The winter and fall has seen some fantastic runs. Without the rigors or demands of a schedule you’re free to explore. Try new distances. Try new distances and different paces. Try some new snacks while running. Try running new routes and different times I had a small group of friends to do a sort of kind of schedule to keep our legs going before the marathon clinic starts. That was extremely rewarding to push some peers and to be pushed.
Learned some new things along the way. Some valuable lessons. First if you’re sick, just stay home. I don’t want to elaborate. I also learned I may be more able than I thought, and a bit of a wimp. Just a bit. I learned this at the end of a funsy 21.1 with my running buddy Paul. Near the end of the run he dropped the gauntlet and started to pull away. Boys will be boys. There was no way I was going let him get away. At the end of the run I had a new PB for 21.1 Had I been running alone I’m sure I would never of pushed at the end. It was the first time I pushed so hard so late into a long run. My legs didn’t fall off, my lungs didn’t come out my nose. Just sheer euphoria. A similar thing happened with Paul and Lisa, one of our resident elite runners and one of our coaches. Another incredible push from some great friends and runners that left me with that great feeling of exhaustion and euphoria. And a new 14k PB and a 10K PB while doing the 14k.
Now the training starts again. I will be better equipped and feel more confident. I may finally be able to keep up with our esteemed leader and great mentor John, on one of our 10k tempos.
I find training for a marathon all consuming. Life starts to revolve around it. I’ve had people comment to me about not having a life. They couldn’t be more wrong. It forces me to be focused and organized. My mind clears. There is no background noise. At that discipline and hard work ethic starts to become part of every facet of life.
This weekend I started the process. Cleaned my condo. It’s clutter free and very clean. It will stay this way. Each night everything will be in its place before I lay my head down. Breakfast will be already made and in the fridge. My clothes will laid out the night before. My eating habits will improve dramatically. I will force myself to sleep better. Everything that makes life more efficient and easy helps keep me on track for training. I look forward to it. It’s here.
And at the end of it all I’ll run my second marathon. Not exactly sure which one yet. But my goal isn’t to a run a marathon. My goal is to follow the process. To live and eat healthy. To surround myself with fantastic people who understand that feeling, that euphoria. To continue put pavement under my feet. To celebrate the victories of others. To be part of my community. To do what I love.
I reached my goal last year of running a marathon. My new goal is to never stop running marathons until the good Lord calls me home.