Training Day 2

Posted on by One of the Beloved

Preparation and Schedule: Day 2 of the Beginner’s Beginner’s Beginner’s Guide to training for a marathon says I am supposed to walk 30 minutes. Sounds easy enough. I won’t lie though, my legs are embarrassingly sore from yesterday’s 30 minute run. I am hoping this is normal? I am hoping that this walk is supposed to stretch out and help my muscles recover. I’m also hoping that my endurance adjusts quickly, because if I’m in this much pain after Day 1, I really think this marathon may actually kill me. Here’s to hoping!

The Run: Since it was raining and in the 40s this afternoon (thank you again, Chicago!), I decided to walk the 30 minutes on the treadmill in our building’s “gym,” aka a 10×10 ft room equipped with two treadmills, a bike, and a sorry set of dumbbells. Good thing I’m not training for a heavy weight championship! I had all I needed, and the best part? Totally empty.

I started the walk at 5:00pm, but then received a text that said my out of town friend needed to bump up our dinner date from 6:00 to 5:30! There was no way I was going to walk my full thirty and meet them in time. I got off the treadmill at 5:16 and hustled to change and call an uber. I’m thankful it was a walking day or that 15 minutes would have required a shower!

I went to dinner, Flat Top Grill if you must know, and it was delicious and healthy. Upon taking your seat, you are handed a bowl and are told to choose your protein. My husband chose chicken and sausage, which was tempting to say the least, but I chose to take the healthy route and stick to just chicken. After you’ve placed your meat order, you proceed to a buffet of raw vegetables, noodles, and steamed rice. You choose the colors you want to eat (I always try to make the rainbow, blue is the hardest one to achieve…next time I’ll consider sneaking in some blueberries for dessert…or if you know of a blue vegetable, please do not hesitate to inform me!). Anyway, dinner was a huge success, we all left feeling full, healthy, and caught up on our long-distance lives.

Back to home, fully intending to walk the other 15 minutes. I promise you I did end up walking them, but it took some serious will power! At about 8:00pm I was back on the treadmill staring at my blank-faced reflection in the dusty mirror. As my playlist kicked in to the good stuff, (this time I chose my Worship playlist because it reminds me to be thankful and focus on other things), I started feeling that small ache in my legs that sort of feels good. You know, the pain that you kind of enjoy? I was feeling the sweat starting to glisten, the heart rate rising, and the ache of sore legs getting fresh blood.

15 minutes later, I press the stop button on the screen, or at least I think I do. As I close out my last few steps on the slowing belt, I decide to shut my eyes and imagine myself crossing the finish line on Marathon Day. I see October 13, me jogging at my slowest possible pace, legs aching but feeling incredibly accomplished. I stretch out my arms in triumph, then, I feel my foot hit a bump on the treadmill, vision over! Instantly I open my eyes and am forced to jump off the side of the track at the last possible second landing on my right foot as my left flops clumsily behind it. If it weren’t for that slight bump and a quick reaction, I would’ve been crashing face first into the still spinning track. Oh my, God! I never hit the stop button! Too close for comfort, feeling so stupid, and so happy no one is around to see, I start laughing out loud. I take it as a sign that I should be thankful I didn’t hurt myself. Even when we’re not paying attention, God is looking out for us. Thank You, Jesus!

I also take it as a sign that I’m not supposed to stop yet. The belt is still running, my time still ticking. At this point I’ve done two 15 minute walks, but the training says one 30 minute walk… I convince myself to just go to 20 minutes, that should suffice. 20 rolls by, okay okay, 25. Ah, what the heck, I’m doing 30! Yes, it was just walking, at 4.4 miles an hour to be exact, but it was challenging! I was sweating, I wanted to stop. But at the same time I felt like I couldn’t, like I had to prove to myself that I could do this 30 minutes and be honest with myself, my goal, and be intentional about it. And I’m so glad that I did! After that full 30 minutes, I made sure I definitely hit the stop button this time, and felt proud of myself. I came back upstairs to the comfort of home, (although it’s not much bigger than the gym, at least it’s clean!) and stretched a full and well-earned stretch.

Reflection: Today I learned to be honest with myself. Stop trying to cheat and get by with the minimum. Stop trying to make excuses and find loop holes to stop you from doing what you know you need to do. I did the 15 minutes earlier, I could’ve stopped at 15 more. I could’ve convinced myself that I had accomplished what I set out to do, but I would’ve known that I had skirted the true finish line. I do this a lot in my life actually, this was the physical manifestation of many other tasks and goals in my life. I cheat myself out of a true challenge because I think I can find a reason to not commit fully to it. It only hurts me in the end. I’m thankful I saw the flip side of it tonight. When I thought I had pressed the stop button, only to be jarringly notified that I did not, in fact, touch it, I would’ve stopped myself short of what I could accomplish. And I wouldn’t have the proud feeling of pushing myself like I do now.

So I encourage you as well, reflect on what you might cheat yourself out of. Maybe it’s because you convince yourself that you’ve met the finish line, but in reality you only shortened the finish line to fit your comfortable distance. Maybe it’s because you don’t believe that you can have the full experience, because maybe you don’t deserve it, or maybe you think it’s not possible for you. Challenge that. Maybe it will take you nearly falling off a treadmill, or some other jolt of awareness, but maybe it’s just taking a moment right now to think about a goal you have that you’d like to push yourself toward, and not accept anything less than your true potential.

Training Day 1

Posted on by One of the Beloved

Motivation for Starting this Insane Challenge?: “Mind over Body.” I knew that once I’d committed my mind to doing this marathon, the body would just have to follow suit.

I started out using the training plan created by World Vision, the team I’m running for. They call it the training guide for “Beginners, Beginners, Beginners,” which sounded appropriate for me.

I am not a runner. I never have been. I enjoy running, but I usually get winded after about ten minutes and either force myself to grudgingly complete a mile/mile and a half, or I drop the facade and walk for about ten more minutes before officially calling it quits. I like the idea of running. I love being outdoors and I love being active and feeling a good sweat, fast heartbeat, and sore muscles. I just struggle to actually bring myself to do it. My husband calls this the activation energy, the energy it takes to actually get yourself going, that’s my biggest struggle. Sound familiar? I know I’m not alone. They don’t make pre-workout for no reason.

Preparation: Before I set out for my first official run, I set up everything I could possibly need so that I had absolutely no excuse for why I couldn’t start training today. The most pressing concerns: a Timer and Music.

I couldn’t imagine having to reset my phone’s timer every 3 minutes, or hearing that annoying alarm so frequently, so after a quick Google I wasn’t surprised to find an app for interval training. (They really do have an app for everything). I downloaded IntervalTimer, preset the workout for 3 minutes high interval, 1 minute low interval. (And by “high interval,” I mean a slight jog at this point).

Like any good adventure, it calls for a good soundtrack, so I created my own playlist. It’s called Folk Jams, most of the music coming from Vance Joy, Of Monsters and Men, Ben Howard, and The Head and the Heart. Music with positive lyrics, a steady bass drum, and hopefully a cello is my inspiration. I made sure my wireless headphones were fully charged and connected to my phone before leaving the front door, I couldn’t afford any oversights. I took the Otterbox cover off of my phone so that it would fit into the pink armband I purchased from Amazon, “Ready, Totally Ready,” I thought as I slid my wrist through it.

The Run: Stepping out of the building, it was a brisk 50 degree and overcast day. The bright green of the spring buds on trees stood out against the thick gray that hovered over and between their branches. When the ding of the first interval sounded I started to run. I felt light on my feet, I felt motivation and commitment surge through my veins. I felt pride that I was out there, running in an unusually empty park when everyone else must have been in their home, taking rest on this dreary Monday afternoon. I felt brave and unique.

It was maybe around the 5th interval that I started feeling the pain in my abdomen. Definitely not uncommon, just a sharp cramping feeling that went away when I walked, but I couldn’t walk for long! I had to push myself. I wanted to stop and stretch but I didn’t know if that was allowed according to this regimen! There’s not much direction included in this Beginner’s Guide! I’ll have to ask at the meeting on Wednesday night. For today, I had to push through. During the 6th interval I had some sort of overworked muscle feeling in my upper, inner left quad. Every step I took I felt the pulling, like it had no spring left. It would have been so good to stop but instead I kept taking steps with my left foot, trying to lift it higher, or stretch it further. My run was incredibly wonky for a good few yards, but it did the trick! My leg was stretched out and woken up just enough to keep going without so much agitation. The little tricks I learned today! And I didn’t give up! I completed the 30 minute exercise. Legs definitely sore already, but completely worth it!

Learning: Today I realized that trees grow crookedly sometimes. When they need to get to the light that is blocked by maybe a building or another tree, they bend and lean until they reach it, then they continue to grow directly toward it.

Of course I knew this scientific fact prior to today, but it was today that a deeper realization hit me about these seemingly crooked trees: We are just like them.

We have to grow toward the light, whatever that may mean for our path. Sometimes our path looks crooked, bent, and confused, but it actually makes perfect sense in the long run. We have to find the light, and once we do, we grow straight.

To me this means finding God, finding Life, finding Purpose. It means being born into darkness and having to figure your way out, confused and displaced, until you stumble into a patch of Light, of Life, of health, and it’s so good that you have to follow it. Maybe for you it was finding a fulfilling career, or hobby, or relationship. Maybe your Light is your dream, the path your working toward. My Light is God, and He’s made my path straight.

I’m asking you, what is the light that you grow toward? Is it guiding you to grow straight?