You want to go out Saturday night?... Sacrifice!

Unfortunately the answer to that question is usually no.. Long run Sunday is tough after a night out. Back in the day I was always out on a Saturday night at some club, being grinded on by some dude, puking in a bathroom somewhere. Parties, nightclubs, and bars was where you could find me most nights of the week. Now if you need me, my feet are up and I'm relaxing for my run the next day. Marathon runner's sacrifice so much for their goal. We do go out once in a while and hang with friends, but party until morning is usually out of the question. When training we sacrifice so much for the goal. We give up things most people could never live without. We give up foods, social events and expensive items to pay for race fees. I've also given up toe nails but that's neither here nor there. At the end of the day it's all worth it for that feeling of crossing the finish line and the medal forever on your wall.
I sometimes feel like I've given up everything. I've given up expensive clothes and shoes. I've given up alcohol and many foods. I've become the girl who at 11p.m. turns into a pumpkin. No pedicures or manicures anymore. There are times when I question this decision when I see a new purse I want or I smell pizza or beer. There are times I look on Facebook and see my friend's pictures of partying and I wish I could go. I read Vogue magazine and see the latest trends and want to go out and buy them. Take a weekend holiday somewhere. The list can go on and on, but I always remind myself that what I'm training for is too amazing to give up.
I know that without training I would not be as happy as I am today. If I eat the pizza I'm just going to get extremely sick. If I buy the purse, I would like it for a minute and just see another I wanted. I can go to the party for a while and by 11, everyone will be drunk anyway so my sober ass will be fine to go. Mani's and Pedi's last for a few days then chip, I'll paint them myself for cheaper. Finding bargains on clothes have become it's own fun game in itself. The rest of the sacrifices sting for a minute but at the end of the day running is much more important to me. To have achieved my goal three times over now feels so good that I can't imagine going back.
I've made new friends, seen new things, had new experiences and feel like now I'm actually living versus the things I've sacrificed. For every dream you will have to sacrifice to get there. If it's worth it, you won't even miss it. Maybe I don't have expensive things but I do own a Tiffany's medal. I have a world I never dreamed of and if you achieve your dream I promise those sacrifices will no longer be sacrifices. To give up so much to go to Paris doesn't really feel like a sacrifice at all. I don't even flinch at saving my money. I have no desire for the pizza or the booze. I've dreamed of Paris my whole life and it's completely worth it. To give up everything honestly feels like I did not sacrifice but got a brand new beautiful life instead. So now when I see people partying or buying expensive things I just say to myself "PARIS!". Less than five months to the race of a lifetime!!