In autumn 2022, I had an accident. Not the type of accident you might imagine, such as a car accident – or a bicycle accident (I’m an Amsterdam’er!). No, I broke my leg (while running!) – maybe you’re thinking the same as I did back then – WTF, who breaks their leg while running!
Back then, I was running fairly regularly – approximately twice a week for around 8-10 km, enough for me to stay physically fit, but mostly to stay mentally sane! Running, as scientifically proven, has strong positive effects, such as better memory and focus, as well as reduced anxiety and stress, therefore leading to a more open mind. Anyway, on that fateful day, I over-exerted myself, according to my doctor. Running over 12km was 20% more than my “max” average, and I was going harder than usual because my mind was busy dealing with a long-lasting personal and professional challenge.
Literally Letting My Emotions Run Away With Me
That day I ran how I felt, edgy, with anger and under pressure, not getting into the flow. Suddenly, I felt a stinging pain in my right leg. As I later discovered, I’d broken my inner leg’s bone, vertically, which meant I was still able to move it but I was in constant pain. My doctor explained that this had come from running in the wrong way – and going at it harder than usual, leading to the nasty end result.
I Found Out I Didn’t Know How to Run!
So, he got me a running coach. During my initial session, the first thing he told me was that I “can’t run”! In fact, I did almost everything wrong that’s possible, and there was a lot I needed to rethink; my step length, how I put my feet on the ground, how fast I was going, my back posture, and my viewpoint.
This crushed my mind. For years I’ve been doing something I enjoy completely wrong and the only way I realised was by having my body physically tell me to stop and regroup. Even worse to me, I’d believed that my running had been perfectly fine for most of my life, yet those small changes I’d been making over many years led to a huge change – and one that had massive negative effects! So, external influences and my own adaptations led to a worse outcome over time, without me noticing. I saw this as synonymous with everything in life, how we, our minds and behaviours change over time without us being aware of those changes – and some of those changes cause trouble. To me, this meant a dire need for active reflection, and constant re-steering.
What Else Had I Been Doing Wrong?
I began to wonder what else I’d been doing for a long while because I’d been trained that way – or because I’d been taught it incorrectly? What else did I need to revisit and change? This is a difficult question as we tend to narrow our view constantly.
Thankfully, my coach gave me a very simple trick, “Look up!”
So, instead of keeping hold of that narrow view and watching the ground, looking at what is directly in front of me, I look straight up – to where I’m going. Not only does this change my perspective but it corrects my head’s posture, which in turn corrects my back’s posture. It also reduces my step length so it’s shorter, keeping me stable no matter what’s immediately happening underneath my feet. Lastly, doing this adjusts how I step with my feet onto the ground.
Widen the View…
This was mind-blowing! Literally by using a different viewpoint for a certain activity in life (one that I regard as very important, as it pushes my creativity and encourages new thoughts), I can change my perspective. Looking up has a secondary meaning too, it relates to being more open, and engaging in conversations with others rather than hiding away and only looking at something with a narrow mind.
Since then (and it might sound a bit cheesy but it’s true), if I notice something that I’ve done a certain way for years, I “look up“ to reflect on it and proactively change perspective to become more open minded and open to change. Still, it amazes me how literally life can create a blind spot because you look at things placed directly in front of you rather than all around you.
PS: Let me know if you’ve been on a similar path or if you’ve found this useful to now share your own story of taking a different perspective, either below via the comments, above via the chat, or simply send me an email.