Reading Time: 2 minutes
Monday, I can’t help myself: “How was your weekend?!”
9/10 times, the answer is: “Busy”. I know.
“Tell me one thing real quick!”
Most of the answers I get come in the form of an inventory of activities, mostly around kids’ events and sports, end of school activities, graduations and summer kick off bonanzas.
My answer is usually: “That sounds like so much fun!!!” Because it does y’all. I love a familial gathering, the end of the school year, a milestone and celebration, and summer. #leoseason
And then I see it in your face. You are tired. I bet. Busy and tired. I can see it. But you got this!
And when the question bounces back to me: “How was your weekend?”, I usually give it a one-word answer: “Restful.” And off we go to the topic of the meeting at hand.
Weird huh? Here is how it went: the moment I welcomed an experienced coach to help me successfully navigate the year-long journey that would be ahead, rest came up. Tiffany could not have been any clearer: “When I tell you to rest, you rest. No matter how the week went, no matter how ahead or behind schedule we get, no matter what happens. When I tell you to rest, you need to figure out how to get out of your head and rest your body.” Roger that. I am really good with clear direction and this, I can do!
I did just that. And I looked forward to every. single. minute. of rest I could get, as the weeks and months went on. Rest was on the weekend at first. And then, with about 6 months left to go, rest moved to a day of the week. See, the workouts were getting long and I needed more free time to get them done. During the week, I didn’t have an exactly restful job. I was busy running an account and chasing a promotion at IBM. And I just couldn’t afford to be tired. I would peak at 24 hours of training a week. I had to figure it out. Rest was the only way to recover faster from the micro-aggressions of adding mileage every single week. Stronger. Longer.
So I learned. I learned that rest comes in different forms for me. For sure, it’s in quality sleep. If you aren’t getting enough of neither quality nor sleep, start there ASAP. But consider that rest also show up elsewhere. In moments that matter: in a good stretch, in closing one’s eyes for a few minutes, in the cadence of routine, in time away from devices, in hugs, in breath, in someone else’s tardiness, in a slow walk around the block, in savoring a delicious meal, in a whole day on the couch or in Netflix & chill, and definitely in a massage. In doing nothing. All that became and remains rest to me.
Here is what I believe:
Rest is part of the training. Period.
There is absolutely no way to reach the type of performance required to achieve a transformational moment, like crossing the finish line at Ironman, without rest.
And in 2022, I feel like the whole world is transforming. Aren’t you?
This summer, consider this: let us practice resting. Let us find those moments of rest. Our micro-aggressions may vary, but when it comes to needing rest, we are more alike than different.
Next Monday, don’t be surprised if I ask: “Did you get any rest this weekend?”
And tell me everything!
—
Say something, go ahead!