. Keep motivating and inspiring others!

  15. Amelia,

    I just finished reading your entire blog. No need for details but let’s just say like so many I’ve battled injury and the inability to be active the way I want to be off and on for numerous years. Good streaks and bad streaks (now I see the bad as streaks of regrowth and opportunity after reading all your posts). You have always inspired me, but now after reading all of this I want to say you inspire me more for your honesty, courage, rediscovering and further discovering your joys and breaking down the psychological constructs we create. Thank you for one hell of a positive mindset. It’s always the ultimate victory if we can be our best selves through any process and focus on the good. I want to thank you for helping me see this through your posts and help to influence my mind right through my current post surgical experience (and not scratch that itch of wanting to “get back” but instead be in the moment and go with the changing tides as they come). Best wishes for you in any and whatever endeavors you want for yourself. Keep it happy!

    In gratitude,
    Tom

    1. thank you for the kind words! I’m learning that my battle is all too common. While I hate others have the same struggle, at least we know we are all in it together. Best to you!

  16. So inspiring as always, Amelia. Looking forward to you bringing stupid back, bringing fun back, and just having a good time this year!

  17. Hi Amelia! My coach tagged me in this and I read it and it really spoke to me. I am a senior in high school, committed to run in college with a self-attacking conscience. My biggest struggle with running is the mental battle and the worry that I’ll never get back to where I was. I have realized that enjoying the process is an important part in my relationship with running. Running isn’t a chore and I shouldn’t treat it like one. Thanks for writing this!! I really could relate.

  18. Amelia,

    Really great article, and very powerful introspection. I can relate to a lot of the emotions you experienced: triumph, setback, pride and fear.

    It takes a lot of courage to put yourself in a situation where you might be “fail” or be judged. And It takes a lot more consciousness to realize that this now is the best now we will ever have. It taking on both, it sounds like you rediscovered your “why”.

    And that makes me “effing stoked” to see what kind of awesomeness you create next.

    Thank you for sharing.

    -JQ

  19. You’re in great company with the doing entire runs to a single song on repeat approach. Matt Carpenter listened to Eminem’s ‘Lose Yourself’ on repeat while running 15:42 at the 2005 Leadville 100, a record that still stands today; and complete validation of focusing on the joy of the training process (after a walk-it-in ’04 finish) and letting the race outcome fall where it may.
    With the reframed mindset this blog post hangs on, you can’t lose, regardless of numerical results; but the numbers may eventually pleasantly surprise you just the same.
    Good luck with the moving forward.

  20. I don’t even know what a Spartan race is, but I enjoyed your article. Kudos for being brave enough to be vulnerable. Good message!

  21. I found it interesting that you listen to songs on repeat. I do the same things when I’m writing novels. The last one was The Head and the Heart’s Down in the Valley.
    And listening to Smashing Pumpkins on repeat, I mean c’mon, that’s badass.
    Thank you for taking the time to tell us about your journey Amelia. I’d wish you luck, but luck is for the ill-prepared. Go get ’em.

  22. “We can let the past inform our future, but clinging to an idea of returning to an old self only limits what we could be.” …is the perfect word salad and just what I needed this morning for breakfast. Thanks for sharing your wisdom and journey with us.

  23. Thank you so much for sharing your feelings and thoughts. I have had a difficult year sidelined with injury (knee and back). I’m getting back to running and trying not to let every niggle stop me. I had to make myself get out there and start and not wait until I felt I was completely ready. Once I got past my initial fear, I found such joy in just being able to run again. Now I’ve finally reached a point where I can even contemplate racing again. Thank you again for sharing your experience.

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