“Running is a metaphor for life,” my coach said to me before practice one day. My teammates and I laughed a little. We had all seen this over-used cliché before; on posters, books, and the walls of running stores; uttered by enthusiastic connoisseurs, professional athletes, and bloggers. I hadn’t really taken the time to consider thinking about it before, but hearing it now from my coach prompted me to draw parallels between the two. I had ninety minutes and approximately twelve miles to ponder.

What came to mind was the paradox of always wanting more. After crossing the finish line of a race or stopping my watch at the end of a workout, the immediate feeling that always hits me is joy and satisfaction. But even after the greatest of runs, thoughts of regret dominate my mind. “Breaking eighteen minutes is good, but I would have loved to have broken seventeen”…“A top-ten finish is great, but I really wanted top five”… “Top five is fine, but I wanted top three”… The pattern is continuous and never-ending. There is rarely a run I complete that lacks this feeling.

I see this in my life. A family friend sells her old, worn-down hatchback and buys a new, mid-sized sedan. For weeks, we admire the built-in air conditioner and leather seats but soon enough, the novelty wears off. The seats are too small, the heater is too loud, the motor is clunky. So she upgrades to a luxury SUV. Again, we admire its heated seats, sunroof, and GPS monitoring systems. But it does not take long for her to want another upgrade.

An excess of wanting and yearning can lead to greed, avarice, and mental destruction, but in moderation, it can be a blessing in disguise. The continuous pursuit of something better heightens my aspirations and goals, on and off the track. And I have found that in running, as in life, it is important to keep friends, family, and coaches close by to put things into perspective once in a while.

When I start a run, I am surrounded by people. My coaches are there to see me start my watch and for a minute at most, run away into the woods. From then on, I am alone, except the few bikers and dog-walkers along the trail. No matter how much support I feel from the people around me, I know that I am the only person who can decide the outcome of my run. I can make it easy or hard.

Persistence is essential in running, as it is in life. It takes a good amount of mental strength to start a run, knowing that the many miles ahead may be difficult. Running is humbling. It can be tough, and reminds me that nothing in life comes easily.

But I have realized there has rarely ever been a time when I could not take just one more step.

Like there is no perfect day, there is no perfect run, or perfect race. There are inevitable setbacks or obstacles. Some days that means catching my foot on a root and tripping in the woods, going the wrong way in a race, getting lost in the woods, or really needing to use a bathroom during a long run when there are not any nearby. Sometimes the obstacle seems more like a barrier, like having unexpected pain during a race and learning that it is a stress fracture, and realizing that one of the hardest obstacles is not being able to run.

Overcoming the unavoidable obstacles have made me more resilient. And through dealing with unexpected circumstances, I have learned the importance of a positive outlook, which is helpful everyday in life. So twelve miles later, after careful consideration, I found what my coach told me to be true.