I'm in Training

I adore french fries. Thick and tender steak fries, curly twists of seasoned starch, zigzag-sliced tubers, county fair blocks of deep-fried spuds, hand-cut artisan, or McDonald's frankenfries, I consume them all with soulful, life-affirming gusto. I love them even more than I love hyperbole, and without hyperbole, I'd probably die.

But I'm in the market for some long-term change, and conventional wisdom (or the "wisdom" pedaled to women in order to persuade us to conform to a narrow vision of beauty, acceptability, and happiness - I digress) suggests that french fries and big athletic goals are mutually exclusive. Objections to the objectification of women aside, conventional wisdom has a point. Eating as many french fries as my heart truly desires is not the most efficient way to become a better runner.

So here's what I've been doing lately: I've been telling myself I'm in training. It's a tiny little phrase that's been essential in getting me to the gym and getting leafy greens into my body with shocking regularity. I have a few theories about why it's so effective.

1) It's immediate. I'm not going to be in training starting this weekend, or on the first day of next month, or once this semester is over. I'm in training right now. And so I need to do the things that runners in training do. Like eat kale. Right now.

2) It's a reminder. When confronted with the slender, golden body of a crisp, yet tender french fry, it's easy to forget about my big goals. Telling myself, I'm in training reminds me to move toward those goals. And when I'm reminded about my grand plans, I get really excited and remember all the other things I can be doing or eating that are still pleasurable, but are not french fries.

3) It slows me down. Identifying as a person in training gives me pause in a frenzied fog of lust for salt and grease, and makes me think, do I absolutely have to have fries right now? Often the answer is sweet gold of Idaho, yes, french fries are the only solution. But most of the time, remembering I'm in training is a bucket of ice water to those lusty yearnings.

Being in training doesn't mean I don't eat french fries any more. Deprivation, a sense of loss, and  dimming the spark of life in my eyes are not part of my long-term goals. I'm not training to be an elite athlete, I'm training for successful big runs. The fries can stay, they just need a little balance. So I'm going to keep bringing my gym bag to work, keep eating kale, and keep reminding myself:

I'm in training!