Each breathe comes faster than the last. And then I hit my rhythm. Two heartbeats per breath. And I can feel my chest thumping. Thump. Thump. Breathe.

And then my left ankle speaks up. You know what I mean. It says “What are you thinking? You can’t do this. I’m in pain.”

And from this convo I learned a trick while running.

Identify the defective system. Sorry, left ankle. No disrespect.

Thank the pain. It means you’re still alive. I say, “Thank you left ankle for letting me know.”

But that is just information.

To decide what to do next I go one level deeper.

Are you hurt or injured?

Why the 20 questions you ask?

To make sure that I know the difference

[Tweet “So I can identify my limit and push it.”]

Because I said so.

Hurt vs. Injured – What’s the difference?

Here’s how I see it. Hurt = pain but I can push through it. Injured = I have to stop and should get medical care.

Those are hard standards. But it has allowed me to push right up against my comfort zone.

So next time your body screams at you to stop. Ask yourself that question.

And if nothing else, you just went 5 more seconds. Sounds win-win to me.