Monthly Archives: November 2008

“Racing is pain, and that’s why you do it, to challenge yourself and the limits of your physical and mental barriers. You don’t experience that in an armchair watching television.”

MARK ALLEN

This one might sound strange after the first lesson, but lesson #2 for me has been “I have to be able to survive alone”. From long runs to marathons you spend a lot of time alone. You don’t always run marathons with thousands lining to streets to encourage you. There are many times where you only have yourself to count on.

What will you do in these times? Can you push yourself a little more? Can you motivate yourself to go a little further? The idea of trusting and relying on others is a big part of it but what if you don’t have anyone. Will you go on? What if you choose the unpopular in life where nobody else is willing to follow you or go with you? Do you have the endurance to go on alone? Doing what needs to be done is not always a crowded street. Many times it is a deserted highway.

The popular is not always the best. Sometimes you have to look inside and realize it might be just me in this battle today. It is easy to quit and find an excuse in those times.

The challenge today is, can you go alone?

When I look back and try and figure out what got me into running these marathons I am able to see that there were those who talked me into it. However I think there is more to it than that. It has been a growth journey for me and it continues to be. Since the time I decided to start running the marathon it seems my life has been rocked by something all the time.

I can assure you that the lessons I have learned in running the marathon have been a major part of my survival month after month for the last couple of years. I think it is only fitting to talk about what I have learned in running the marathon. I will try and do a lesson a day.

My first lesson is “You can’t do it alone”. Most people hear me say that and they think I am crazy but there is no possible way for me to do this alone. Here are some examples of who and what I need:
I need the encouragment and willingness of my family to support me, I need the encouragment and belief of friends to keep me going, I need someone to keep me in line and make sure I am doing the training, I need the support on the course, I need the volunteers on race day for hydration, fuel and encouragment, I need the necessary equipment for running.

I have been able to use this everyday for me personally as well. Life is not meant to be lived alone. God gave us each other and wants us to have the ability to use the strengths of others to lift us up. Yes it can get messy but that is what we are here for. As a good friend of mine said, “Welcome to the life that God has for you, One where you are known”.

My challenge to you is to learn from my marathon lesson, be known and use those around you. They need you and you need them.

One of the difficult things in running and even in our everyday life is rest. When you are goal oriented and always trying to make things happen the idea of rest is an unknown language. However rest is a key part of life and running.

Rest allows the body to get strong. Rest strengthens your mind and spirit. The true growth does not take place in the run but during the healing. It can be hard to sit still and wait. It can be hard to relax when every bone is your body tells you to get up and go.

But always remember, REST. Through rest comes strength.

I was out for a run this weekend and could hardly even see the trail for all the yellow, purple, red and brown leaves scattered about. It is really a good wake up call to take a look at the beauty around us. Technology has given us some great advancements in running with the GPS, Nike+, Heart rate monitors and others.

It is easy to get caught up watching what is on your wrist and not at what is around you. I suggest that from time to time just look up. I have really been enjoying some of my runs recently where I leave everything to track my progress at home and just enjoy the run.

Take in the beauty of God’s creation which is easy to do this time of the year. For a minute forget your PR, your pace, your time and your mileage. Just run and enjoy it. Change it up some and get out with the nature God created it. Thats how you were created to run.

Enjoy the run!

Last November I had the opportunity to run with a true legend Dean Karnazes(Karno). It was truly a great experience and one I will not forget. Karno is the real deal and running with him and a group of leaders in Atlanta was a great experience on a crisp November morning. Watching him spend time with everyone, answering questions and giving encouragement showed his leadership. Last week it happened to me again but the experience was even better. I had a chance to run with Tim Borland www.timborland.com

You really should take a few minutes and read a little more about Tim. I finished my run feeling a little better about running and about humanity from just spending a few minutes with Tim. Karno is a giant in running because of who is he and what he has done to put the sport on the front pages and give it the headlines to motivate others to get out and do more than they thought they could. Karno has gotten thousands of people off the “couch of doom” and out the door. Tim Borland is a giant because of why he runs and his motivation behind what he does. Forget the accomplishments, which are amazing, but it is the heart of Tim Borland where the impact has been made. Tim is running to raise funds and awareness for the 143,000,000 orphans around the world. That number was staggering to me when I heard it.

He reminded me again to think, why I do what I do each and every day. What gets you up and going every day and what is the reason you do what you do? Spending a few minutes with Tim did my heart good and really made me think again about what I am put here to do? Who am I impacting today? A lot of questions eh!

Have a great one and go make an impact!

I had a 5 mile run last night. It was was of those runs that reminded you it has been just a couple of weeks since you ran a marathon. Feet feel like they weigh 30 pounds each, legs feel like iron poles. However there is nothing wrong with a run like that. I think it is good to treat a run like that as how you might feel in race. You don’t always feel up to it but you just need to press on.

“Pain is temporary. It may last for a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.” Lance Armstrong

In talking with a good friend this morning, he had a thought on pain that I thought I would add. In life you can have pain now or pain later. Pain before the reward or pain after the reward? That is the question to answer. In life, in running and in finances it is all the same. When training for a marathon can you reward yourself now by cutting it short? You bet, and you will have pain later. Pain is not an option, you just make a choice of when you will have it. In the end it is better to have the pain now and not later. Pain now is by your choice, pain later is a result of the decisions you made.