Everybody gets nervous. If you do big things, you’ll have nervous excitement at the very least and full-on terror at the worst. It’s that bumping up against the boundaries of life that causes the reaction.
Photo by Domain Barnyard via Flickr
This weekend I’ll be running the Seattle Rock-N-Roll Half-Marathon. This is one big step toward the marathon that has been sitting on my bucket list since long before I even knew what a bucket list was.
The original intent was to write a post after the half-marathon to report on my progress and how I weathered this event. I haven’t written a ton about my training these last 8 months even though it has been a big part of my life, and I think a lot of that had to do with being nervous about the outcome.
Then I chanced on a quote from Lady Gaga of all people and it just somehow clicked:
“When I wake up in the morning, I feel just like any other insecure 24-year-old girl,” she says. “Then I say, ‘Bitch, you’re Lady Gaga, you get up and walk the walk today.’ “
~ Lady Gaga in Rolling Stone
I’m a big fan of “kick-ass” kind of statements like this, and they really motivate me to act the way I want to be instead of how I might be feeling at the moment.
How am I going to walk the walk today?
I’m going to publish this post before I run the race and include my intentions instead of writing it after the race and stating the outcome. And I’m going to tell you my time goal as well as publish my progress online via GPS while I’m running for anyone to see.
Borrowing from Lady Gaga, “Bitch, you’re Betsy Talbot, you get up and run that half-marathon today.”
Today I declare that I will finish the half-marathon in 3 hours (my predicted time on the registration form is 3:40). If you want to follow my progress you can do so by following my Twitter feed, where my GPS will auto-post my progress at each mile. I’ll update this post after the race with my actual results.
And if you’re interested in the course, you can follow along below. (If you are reading through a feed, you can access the video here.
If you had to follow Lady Gaga’s quote, what walk would you be walking today?
UPDATE: Official race time 3:08:20. Great pics from the race coming up in the next post.
About Betsy
This is one of my most favorite posts ever! Lady Gaga might be a lot of things, but she just rose about 1000 notches in my eyes with this quote. I am SO proud of you and in awe of all you have accomplished and tackled since I’ve known you. This is more proof that the final outcome doesn’t f-ing matter. It’s all about the journey. We’ll be cheering for you!
Thanks, Maria. It’s going to be an exciting weekend for sure. On a side note, I’m wondering what you think of Lady Gaga from a personal branding perspective. (See, there I go hijacking my own thread.) Would love to see a Red Slice post on that some time.
Also remember: “F-you, I’m FABULOUS!”
You are gonna ROCK that 1/2 marathon and I’m hoping to get down there to cheer you on at the end…be sure to have lots of GAGA on your iPod! And being able to track you on Twitter - how cool is that?!? Right up my alley..
Thanks, Karen. I knew you’d be excited about the Twitter thing.
That’s a great quote from Lady Gaga. Good luck with the half-marathon - I’m sure you’ll meet your goal of finishing in 3 hours!
Great post Betsy, and good for you for putting it out there and posting your goals. This is a great reminder to keep our dreams and goals in mind, they’re more important than the day-to-day and moment-to-moment feelings and moods we all experience. And there’s nothing wrong with going with the moment and pouring that glass of wine or hitting the couch once in awhile, but sooner or later you’re going to have to run that half-marathon!
Have a blast, and even more important than making your goal, remember to really experience the run as much as possible, soak it in and record the experience in your own memory bank.
Yay Betsy! You guys are inspiring me every day. (Although riding naked on a bike through the city is about as far outside my comfort zone as…. jumping out of an airplane. Oh yeah- Warren did that too.)
Whoo!!! Go Betsy!!!! I’m cheering for you from all the way in (not so) sunny Saskatchewan!
I’ve never really been a huge Lady Gaga fan(overplayed music and all that) but I will be the first to admit that her marketing strategy and attitude is working and commendable. That quote certainly boosts my respect for her.
And to answer your question, I’m waking up today and saying “Screw the rain. I’m getting up and biking that 15km to the city!”
“Bitch, you’re not THREE! Get up and get your healing on!”
(and I love you too, Betsy. Have FUN on Saturday!)