Middle path

At forty, I’m learning that long-term goals shouldn’t be overly specific. Most of us are familiar with goal-setting frameworks like SMART and others. These frameworks often encourage highly specific targets with clear deadlines.

But specific goals—like “I will run 10 kilometres every day”—can become harmful at this age. Instead, a long-term goal like “I take care of my health every day” gives me more choices. Running becomes just one of many options. It protects me from injury while still honouring the intention to stay healthy.

The real lesson I’m facing is this: even when something is good—like running—too much of it can hurt me. Running every day created an identity: I am someone who runs 10k daily. And identity is the hardest thing to change. Even when I know it’s risky and unsustainable, I still feel the pull to keep running.

Building discipline is hard. But once discipline is in place, learning to walk the middle path becomes even harder.