When Your Body Stops the Mind Must Push On

I ran a six miler yesterday and due to my schedule I had to run at 1 pm.  At that time of day it was almost 90 degrees and very humid here in Hoboken, NJ.  I ran from my apartment on Clinton Street down to the river and headed south, figuring that the trees lining the walkway along the water might help shade me. Plus when you run for marathon training, six milers just don't feel that long any more.  I figured I would crush this and go home and have a beer.

It was very hot but my speed was up to around a 10 minute mile, which is faster than my targeted race pace for October.  I felt OK during the first 4 miles but after that I felt like my head was being baked in an oven.  Suddenly the Sun felt like it hated me.  It was going to make me stop no matter what.  The road was so hot that I could feel it melting my shoes.  I had drank all of my Gatorade and was definitely a little "loopy".  I really wanted to stop my run and walk home.

My run changed from "crushing" it to "surviving" it.  I love running and all that goes with it.  But here I was entering a state of despair and  ready to quit a six miler because I was so hot.  My legs cramped, I got nauseous, I had a headache, and this all happened inside of 15 minutes!

My plans moved from strategic to tactical - I was going to finish this run.  First, I stopped by a water fountain and doused my head with cold water (thanks Joe G. who showed me this trick years ago and it does help you cool down).  Second, I slowed my pace down considerably and focused on continuing to run at any speed. I decided not to stop to buy anything else to drink until I finished, as I'm not sure it would have helped with the leg cramping anyways.

I think of running as mind and body experience.  The end of this run was all about training my mind.  Initially as I slowed, I was sad that my time was dropping off because I had been taking pride in my new found speed (well, for me it was speed, LOL). Then I focused on making this a better experience. I imagined it was the end of  my October Marathon.  Albany has had a heat wave and it's 80 degrees.  I'm dog tired and I've already run 24 miles.  My physical training has given me everything it can and I have to rely on who I am and who I want to be as an athlete and a person to get this done.  I trudged along past the Hudson Tea Building and it seemed like time stood still.  It felt so slow.  But I kept focusing on getting to the end.  Finally, my GPS watch beeped at 6 miles.

Those last two miles were an 11 and an 11:54 minute mile.  The last one being probably the slowest mile I've run since I started running with a coach five weeks ago.

I gave everything I had yesterday to get that done.  Sometimes that's it's about.

Running Connections

Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle and the life of the candle will not be shortened.  Happiness never decreases by being shared!  Buddha

There's s special connection in what we do, who we meet and how we relate to others.  If you believe that we are all connected (which we are) and that we all have energy we release into the universe (which we do), you will find that we are put into contact with people each day that resonate along with us.  I find this is especially true as a runner.

In running the connections come from the nod of "hi" you get from a fellow runner headed in the opposite direction.

It comes from visiting a store looking for new running shoes and discussing pronation and toe boxes with a salesperson as animated as you are about fit and design.

It's that call from your brother or sister to talk about your last training run.  It's the cheer you give to the final runners of a local 5K, remembering the start of you're running journey, while encouraging the finish of their race.

These simple things resonate and have a lasting energy signature in our lives.

These are the candles that we light or that light us without really diminishing the flame.

That's a pretty cool thing from the simple act of running!

The Start of Running Intentions!

"Running Intentions!" is my way of recording my challenges and (hopefully) victories in running.      

I believe that my running will improve when I can align my mind, body and heart in one concerted effort, with complete focus on achieving my intentions.  I'm hoping I can record the experience with this blog and have some fun while doing it!

I am an athlete.  I am a runner.  All 5'9" and 185 pounds of me.  As an athlete and runner I want to improve my performance.  I don't think that DNA is the only indicator of athletic performance.  Granted with my DNA I may never qualify for the Olympics, but that's not my goal.  I believe with a good plan, hard work and perseverance, I can achieve my intentions in running.

My first intention is to set a PR at the 2013 Mohawk Hudson Marathon by running a 4:30 or better.  For some runners a 4:30 marathon isn't such a big deal.  It's running about a 10:15 mile for 26.2 miles.  In my case, it is a big deal!  My old PR was a 5:18 in the Philadelphia Marathon in 2001.  That's 5 hours and 18 minutes for the entire race (Get it? 12 years ago when I was younger and lighter).

If that isn't a challenge enough, I intend to qualify for the Boston Marathon before I turn fifty.
That gives me until June 16, 2017.

Now you're saying, "Come on Joe, you are slow, real slow and getting older every day and at your height and weight  you aren't quite built like a gazelle.  Maybe you can set some PR's but can you really cut almost two hours off of your marathon PR to qualify for Boston (Boston qualifying time for me is a 3:25 marathon time or better)?"

The answer is "YES".  I believe that my running will improve when I can align my mind, my body and my heart in one concerted effort, with complete focus on my running intentions.

Running is How I Experience the World

I think of running often.  Just about every day I read about it, talk about it, or do it.

I'm not an extremist.  Some people need to run in the same way we brush our teeth or shower for work.  Some people need that connection.

I'm looking for a connection between my mind, body and soul through running.  I want to improve my running to such a level that I'll know I've done all I could with the gifts and challenges I'm given.

Running is a simple act.   Slightly more complicated than walking but not as technical as swimming or as equipment centric as cycling.

You can go out and run right now regardless of what you are wearing or where you are.  But in even the simplest of acts we find many dimensions.  That's where runners live.  That's where I rely on running to experience the world around me.

Like many, I have relied on running to release stress, get fit and enjoy a race now and again.  I've rewarded myself with cold beers, laughed about a good race effort and felt real camaraderie because of my running.

I have also experienced sunrises, cold frost on trees and grass, the smell of brewing coffee and frying bacon on a Sunday morning and genuine pleasure in watching others achieve at an activity I adore.

I have witnessed age, color and religion disappear in an instant, as the gun goes off on a 5K and regular people from all parts of life are turned into competitors for the next few moments.

I have been humbled by my failures and reborn again by a success so perfect, that I was moved to tears.

Running is the way that I experience the world and I love it.  For its spiritual side, its health giving properties an its ability to make me feel like the athlete that I want to be.