There is always someone better

Word has it that Michal has joggled a 10K in the amazing time of 36:27. It sounds like a new world record to me. Congratulations Michal! You certainly have raised the bar in this crazy world of world class joggling. I was happy with my own workout yesterday (6+miles in 42 minutes) but that was done on a treadmill. Somehow treadmill speed work is a little easier than outside joggling. It wasn’t too bad but I’m not sure I could’ve run it in 36 minutes. Maybe 39 if I pushed it. hmmm.

And just when I thought I was a pretty good 3-ball juggler, I see this juggling video by Tim Kelly. This guy is really good! He does tricks that I never even thought of. I actually started to find 3-ball juggling to be too boring because I thought I could do everything. Boy was I wrong.

The nice thing about discovering that there is someone better than you is that it makes you change your thinking. It helps you find concrete examples of new targets you can hit. Only then can you get better. In joggling, I never thought of a sub 3-hour marathon because the record was only 3:20 when I started. Now, I’ve seen that my thinking was too limited. 3 hours is possible and there is no reason I shouldn’t be able to do it. (Except for maybe time and physical limitations.)

I used to believe that I could do anything given enough time & practice. But I can’t. No one can. It’s a myth propagated by teachers and self-help gurus. We don’t want to want to discourage people from trying. A noble sentiment, but it can also lead to delusion and disappointment. It may be better to tell a bad singer right away that they won’t be the next American Idol. That way they don’t waste time chasing after a dream that will never happen. Instead they may spend there time chasing dreams that they can achieve. Like breaking the world record of joggling a marathon!

Don’t tell me I can’t do it.

11 Days until the marathon.

I currently weigh 187 pounds. Finally, I can say I’m not overweight.