Does being told you can't do something immediately make you want to do it?
When I was in the police, staying fit wasn't optional. As one of the more senior (older, ancient, fossilised) officers, I had to keep passing the Physical Competency Test.
I decided to get into running rather than lifting iron (tin in my case).
I'd heard exercise was good for you. Apparently it helps with fitness, mental health and all sorts of other things sensible people talk about.
I was also coming out of a short dive into depression, so I thought running might be a good idea.
Twice a week I'd run 10 kilometres. On alternate days I'd do weights.
Everything was going brilliantly until my shins decided they had other plans.
What followed was a spectacular medical investigation. Scans, specialists, more scans.
At one stage they injected me with something radioactive. I should be okay, “Just don't stand too close to pregnant women for the next few hours.”
Eventually I found myself at the Adidas Sports Clinic.
After months of tests, consultations and enough orthotics to support a small village, the specialist sat me down and delivered the verdict.
"Lance, some people just aren't meant to run."
Now, he probably thought he was being helpful. What he didn't realise was that he'd just activated the most dangerous words in the English language.
“I’ll show you!”
I've been running ever since. Not always well, not always enthusiastically.
For several years I absolutely hated it, but I kept doing it.
Fast forward to yesterday when my ankle was sore. Not ‘slightly uncomfortable sore’, more like ‘common sense says stay at home’ sore.
So naturally I went for a run. Probably to see if it was serious, but hey, what's the worst that could happen?
As it turns out, things can actually get worse. Go figure.
As I limped home, I started asking myself an important question… Why do I keep doing this?
Who am I trying to prove something to? Is it ADHD, which I blame for all sorts of things? Is it stubbornness, most likely. Or a refusal to admit I can’t.
Or is it simply that every time someone says, ‘You can't’, a small voice in my head immediately replies, ‘Watch me.’
I've come to realise I may never know the answer as to why I do it, push myself beyond my own limits.
What I do know is that if life has taught me anything, it's that when a medical specialist says, "Some people aren't meant to run," they're talking about other people.
Not stupid people like me who knows better.
Let’s talk!
Challenge Accpted.