Archives

Anyone Can Run…..

Apr15

athlete

Anyone can run.   Really.   Unless there is a medical reason, anyone can run.   Not everyone likes to run.  I know that too being someone who used to say she hated running.   Although in retrospect it isn’t that I hated running.   It was more that I had never given running a chance.   So I unequivocally state again that anyone can run.   That being said, there is a difference between just running and running well.   This is the crossroads that I am at now.  I’ve been running for a while now and I’ve gotten to the point that I might just want to run well.

Now I am not saying that I want to move to the top of the Pack or become a leading Master runner.   I am saying that I think it might be time to take my running up a notch.   Take it the the next level.   Right now, I’ve been following generic training plans for specific events.   I will say these have been amazingly helpful and I’ve learned from them.   I know that without my Runner’s World Hat Trick Specific Training Plan that I would not have been able to run those events as well as I did.    Online training plans are wonderful and will get you where you need to go.   My problem that I am encountering and is starting to freak me out a bit is that I need to form my plan to start training for the Marine Corps Marathon while being prepared for other events.   I seem to be going a few different directions at once.

Case in Point….

  1. Running many events of different distances for the 9 plus 1 plan
  2. Training for the Iron Girl Sprint Triathlon
  3. Training for the Marine Corps Marathon and the final hill at the end of it.

Now I would have no problem following a plan on my own to train for one of these events, but I’m really having a problem wrapping my head around training for all of them at once.   Probably because I don’t know what I’m doing and have no background in this field.   Yes, I read my Runner’s World, Running Times and such but I’ve really been only running since I finished my first Tri in September of 2013.    I’m in a bit of a quandary.   I know I need to train.   I know that both the Tri and the marathon will require serious training with the marathon only being a month after the Tri, I will need to train for them at the same time.    That being said, I need to figure out how to train without over training, without causing injury, and without causing burnout.   That is where a running coach might just be what I need.

I used to think that a Running Coach would be reserved for the “serious athlete.”   The top of the Pack athlete.    The career athlete.   I used to think that a Stay-at-Home Mom wouldn’t need a Running Coach.   What would the point be?   Then I realized what the point would be?    The point would be that they know what they are doing.    The point would be that they can help me reach my goals.   The point would be that they can help  generate a plan just for me.   Just like I’ve hired a Personal Trainer at the gym in the past, a Running Coach can help put me on the right path for running smartly.   To help me run well.   A  Running Coach can help me reach my potential while at the same time giving me the skills that I will need to get to the end of the road all in one piece.

This is where I am now.   I’ve started process.    I have not hired a coach yet, but have contacted one to see her thoughts.    Surprisingly, the cost is not as high as I thought it would be.   To be honest, the monthly cost is cheaper than hiring a Personal Trainer for two sessions.  Plus the coach that I am looking at has different packages depending upon my need.   I don’t pay a gym membership right now and can justify the cost too.   Although the biggest justification of the cost will be the peace of mind it will bring me.

Even though I have not hired a coach yet and am still investigating, just the thought of it is easing the stress.    I am days away from turning 46.   I am a Stay-at-Home Mom.    I am a middle of the Pack runner.    I have much to learn about the art of running and training.   Bottom line is that I was wrong.   A Running Coach is for an athlete at any level and I am worth it.

worth it

Do you have a Running Coach??

Have you ever had one?

Let It Go

Mar23

No it’s about Frozen.

Although that is what we all think of now when hear this expression.

I can’t even say the words without singing them.

You try…

But

There is something to be said about letting go.   It’s freeing.   There really is just something cathartic about letting it all go.   Getting rid of the negative energy that clutter ensues in our lives and minds.   Getting rid of the things that are no longer useful and most importantly getting rid of the things that no longer make us happy.   It is never an easy task to let go, but it is an important one.    All our lives we are taught the importance of holding on, but we are never taught the art of letting go.   There is a time and place for each of these in our lives and it is important to know when it is time to do which one.

Holding on although not easy really is easier than letting go.   Letting go can sometimes seem like a failure or giving up and even a little scary.   When in reality, letting go can open us up for opportunities that we would miss if we were holding on tightly to the things that we no longer need.   Letting go is hard.  Letting go requires the willingness to change which is also never easy.   It requires the willingness to admit that something just isn’t working.  Letting go can be painful, but letting go is part of life and the journey we must take.

There are many reasons why we have to admit that it is time to let something and sometimes someone else.   Each of us has to make our own decisions on when is the right time.   When that time comes though, you just have to run with it.  This past weekend, I literally cleaned house.   I went through kitchen drawers, cabinets, and even my pantry.    I’m not sure what came over me, but I just went with it.   By the time I was done, the garbage was overflowing and I had 3 boxes filled with donations.   By the end of the day, I felt exhausted but at the same time accomplished.

Although this was a huge task, it was much easier than the times that I’ve had to “let go” of people in my life.   Not due to hatred.   Not due to anger.   I just needed to let go because they were not good for me.   Letting go is painful, but it is necessary.   You reach a point in your life when you realize that life is short.   Life is too precious to waste on people who are negative, who tear you down instead of build you up, who no matter how low you set the bar disappoint you.    It is never easy, but it is necessary.  Sometimes we are the ones holding ourselves back and we need to let go of the negative energy that we create ourselves.

It took me a long time to start my fitness journey because of my own negative energy.  When I got out of my own way, it was amazing to see the things that I could actually accomplish.  We must learn to let go of the things that hold us back.   We must let go of preconceived notions of who we are and what we can accomplish.   Once we let go, we realize that it was the negative thoughts that keep us from striving for things we imagined out of our reach.   Nothing is out of our reach.  Sometimes we focus on the wrong things.   Sometimes we miss the signs that we need to change our routines, our goals, and our expectation.   Sometimes we need to adjust.

Mr Rogers as always sums it up best….

Mr RogersJ

Life is ever changing.

Goals are ever changing.

Never stop moving foward

and

Never give up!

Are you good about letting things go?

Readjusting Goals and Expectations

Feb17

With all goal setting, it is important along the way to take stock of how things are going and how expectations are meeting reality.

This is where I am today.

goal

One of my goals for this year was to have a Bib a month.   I was very clear in my goals that Bibs would not carry over and only one a month would count on this.    Well it is time to readjust this goal seeing as I feel like I live in the Frozen Tundra and there are no races this month.   More to the point the races that were available, I could not do.   I wasn’t overly concerned because my MRTT group was hosting a Frozen Booty event.   I was going to do the 5K.    First we had a problem with the location and it was decided to be less formal event at a local park.   Then the weather took a sever dive and it was determined that everyone would run their own race and post their times.    I still did my 5K.   I even did it outside because I really, really, really dislike the treadmill.   My time was not spectacular, but I did it.   I finished in 31:03.   Actually not bad considering I walked at some points because I didn’t feel like landing on my behind in the snow.    But I did it.   I also plan to count this as I submitted my time to the National Chapter of MRTT.   Official enough for me.

One of my other goals for the year is to run a 5K in 25 minutes.   As I’ve said before, my PR for a 5K is 27 minutes.   I had hoped to know this goal out at the March 1rst 5K, but I really don’t see it happening.   I’ve been running on the treadmill, but I hate the treadmill.    This is not to say that I’m not going to try, but I think realistically I hopefully can reach this goal later in the year.   This is not the only 5K that I will run this year and this is only a goal at a local 5K.   If I don’t make it this year, I can always try again next.

As for my goal of qualifying for the NYCM, I do seem to be on track for that one.   I’ve already done one race and I’m registered for 5 more.    Along the way, my cohort and I are trying to make sure that we also run enough of the Borough series races to automatically qualify for the NYC Half Marathon next year.   Wouldn’t that be nice.    We’ve already got one qualifying event under our belt and are registered for others.   With any luck, things will fall into place and next year we can run the half and full.   That would be amazing to say the least!   So must keep on running to make sure that happens.

It is nice too that I can already say that I’ve reached a goal by running a trail half this year.   Thanks Dawn:)

So as of now, I am satisfied with where I am in my training and my goals.

and

No, I haven’t forget the 2 hour Half.   Just not sure of when.

How are you doing with yours?