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When I registered, it was with my sister-in-law because her husband (my brother) had dared her to run up the Bolte Bridge which was part of the course. She roped me in and we were excited to be running 14.6km together. It would be the furthest she had run and it would be my longest 'fun run' since the half marathon in October last year. I also haven't had much experience running 'hills' so it would be a good challenge for me. And who could miss out on running for the Childrens Hospital, an absolute icon in Melbourne.

Well, my sister-in-law sprained her ankle a couple of weeks before the run and so wouldn't be participating. My brother said he would take her spot. There would be no chance that I could keep up with him, so I would be on my own up the Bolte Bridge.... I have been managing a sciatic issue for a couple of months, so weak glutes and hills weren't going to be a winning combination - ah, go hard or go home, right?

So, the day dawned bright and clear. Such a cliché, but true. It was a magical morning and all 30,000 runners were agreed that it would be an amazing day for a 'fun' run. The vibe at the start line was brilliant. All of us standing around chatting and joking before we shuffle off in the congestion that marks the start of any event.

To cut a long story short and cut to the point of this blog, at the 6km mark, I started to climb the Bolte Bridge onramp. It was as tough as I expected. My incredible Garmin watch told me that my pace had dropped by 30 seconds a kilometre - no kidding! I told myself, just take it one step at a time, keep this pace, stand up straight, breath deep, move your arms more, focus on the top. The sun was beating down on me, I was getting hot, my breathing was getting hard.

Runners have a myriad of techniques for getting to a goal, like the top of a hill. Pick out a marker and make it past it, counting, focusing on your breathing and many more. You probably have a few of your own. Me, well, I thought about the great work that the Royal Children's Hospital does and I thought of my sister-in-law who couldn't run but wanted to. I told my mind, we are NOT walking, not anywhere, because this is a 'run' and I need to finish it. And then I thought about John McLean, a paraplegic who did the Hawaiian Iron Man. Here I am, able bodied. Sure, feeling sore and tired, but I have this body and it is mine to control. So that is what I did. I would say they would call that sheer determination.

Looking back on making it up that hill and the others that followed, and then making it across the finish line without having walked a step (despite my mind trying to trick me into believing that it would be ok to walk) I wondered about what kept me motivated. What was it that made me keep running despite feeling hot, tired, sore and ready for a sit down in the shade?

I have a solid belief that I am stronger than my mind. That my choices weren't in my legs, they were in my head. I know it sounds strange, that "I" am stronger than my mind considering it would all be the same mind at work, but at times like this I realize we have an 'observer'. Part of ourselves that can look on to the patterns of thinking that we are playing and make a decision as to whether to follow them or not. We are not victims to our thinking; we are in control of our minds. And when we take that time to look at the patterns, we can come to see that we are playing certain lyrics over and over again, some of which aren't particularly useful.

Lucky for me, I have had training in Neuro-Linguistic Programming and so have learnt some fantastic techniques for reframing limiting beliefs and for being able to manage my mind. And the more I use them, the better I become at staying motivated and focused and being aware of my thoughts.

How do you do it? And do you know when you are playing victim to some of your less useful thoughts and how do you go about strengthening the good ones?  When it comes down to it, we are what we think, so make those thoughts great ones.