What Do You Do When You Fall Down?

My knees - 11/26/2011

I re-learned a valuable lesson this past week. When you fall down, you need to get back up again. This applies to so many areas of life, especially healthy living. Even if your knees get bloody, get back up.

First, let me tell you what happened on Saturday morning. At o'dark-thirty, I was out for a run. Yes, I like getting up early to run. I can sneak out of the house while the rest of the family is still sleeping. I can have some alone time, and I can get a good workout done with minimal traffic interruptions.

I was running a long route around town, and I wanted to add a new loop to extend my mileage a little. In order to do that, I had to cut down a main street that sometimes sees more traffic at that hour. So to be safe, I stayed on the sidewalk. Even though I run with a light and a reflective vest, I didn't want to dodge cars. I don't usually run on the sidewalk because it's more uneven than the asphalt, plus concrete is a harder surface.

All of a sudden, I caught my toe on a crack in the sidewalk, and I went tumbling. It all happened so fast. I was lying in a heap on the sidewalk in the pre-dawn light. I told myself to GET UP! Don't lay there, get up, get moving again. I got up and started walking. Once I made sure nothing was sprained or broken, I started jogging.

I could feel the stinging pain of ripped skin and once I got under a street light, I stopped to see how much blood there was. Thankfully, I had leggings on so it kept the dirt out, but my knees had a nice case of road rash, as well as the heels of my hands where I caught myself.

I decided to keep going. I had two more miles to go. I could have taken a direct route and made it home in a half mile, but I wanted to finish my mileage. As I got moving, the coolness of the morning air numbed the stinging.

I'm glad I kept going. It was a good run, in spite of the fall. It added up to one of my highest mileage weeks since I began running.

Just as I did on Saturday morning, when my 4 year old daughter falls, I always encourage her to get right back up. And the same principle applies to healthy living. There are a lot of ways to fall, but the important thing is to get up again. It's only failure when you don't get up again.

Don't lie there on the sidewalk after a piece (or three) of pie. Recommit to your healthy living goals. Remind yourself that food is FUEL and not comfort. Schedule your workouts when life is chaotic and over-scheduled. Reach out for help when you need encouragement. 

*** Pep talk done ***

Personal Update: I have a Reindeer Run 5k this Saturday. I'm really looking forward to this race! I know several people who will be running, I'm wearing a costume of sorts to get in the holiday spirit, plus the race course is one of the routes that I have been training on.

I have not weighed myself recently. Since our move this fall, I've been struggling to get back in the saddle, I've been eating my stress away, and life has been too chaotic. Time to pick myself back up, jump back on the wagon, and re-focus. This week, I'll be focusing on 7 servings of fruits and veggies EVERY DAY. It's one small thing I can do to get moving in the right direction.

Have you fallen? Do you need to pick yourself back up? Just do it!