Tag Archives: Motivation

Spirit Of the Marathon – Ready to DOMINATE Marathon Training

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There are people competing in marathons, and there are people completing marathons. The beautiful thing is, the sport is big enough to embrace all of us.

The New York Times kicked off its “mile by mile” series this week. One post a day for every mile of the New York City Marathon. Every day this series takes you on the journey of the NYC Marathon. The course. The people who run this event. The raw emotion.. This is the kind of sports journalism I love reading.

The series kicked off Monday October 8th… It’s funny that it worked out this way. Monday was also day ONE of Austin Marathon training for me. My very first 26.2! To say I’m absolutely nervous, excited, anxious, etc about the 19 (well.. nearly 18 now) weeks ahead of me would be the understatement of my life.

Every day this week I have hopped on my laptop to read the mile by mile post of the day before I head out on my training runs. It has helped fuel this first week of Marathon Training. But, lets be honest… The first few weeks of training for a Marathon are really just “base building”.. Yesterday I was putting together MY marathon training plan. The combined efforts of Hal Hidgon, and the knowlege I have about my own body I designed a plan I think will work for me.. (At least for now. The one thing I have learned from running blogs is that marathon training is designed to be tweaked as time progresses.)

I found myself really daunted by the 18.5 weeks ahead of me! My easy runs were feeling pretty easy, but the schedule was lying in front of me only going up up up up and UP. 12 jumps up to FIFTEEN. 16…18….20…

Those are big numbers… Yet none of them are nearly as big as the end goal… 26.2.… That is an ENTIRE 10k on top of the 20 miles most of us train for. The idea is to trust our bodies. Trust the training. The training mixed with the adrenaline and smart choices are ‘supposed’ to carry us through to the finish.

The reality of that really sank in Wednesday night. Yeah ok… The 10k. My already least favorite distance is now what stands between my confidence level, and a little over 18 weeks from now. I know by following a plan I can make it up to 20 miles… But the beauty of the marathon, the excitement, the fear. That thing about the marathon that keeps everyone going back is the unknown. The fact that even if you push your training to 22 or even 23 miles before race day… Those miles that haven’t been trained. Even that POINT TWO… That’s what gets you.

I was in “what the eff have I signed myself up for?!?!?!” mode.

A dear friend of mine (thank goodness for good friends where you sometimes least expect them, right?!) sat me down that night with a beer and told me to shut up, train my butt off, and do the damn thing. He also recommended a great movie to watch to light a fire under my ass, so to speak ;) The Spirit of the Marathon. I had heard of this movie before. A lot of runners love the movie. A lot of marathon host cities play it Marathon Weekend, even.

It did just that. I watched it before bed, had awesome vivid dreams and woke up in the morning ready to dominate these next few months. I cried during the movie. I laughed during the movie. I nodded my head in understanding during the movie… Even though no one else was in my room. (You know you’re a runner when…)

Sometimes the moments that challenge us the most, define us.

I recommend everyone who is a runner or has ever considered starting running, watches this movie. It captures the spirit of the marathon, it really does. From an elite athlete, down to a novice who has never raced before in their life.

The Spirit of The Marathon is a documentary that follows different stories of marathoners training for the Chicago Marathon in 2005.

Deena Kastor, Olympic Bronze Medal Marathoner who had a fire to win the 2005 Chicago Marathon, which would be her first major marathon win.

Daniel Njenga, World Class Marathoner from Kenya who trains in Japan. One of the all-time fastest Marathoners in the world running a personal best of 2:06:16.

Ryan Bradley, Ryan is a competitive, yet recreational marathoner who was aiming to qualify for the Boston Marathon at the 2005 Chicago Marathon.

Leah Caille, A first time marathoner who tries to make sense of her life and body through running.

Gerald Meyers, A 70 year old man training for his 5th marathon with his daughter Rona who is running her very first marathon!

Lori O’Conner, a Northwestern University Student who is taking on her first marathon after having naturally progressed from middle-distance races. She is also raising money for Genesis of Pittsburgh, the non-profit adoption agency, which matched her with a family as an infant.

When this movie ended, I was in completely awh… Yeah, there were some really cheesy parts, but it was great! The marathon. What a concept. What a challenge. It humbles and excites everyone from a brand new runner, all the way up to the world class athletes who have done it a number of times.

I was. No, I am so giddy for training now. I am confident. No, not in the sense that I’ll actually cross that finish line with any gas left in the tank… But, confident that I have the fire. I have the drive and motivation to do this.

As much as marathons are about the physical fitness, and endurance.. They also require a specific mind set. Heck, it takes a certain kind of person to even literally want to run a marathon. I mean WANT to, not just talk about doing it someday.. Getting your mind on board is 55% of the challenge! I have the right mind set now, and I am ready to make the sacrifices. This training is MINE. :D

Have you Watched Spirit of the Marathon? What did you think? If not, hop on over to HULU. The documentary is available for free!

Motivational Monday’s: Staying Healthy Through the Holidays

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I know I can’t be the only one with the notion that The Holidays are notorious for fatty, delicious, 1-million-calories-per-serving, (not to mention unhealthy) foods & traditions. A little stuffing here, a couple pies there. Suddenly, the season ends — my healthy eating habits are totally out the window for over a MONTH. Not to mention with all the friends, family, traveling & what have you — time to exercise is nearly impossible at some points throughout the season. Leaving me unhappy with the results of the past few months… Resulting in the promise to make up for all the bad eating in the New Year. So typical.

I’m skipping all that internal drama this year… & Here are a few tips I’m using this year:

  • Courtesy of a tip I once heard on Oprah, Eat the healthier – nutritious foods on your plate first.. It takes roughly 20 minutes for the stomach to signal the brain that you’re eating and have reached satiety. So, if you consume the healthier foods first, by the time you reach the fatty, butter filled mashed potatoes, and drool-worthy pecan pie, in theory — you’ll feel full (assuming you stop eating upon feeling satisfied)
  • NEVER go to parties hungry. Party food is notoriously cheap, quick, high calorie, fatty fried foods. The last thing you want to do while trying not to over indulge is end up at a 4 hour cocktail party starving, with nothing but chips and cupcakes to consume.
  • Stay Warm! Part of the problem with the holidays, is they fall in a time when the weather outside is getting hard to even look at… Let alone spend significant time IN. Target and Walmart sell gloves as cheap as $2 a pair.  They may not be made of fancy material, or have fancy accessories.. But they definitely keep you warm. (Or you could always go over to my give away to win a FREE pair of Brooks Pulse Lite gloves)
  • Make time to work out. No matter what. Even if that means half the amount of time you typically work out, less miles, not as high intensity because of the draining events taking place. Just get it in! Something is always better than nothing!
  • Embrace the dark! Whether it’s the crack of dawn, or after the family dinner that dragged on hours longer than you anticipated — the sun is probably long gone by the time you have 30 or more minutes to yourself for a work out. Baltimore in the dark still isn’t the most comfortable place for me, but I’m learning to embrace it. Especially with the new night life gear I’m patiently waiting for the arrival of. When running in the dark I like to make it a fun event. I’ll bring my camera and sneak some gorgeous shots of Owings Mills & Baltimore in the dark. Or, I’ll make a play list specifically for the area I’m running to keep me going through the miles. Sometimes, it’s the only thing that keeps my legs moving. There is a bad connotation with the night. While, I do understand that yes, it is a lot harder to be seen & can sometimes be unsettling, depending on where you run, it really isn’t much to be scared of. 9 times out of 10 if you mind your own no one will bother you. Just remember why you’re doing it, and get out there! Make it an adventure.
  • A healthy gift exchange. Do you have a pack of runner friends? A group you meet up with once a week to get a few loops of the trails in with? A local running store you train at? Bring up the idea of a gift exchange! A gift exchange with fellow runners, how could it be better?  It Just SOUNDS amazing. No one will understand that deep down, all you want for Christmas is some winter gear, or a sweatband, or (if you’re me) a camelbak, better than a runner! Don’t have many running friends? Don’t even worry about it. Suggest a healthy twist on this year’s exchange with the people you celebrate the holidays with. I bet they’ll be more excited about it than you anticipate ;)

We all know there is also, a LOT of traveling going on during the Holiday season. Some people travel all the way across the country. Others simply to cities near by. But non the less, we all at one point tend to end up in a place we aren’t 100% familiar with (or maybe just aren’t familiar anymore)

  • Run with a local. Afraid of getting lost? Bring someone from wherever it is you’re visiting! What a great way to bond with the people you don’t get to see every day.. Not to mention it’s pretty much THE best way to see the city or town. It can also be a lot of fun if the person is a runner. It’s almost like running a mile in someone elses shoes.
  • Staying in a hotel? Run in the hotel gym. I know a lot of people dread the treadmill. (i.e. the ever popular twitter & daily mile nickname “the dreadmill”) I find it amusing to check out the variety of equipment in various hotels. Some of the cheapest, low scale hotels have the best gyms! I find this interesting… Of course I’ve seen some state of the art ones in fancy-shmancy hotels too. Such as Orange Lake in Kissimmee, FL (Outside of Disney World) Where there were interactive games in some of the machines. Crazy. But — definitely keeps your mind off the fact that you’re cycling away and helps pass the time you feel you should be spending exploring this new city. But — regardless of whether there is 1 treadmill and a black and white TV, or a state of the art treadmill with Pac Man embedded into it, you’ll feel better after your trip knowing you kept yourself active.
  • Run to see the city. As I said before, there is no better way to see a new place than to run it. Driving, taking a train — it is all moving by you so fast that you’re going to miss all the tiny details. Over the summer, some friends and I took a trip to NYC over the weekend. We arrived by train at 445am… Wandering through time square we were astonished at how empty it was. It was almost creepy, but magical at the same time. So, we decided to run. Unless I run the NYC Marathon, this was my only chance to bolt through the sidewalks of Manhattan. So we took off. (Mind you, the term ‘took off’ is used lightly. Time Square at 5am is empty, but empty really just means like any normal city in the afternoon)  It was a blast, and so fun. We’ve all been to NYC our fair share of times, but I had never experienced it the way I did that morning at 5am, running — in my flats — through the sidewalks of NY.  Bring your camera, go sight seeing, just do it all — by foot (or well maybe not all — some places you travel too are way too far spread out. If so, find a placed to park in the middle of several places to see. By foot, run or even walk as much as you can. Take gorgeous pictures. Pose like tourists even, ebrace it! :)

 

Most important of all though… Enjoy the Holidays! Indulge a little, drink one too many glasses of champagne with dinner on New Years, Smile & laugh as much as you can. To the point where your cheeks hurt! We only live once (or so they say) so be thankful for your loved ones. & STAY SAFE!!!!!!

The rest, it will still be there for you in the New Year

Motivational Mondays: No shame in my Game!

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Is it just me, or are Monday’s the most difficult day of the week to find motivation…… for anything? I hate them so much. I literally feel bad for Zack some Monday mornings. I am not always the friendliest or most optimistic person in the universe ;) I don’t know what it is. No, that’s not true. I totally do. A 50+ hour work week is looming before me. I just don’t want to face it. I love my job, but just imagining the hours in that restaurant sometimes drives me batty…..

So, for a new helpful motivator for myself and hopefully some of you, I’m starting a Motivational Monday post. Every Monday I am going to blog something motivational. Today’s discussion? There’s no shame in my game! Aka. Don’t stress out about your speed OR your distance. There is no shame!!! You are making those people sitting on their butts with chips and the TV remote dizzy with all the laps you’re doing. Whether you run 1 mile or an Ultra-Marathon… YOU ARE KICKING SERIOUS BUTT! Way to go!

Seriously… I spent SO much time worrying about how slowly I was running a 5k. I would see so many runners who would run them in the low 20s….. and just…. be astonished. I was running 12 minute miles then, and though I’ve sped up for shorter distances……. Since building up my mileage it’s close to the old 11-12ish. Ya know what though? Who cares??? I’m going to run 3M!!! I’m going to dominate it….. In my own way. I have plentttttttttttttty of time to work on my speed. I’m running, darnit! I’m doing it, and SO CAN YOU!! That is simply all that matters… Yes, one day I will qualify for Boston. But again.. that’s one day, and that day is certainly not January 29……. Nor is it likely going to be next October. It may not even be 3 years from now…. But, It doesn’t matter. I’m becoming healthier every single step I take. Every single day I can see and feel the difference in my body and mind. I don’t only look stronger, I mentally FEEL stronger.

We all do. We all are getting stronger and healthier each step we take. You can run a 27 minute mile, and it doesn’t matter because you got off your butt and DID SOMETHING. We should be proud of each & every step. In fact, the worse your run the more proud you should be. You still finished it! You still stepped out that door and ran (or stepped up onto the tread mill ;P ) and kept going. You are officially bad ass for that!

Take one second and pat yourself on the back. Literally. Or give yourself a big clap. You deserve it!