Those of you who know me well will be aware that I am a keen participant in Parkrun. I attend this free, community focussed, volunteer run activity most Saturday mornings. In fact, this weekend I completed my 233rd 5km as a Parkrunner and my 42nd week in a row, accomplishments for which I am quite proud.

Usually I have no problem in getting up and getting ready to head out for this early (for a Saturday morning) adventure. Even if I am reticent, once I am at our regular Parkrun location I am sure to brighten when I see familiar faces of the other members and head out on the familiar track.

This is enhanced out on the course as it is my practice to speak encouragement to every other participant I see. I call out “great job”, “keep going” and “you’ve got this” or similar to the other parkrunners. I know how hard running or walking 5km can be so I figure this activity needs to be acknowledged.

A number of Saturdays ago I woke feeling disinclined to emerge from the cocoon of my warm bed to dress and then exert significant energy for 37-40 mins wondering what is the point of it all? David, my husband, encouraged me to get up and get ready, citing that once I get up and moving my viewpoint usually turns more positive.

On this occasion, it did not. I felt as if I had a dark cloud surrounding me, a little like the depictions of Pig Pen from the Peanuts comic strip. When we arrived at Parkrun I didn’t want to get out of the car, I didn’t want to speak to anyone beforehand and I was determined to begrudgingly just walk, get it over and done with and then head home.

As is often the way, once the Run Director yells, “Go” I start to run, but this day I resolved I would not enjoy this so kept focusing on the negative aspects of trying to find my way past the slower participants in the inevitable bottleneck that seems to occur at the start of every Parkrun event.

I decided I would not bother with my usual encouraging interactions with others as I couldn’t be bothered and I wanted to remain within my force-field of gloom, so every step felt like pure drudgery. Once I reach the 1.4km mark some of the faster runners are usually heading towards me. With each approaching ‘speed freak’ I kept my eyes downcast, refusing to make eye contact with them and therefore feel obliged to comment.

I must admit, this mindset was like wearing a physical burden that made it even more difficult to lift my feet and find some momentum. It was exhausting, truly and utterly draining. I saw it as like trying to run in a metal suit of armour but I didn’t know how to shake free from it.

At 2km I started to see more and more familiar faces who would look almost expectantly at me for my usual comments. I chose to offer some encouragement to 1 or 2 sporadically and what I noticed was that with each phrase I seemed to shed a piece of the armour that had been weighing me down, discarded along the path. So I offered a few more, and it continued.

By the time I reached the 2.5km turn around point I was able to willingly cheer on each person that I passed, and my ability to keep moving with more intention increased. The way our home course operates, I don’t see any more participants coming towards me after the 3km mark and I wondered if my enthusiasm would wane with no one else to cheer on, but it didn’t. I had only spent 1km (~7 mins) with this changed mindset, but it was more than enough to sustain me to the finish line.

What was the difference? Changing my focus from my misery to others was enough to lift my mindset and propel me to complete the task. Not only that, it kept me positive for the remainder of that day. It reminds me of this verse in the Bible: “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

The power of a genuine, positive word can not only have an impact on the person you are encouraging, but on yourself as well. It lifts spirits and makes a real difference. Why not try it today? Especially if you are having one of ‘those’ days.

Be blessed.