Don't Worry, Be Happy.

I ran this morning! 

Running makes everything better. It's just as much a workout for my brain as it is for my body. Last weekend I ran the Bryce Half-Marathon for the third time. I ran with my best friend Adriana and my sister and brother-in-law, Holly and Mark. It was a blast. It is always amazing to see how our bodies just function and keep going even when things are hard. 

Just a few goodies from our run. We had a lot of fun. 

A huge part of running, well, any kind of exercise, for me, is the mental game. Fighting myself to work hard and stay positive while I exercise is a battle. I have come to realize that this battle is not just when I exercise, but everyday. 

Last year I went to Time Out for Women with my mom. Hilary Weeks was the entertainer. Love her. She told a story about trying to stay positive. Every time she would think a negative thought she would record it with a little device. Each time she recorded a negative thought it would be followed by another negative thought about how she had to record the thought and the cycle went on and on. At the end of the day she would check it and see how good or bad she did. Trying to be honest and record every negative thought started to weigh her down. She then decided to change it and record how many positive thoughts she would have each day. As she focused on her positive thoughts and recorded them, more and more positive thoughts came and she felt infinitely happier. 

This really is how thoughts work. I have been trying to watch my thoughts and notice the patterns and attitudes of my thoughts. It has been extremely enlightening and I have learned so much about myself. 

"We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world." - Buddha

I really dreaded running today. For some reason after I run a half my desire to run is depleted and I end up taking a 3 month break from running. I don't want this to happen again so I went this morning. I wanted to run to the temple, but I was feeling so lazy and didn't want to go all the way up 9th. I did it anyway. I am so glad I did. It created an opportunity for me to think about my attitude towards my life and to realize that I am capable of so much more than what I box myself into. I realized that My attitude needed a little adjustment and that my mind is so much stronger than the little I use it for. 

In a talk I read this morning it referenced Alma 32:38. 

"But if ye neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it has no root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out."

This is a perfect way to fight bad thoughts. Just don't pay any attention to it and it will die. Then you can pluck it up and cast it out. Nourish the positive tree or thoughts like Hilary Weeks and they will multiply. 

One last quote for today:

"Much more surprising things can happen to anyone who, when a disagreeable or discouraged thought comes into his mind, just has the sense to remember in time and push it out by putting in an agreeable, determinedly courageous one. Two things cannot be in one place." - Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

Powerful right? Well, be happy. Stay positive. Life is beautiful.