The Peanut Gallery

Five years ago, I was running down the road with a brand new hydration pack. An older gentleman who was in his seventies asked me this:

Older guy: Hey buddy, how much are you carrying?

Jim: This hydration pack carries a gallon of liquid.

Older guy: No, I mean how much weight are you carrying?

I won’t tell you my answer, but this exchange set off a month and a half of older people giving me a hard time about my weight and running.  For a brief period (about two weeks), it started to really impact my confidence. Some of the comments were just flat out mean.

I know they probably didn’t intend for it to be that way. I turned the corner one day, and practiced my response with confidence.  I had to remind myself that running makes me feel good and no one should ever take that away.

It taught me that only you can impact your self-confidence. People are always going to say and do what they want. You are the only person in control of your thoughts and actions. This weekend, I ran into a good friend who is working on losing weight. She is such an inspiration and has a TREMENDOUS attitude! She leads through action and you should hear her talk with confidence. It is amazing!

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