Ever seen those pictures of a duck that looks calm above the water while paddling like crazy under the water?

It’s the epitome of the advice to “never let ‘em see you sweat.”

As I was finishing up a particularly long run at the gym the other day, I was struck by this random question:

“Am I an inverted duck?”

I’ve posted before about how running can sometimes accentuate my facial tics, and the longer the run, the worse it can get. That’s when I quacked myself up by thinking about how I must sometimes look to others. They might think I’m about to explode, and yet I’m completely calm on the inside.

Which one is better? They probably both have value, and I wouldn’t mind being calm above and below water. But I’ll take the calm under the surface over the crazy webbed feet thing any day of the week.

Life is stressful enough externally, and having the peace that passes understanding on the inside is the best way to navigate all the craziness and a wonderful way to practice living as a non-anxious presence.

Here are some ways to keep things calm underneath, regardless of what’s happening above the water.

Focus on the heart

As a runner, it’s easy for me to get caught up in the external indicators like pace, breathing, or how many times my eyes blink in a minute.

Side note: I remember years ago having lunch with a friend, and during that lunch some people sent him a note telling him how many times I had blinked in the last minute. I don’t remember what that number was, but I counted the other day during a run out of curiosity, and it was 100. I’m not sure what normal is, but I’m pretty sure that ain’t it.

So, yes, it’s easy to focus on what others might be focusing on; namely, how we look. There’s a verse in the Bible that talks about that; about how man looks on external things, but God looks on the heart. If you’re curious, you can find it in the sixteenth chapter of 1 Samuel.

Exercise (running just happens to be my favorite kind) reminds us of this, and takes us back to that inverted duck. Sure, I might look like I’m dying, but the heart tells a different story.

My resting heart rate is beginning to register in the upper 40s, and my ability to run longer is increasing, too. That’s a function of the heart and lungs, which (thankfully) can’t be seen during a workout. All of that has allowed me to increase how much I’ve run every month for the first half of the year. It may not be pretty, but it’s working. Speaking of pretty, here’s another truth bomb.

Endurance is gritty, not pretty

Ever seen someone look the part until they started acting? It’s not difficult to put on the costume, but it’s hard to be the character! If we’re too concerned about how good we look while we try hard things, we’ll never actually do hard things because hard things demand endurance, and endurance isn’t pretty.

It’s gritty.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. (‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬, emphasis mine)

Did you catch that? We’re called to run with endurance, and the very nature of endurance involves pushing limits, increasing our capacity to live through discomfort, and establishing rhythms that allow us to push, rest, and push again.

I don’t know many endurance athletes who don’t eventually show external signs of struggle, but most of them are carried through the moments by internal health that overcomes it.

They become inverted ducks, and so must we. In life, in exercise, but even more importantly, in our apprenticeship to Jesus. Focus on the heart, get gritty about endurance, and you’ll see growth in the only place that God’s concerned with: your soul.

And that, according to 3 John 1:2, will impact all the other areas that matter to you.