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Mantras for Running

Posted: Friday, 12 November 2021 @ 11:06

Jo Stroud at London Marathon

"I am a runner. Not a good runner, but a runner nonetheless."

Mantra founder Jo Stroud, has completed two London Marathons, and a whole host of shorter runs. She learnt that you run with your mind as much as your body: it is a mental sport, more even than a physical one.

Often when running, you can defeat yourself mentally before you even start.

Negative self-talk - that you are not fit enough, strong enough, fast enough or good enough - can crowd into your mind, blocking out any positive thinking. Tired limbs, aching muscles, exhausted lungs – all combine to convince you to stop before you are finished. And almost the worst you can do when running is to embrace that pain.

What you need is a strong, positive, mental distraction. Something which diverts your mind and body away from pain – and changes your mindset into a positive, can-do one. As the great Ekhart Toller wrote:

‘It is never the situation itself, but your thoughts about it'.

So, see a hard run as a way of challenging yourself; proving yourself; testing yourself; a way to improve and grow stronger; something you are lucky and fortunate enough to be able to do; something to embrace and enjoy – not something difficult to be suffered.  

Repeating well-chosen words can move your mind away from the negative, and towards the positive. Jo believed a mantra is the most powerful way of summoning strength during a hard run. It is a mental tool to reset and reclaim your mind, pushing out the negative self-talk, and helping you to harness every bit of positive energy inside you.

In its original definition, a mantra is 'an instrument for thinking'. The best ones are always positive in tone; focused on how you want to feel, not on the adversity you are facing; and are instructive and action-focused.

"I always use mantras when I run – and now, I see them as a way of helping me change my mood and my mindset throughout my life in general, not just when I run. I have 7 mantras I try to live by, in addition to ones I use when running."

Here are the 26 mantras – one for each mile – that Jo repeated when she first ran the London Marathon.

You don’t need all 26! Pick one or two that resonate with you, to get you through the hard bits:

1. Change my thoughts, and I change my world

2. Strong enough to stay the course

3. I’m tougher than the rest

4. Today is my day

5. I run for me

6. I can, and I will

7.Store the energy (on a downhill)

 8 .Embrace the hills

 9. Stronger with every mile

10. No walking

 11. Run the mile you’re in

 12. I run for joy

 13. I don’t stop when I’m tired, I stop when I’m done

 14. Anything is possible, if you believe

 15. My body achieves what my mind believes

 16. Deeds, not words

 17. I was strong enough to get this far, I am strong enough to keep going

 18. She who is brave is free

 19. Think strong, be strong, finish strong

 20. Believe in yourself. We do

 21. Enjoy the mile you’re in

 22. This is what I came for, this is what I trained for

 23. If it doesn’t challenge me, it doesn’t change me

 24. The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra

 25. Focus & finish

26. Dig deep


Manta Jewellery for the runner in your life

 

Silver Marathon Necklace
Body & Mind Necklace

 

Silver Believe Bar Necklace
Believe Bar Necklace

 

Silver Mountain Necklace
Mountain Necklace

 

Silver Believe Necklace
Believe Disc Necklace

 

Mantra Plume Feather Necklace
Plume Feather Necklace

 

Silver Strength Necklace
Female Strength Necklace

 

Silver Elephant Earrings
Elephant Earrings

 

Silver Star Earrings
Star Earrings



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