I can attest to the truth of this statement. Let’s just talk about my training for Vol State this year (2026), not the race itself. I had so many setbacks that it was hard to just keep training and not get discouraged.

So what messages did I get?

I have to keep remembering the compound effect and that I have to be persistent and consistent.

This involves patience and my bank account for patience is not overflowing. Ha. That’s an understatement. But the patience is required when you think of the compound effect. Little by little my body (and mind) are getting tweaks with each day of training. This applies to mental preparation too.

That’s an even more important message – the mental aspect of this race is frequently more important than the physical. I learned that in my debacle last year. But that experience taught me so much.

Another message is that my brain is extremely powerful (as is yours). What i see its power in, however, is in creating physical symptoms that are neuroplastic (neural circuit disorders). I’ve had to work very hard to identify them and then overcome them. That, in itself, has reminded me that I should be able to deal with whatever develops during the race.

Of course the big test is going to be my left knee and leg and that’s where I’ll have to use whatever mental toughness I can muster.

These are only some of the messages and lessons from this one setback.

Can you look back at your life and see messages you’ve received from one or more setbacks?