Opportunities

If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run. ~ John Bingham

Runners think differently than non-runners. I recently read a great blog post from a fellow runner friend of mine who explains better than I ever could the thought processes of a runner. I got a good laugh out of it and while I was reading it I kept thinking to myself how very right she is. You can read her blog and her most recent post HERE.
Her post was humorous, however it was also very accurate. Everyone who is a runner who reads her post will smile or laugh and when your done reading it you think to yourself, I am the exact same way. Most non-runners do not understand the fascination we runners have with running. It is something that starts off in the runners mind and then slowly over the course of time moves down to your heart and that is when you realize that you are a runner.
Over the last 2 1/2 years I have had a few occasions when I felt I really was a runner. This past week was no exception. I don't recall the day, I think it was Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon. It was snowing out pretty good and I went out for a run. I believe I ran 6 or 7 miles and at times the snow was coming down so hard I couldn't see 100 feet in front of me. Crazy? Maybe, but that was not how I saw it. I saw it as an opportunity! Runners do not see obstacles in the way. Running in the snow, the wind, the rain, the cold or the heat are all just new opportunities to experience something different.

Happy Running!

Proper Training

This is not about instant gratification. You have to work hard for it, sweat for it, give up sleeping in on Sunday mornings. ~ Lauren Fessenden

Running a marathon or a half-marathon is by no means easy! I am certain that most people would agree with me on this point! It also does not have to be extremely hard. Being prepared on race day both mentally and physically will ensure that you have given yourself every opportunity for success. Being prepared means that you need to account for anything and everything! As most of you are probably doing right now, you have found your training plan and you have identified a target date to start your training. Let the fun begin!
Your training for your race should in fact be the hardest part of the entire experience. Most training plans give you types of runs and distances to run, which is extremely important. However, have you thought of the following? Have you trained in the rain? If you have not, what is going to happen on race day and it is raining outside. If you have trained in the rain you will at least have an idea about how to handle the weather, you will be able to draw upon your past experience and not let the rain mentally or physically affect you. How about the snow? How many races are actually run in snow you ask? I can remember a half marathon I ran last October here in Fargo where it was snowing! Now granted it was mainly flurries, however because I had previously run in snow (and I mean lots of the stuff) it didn't bother me at all. Cold? This one is the one that really gets the best of me personally. I am not a big fan of running in the cold. Problem is most marathons and half-marathons are run when the weather is a bit on the chilly side. So even though I don't like the cold, I know that I need to train in it. I need to know what to wear and what not to wear. Experience is everything here! Hills? Even the smallest hill at mile 23 hurts!!!! Heat? Running in the heat is just flat out dangerous no matter your fitness level. Here is a great little article on what you can do to stay cool when you are forced to run in the heat. Have you run on tired legs? You just came off of that long run the day before and you do NOT feel like running another step. Now is the perfect time to lace up the old running shoes and hit the streets. Running on tired legs will train your mind and body to deal with what is going to occur at the end of the race. Do you run in the morning or do you run at night? Most marathons and half-marathons are run in the morning so if you have not done any morning runs it is absolutely imperative that you do so.
I cannot stress the importance of proper training enough. Not just miles run and types of runs, but the conditions in which you go out there and train. If you are prepared, race day will be a breeze!

Happy Running!

Beating the winter doldrums

It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't get any worsse. ~ Ann Trason

Running and winter! These two simple words when used together in the same sentence bring about a myriad of thoughts! Snow, ice, cold and wind are all words that I associate with winter. Slipping, breaking my ankle, hypothermia and crazy are all words that most people will associate with running in the winter time! It does not have to be this way though. Running outside in the winter can be a fun and enjoyable experience provided you have prepared ahead of time for all the different conditions you can expect to encounter. You also have the option of not running outside at all and doing your running on the treadmill. We will talk about treadmill running in a later post, today I want to focus solely on outdoor running.

Running outside in the winter time brings about a completely new set of challenges that we don't often see during the fall, spring and summer months. As we stated earlier the cold, snow and ice can be challenging if not downright scary at times. Here are a few things to consider before heading out the door on a nice winter run:

1. Dress warm. I will dress in layers during the winter time. I am not into extremely bulky running clothes so I will put on a pair of thermal underwear, followed by shorts and a shirt and then a nice pair of comfortable running pants and a jacket. Works for me to about -15 or so. If it gets colder than that, consider a gym membership.

2. Wear a hat and gloves. Most of our heat loss is lost from our heads so it is important to ensure we have that area covered up.

3. Snow spikes. This is the first year I have had these and I have only run outside in them a couple of time however I can tell you that for $15 at the local sports store, they are a life saver! They just wrap right around your running shoes and off you go with traction.

4. Start off slow and get acclimated to the cold. Your lungs will take a beating if you think you can go out there and knock out 10 miles at -10 right off the bat. Get out there and run 2 to 4 miles and then slowly pick up the distance as your body gets used to the cold. Otherwise you will have the cold runner's cough the rest of the day.

Don't think that just because it is cold and snowy out that you can't get out there and get your running in. Plan and prepare and then get outside and enjoy the winter as your glide gracefully over the snow covered streets and sidewalks. There is something extremely peaceful about an early morning or late evening winter run. Take a few minutes and go out there and enjoy what the winter brings.

Happy Running!

Mental Strength

I tell our runners to divide the race into thirds. Run the first part with your head, the middle part with your personality, and the last part with your heart. ~ Mike Fanelli

Anyone who has run a marathon or a half-marathon in the past can attest to how your body changes physically and mentally from the start to the finish. At the beginning, you have everyone talking, laughing, joking around and for the most part enjoying the emotional high of starting one of the biggest challenges of their lives. The middle of the race brings about the realization that you still have a lot more running to do! As you near the end of the race, I find it almost eerily silent. All you hear is the constant and repetitive thumping of feet hitting the ground. Almost no one is talking and most of the laughter from the beginning of the race has subsided dramatically.

As we all know, distance running requires and unbelievable amount of physical strength and stamina. Without such stamina, most of us would not even be able to come close to actually running a marathon or half-marathon. This is the reason why those of us who choose to tackle these distances train as hard as we do. Putting in the miles day after day, week after week. There is however, one area of training that is incredibly hard to train for, especially for the novice marathoner or half-marathoner. Being mentally strong! Training your brain and your heart not for the physical beating, rather for the mental beating you will be taking on.

I have been lucky enough to have started and finished 11 full marathons and 7 half-marathons. In every single one of these races, I have dealt with both physical and mental struggles. This past Saturday for me was a perfect example of what not to do before running a marathon. I ran the Rocket City marathon in Alabama and I was not mentally ready. For the first time in my racing life, I did not feel like I even wanted to race. There were several times throughout the marathon that I wanted to quit and just give up. I came into the race with a slight ankle sprain to begin with so it would have been very easy to use that as an excuse and drop out. By mile 17 or 18 I was resigned to the fact that there was no way I was going to finish. My pace had slowed considerably, my ankle was in excruciating pain and my right hip started to hurt pretty bad due to my changing my gait to take some pressure off of my ankle. All of these things added up to many reasons to quit. But I didn't. I slowed down, I started some deep breathing and I went inside my head for the next 8 plus miles. I thought about all the people who have encouraged me. I started thinking about all the people that I love and that love me. Eventually the thoughts of not finishing the race disappeared and I was able to complete the race.

There are many things that I took away from this race. Some of them are physical issues that I must deal with, but the one thing that I am most proud of, is that no matter what, I know that I just won't quit!

Happy Running!

The LONG run!!

What kind of crazy nut would spend two or three hours a day just running? ~ Pre

Many of you who have decided to run a marathon or a half marathon have undoubtably taken a look at a few training programs by this point. You have probably noticed that as the training plan progresses towards the end you start seeing significantly longer runs. If you are training for a marathon you will see in most cases long runs of between 18 and 22 miles and about 10 to 14 miles for half marathon trainee's. The benefits of the long run are many! From strengthening the heart to increasing aerobic efficiency, the long run will move you from one level of running into an entirely new realm of running! I believe however that most important aspect of the long run is that it develops mental toughness. Whether it is a half marathon or a marathon, there will come a point in the race when you feel like you just can't go on, not one more step! This is when the race moves from a physical event to a mental event. Do you have the mental strength to continue? Is your mind strong enough to overcome the pain that your body is experiencing? By getting out there during your training and doing your long run's you are developing this mental toughness. I stand by the belief that it is significantly harder to run 20 miles in a training run by yourself with no support than it is to run a marathon. During the race you have support from the crowds, the event organization providing you food and fuel. On a solo training it is you and you alone! I am including a link to a great article I found quite some time ago that I hope everyone takes a moment to read. It is very in depth and details out specifically why the long run is so important. You can find the article HERE.

Happy Running!

So you want to run a Marathon or Half Marathon

If you feel bad at 10 miles, you're in trouble. If you feel bad at 20 miles, you're normal. If you don't feel bad at 26 miles, you're abnormal. ~ Rob de Castella

This is the time of year that many people make the decision that they want to run a marathon or a half marathon. If you are one of those people that has made this decision, I would like to congratulate you on taking your first step. Maybe this will be your first big race, maybe it will be your second or third, either way, you made the decision that this is what you want to do. The decision to run a marathon or a half marathon is a great first step, however, it is also the easiest of the steps you need to complete to be prepared to actually run the race. I am going to detail out my 10 rules of the road that have always helped me in preparing for a big race.

1. Make the decision that you want to run that marathon or half marathon.

2. Find a race that you want to run (The Fargo Marathon or Half Marathon in May would be a great race to commit yourself too)

3. Sign up! Pay the money. Do it now before you change your mind! The biggest form of commitment is spending your hard earned money. The last thing you will want to do is quit after you have spent $40, $50, $60 or more dollars on a race. You can register for the Fargo Marathon or Half Marathon right HERE.

4. Tell everyone you know that you are going to run the XYZ race! By letting people know what your intentions are, you will be more apt to follow through with your plans. In addition, there may be other people who are either thinking about running a race or have already committed themselves so now you might have a new support group of friends rooting you on.

5. Find a training plan that suites you and your lifestyle. There are many different plans out there that are free of charge. Once you have found a training plan that you feel will be the best for you, put together a plan and start date. Most Marathon training plans are about 18 weeks in duration and half marathon training plans I have seen go from about 12 weeks to 18 weeks. When I first started running and training for my first marathon I used Hal Higdon's Novice I training plan. Just click HERE and it will bring you to his website that has all of his plans from Novice to Advanced.

6. If you are planning on running a spring race in April or May your official training does not need to being yet. Now is the time where you should be running to build up a nice base. If you are a novice runner you should be working towards building a base of between 20 and 25 miles per week. I know that this sounds like a lot of miles right now, and make no mistake about it, it is! You will however need to build to this gradually and by the time your training starts you will be right where you need to be.

7. Treat your training and running as a job. There are times when every runner dreads getting out of bed in the morning to run, much like our jobs at times. If you don't go to work, most of us don't get paid, if we don't get out and run and train like we need to, most of us won't be able to complete the race distance that we set out to achieve.

8. Log everything you do! Every mile you run should be logged. There are many resources on the web that have great running logs. I use the one on RunnersWorld.com however you can Google running logs and I am sure you will find one to your liking.

9. Incorporate strength training or cross training into your plan. Most training plans will tell you to do this anyways. Maybe it will be riding a bike, rowing, swimming or lifting weights. In addition to your cross training, you will also need to have your rest days. Rest days are just that, for resting! Your body will need this time to recover and repair. Rest days are so important, don't skip them!

10. Stay committed! Don't quit! You know that this is going to be hard and it is going to take some serious work to accomplish. You are going to have good days and bad days. Don't let the bad days bring you down to the point that you are ready to quit. Instead turn it around and tell yourself that you are not the only one going through this and that tomorrow is going to be a better day! Put yourself in the race and imagine the feeling of accomplishment as you cross the finish line with thousands of screaming fans cheering you on! You have accomplished something most people will never dream of doing!

Happy Running!

November Wrap Up

Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do. ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Welcome to the month of December! At the end of every month I like to take a look back at what I was able to accomplish or not accomplish for the month. I am a believer in logging everything. I log all my runs, all my strength workouts, my weight and what I eat. For me, it is not enough to just know I did something or did not do something, I have always found that if I write it, I can read it and I can then go back and make a fair assessment.

I look forward to the start of each new month as it allows us to start all over again. We have the ability to set new goals and then create a plan to achieve those goals. Once we have our plan, we can then set out and make our goals become a reality!

November Wrap Up

Total Miles Run - 100

Ave Miles Run Per Day - 3.33

Marathons Completed - 1

Half Marathons Completed - 0

Other Races Completed - 0

Longest Non Race Run - 8 Miles

Total Time Spent Running - 13 Hrs 56 Min 37 Sec

Good luck to everyone this month!

Happy Running!