From Small to Big…

Sid speaking at the NYC Veg Fest: Saturday, March 14, 11:30 (Apple Stage)

Organic T-shirts, Mugs & WWID bracelets!: Click here

Sid’s Book (paperback and kindle): Approaching the Natural

*

As those of you who listen to the AtN Podcast know, I’m going to be running my first ultramarathon this weekend (the Way Too Cool 50K/31 mile race in Cool, California). I am excited and nervous, but am looking forward to what I will learn from the experience. This is a training race of sorts, in preparation for my 50 miler in April.

What I’ve talked about on the podcast and want to write about here, is the years-in-the-making of this goal. I have been a runner for most of my life, and only in the last 2-3 years have hit distances beyond 13 miles. While many of you may think you can’t relate to 31 miles, much less 50 miles, my belief is that my 50 miler can be your 1 mile, or, frankly, a walk down the hallway. As we are a natural species in an unnatural world, I help people move by degrees back to what is most natural for us, and to make the move in small steps. BUT…a seemingly small step for one person could be too big for another. It is about finding a size step that enables you to embark on new behaviors in as least stressful a way as possible.

I didn’t always go out for a 20-mile training run on a Saturday morning, and if I had attempted it 4 years ago I most likely would’ve injured myself. As with virtually any new behavior it is about easing your way in incrementally such that by the time you get to the 20 miler, it feels like a 5 miler did way back when….

This post is not at all about running per se. It’s about art, meditation, journaling, nutrition, socializing and everything else I touch upon in my book and podcast. It’s about starting small for one reason and one reason only: to START. Eventually your steps may start to look big to an outside observer, but when you try my approach, each step is small for you, and that’s all that counts.

Thanks for reading and come see me in New York (or Portland in November….).