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New Running VIDEO
Since I’m doing video full time (and available for hire) I thought I would start making little videos like these with all of my footage. Let me know what you think.
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My First Training Mistakes of 2015
Remember that time when you were craving sweets and reached into the snack drawer to break off off the corner of a cookie then walked away after a small nibble? Yeah, me either.
Yesterday I was craving a trail run. It was a little cold, but the sun finally came back, so around 3:00 in the afternoon, I laced them up.
In an effort to top my cookie with 2 inches of frosting, I decided to run with music for the first time in months. That was my first mistake.
It’s odd to think of running with music as a mistake. I mean, it’s music! Probably the best invention God has rolled out in a long time. But for some reason it always pumps me up just a little too much.
My rule for exercise is always “ease into everything.” But Eminem, AC/DC, and Grandmaster Flash rarely encourage you to chill.
After a few days of rain, the trails were a quagmire and the lyrics pumping my brain assured me this was a minor obstacle. I ripped into shin deep puddles with reckless abandoned. I was “Cleaning Out My Closet” on the “Highway to Hell.”
I’m not sure how much harder it is to run in mud, but by the time I realized I was 4.5 miles away from home I was a little beat up. I refilled my water bottle and contemplated the next move, and for me that’s typically, keep running.
I turned up the music and went about retracing my steps. Six miles was plenty, but after flying through a miniature lake at mile seven (and wrenching my ankle pretty good) I finally stopped at 8.
Still two miles from home I decided I should practice my Ironman-tempo-walk, and that’s what I did. There were a few attempts at running, but it hurt.
For some reason, running with music throws me off. It takes me away from my body, breath, and rational decisions. I pushes me like that 10th beer can give you confidence for the 11th.
My second mistake was running too far. When adrenaline is pumping, it’s easy to do.
But the fallout was exhaustion and frankly, that’s not my motivation. Last night was worthless and this morning wasn’t much better.
I guess the lesson here (and I have no idea how I keep forgetting this) is that moderation is the key to life (even when training for Ironman) and must be accepted. Just when running was becoming fun again, I fucked it up. Don’t let me do that again, no matter how many people would be impressed by a photo of my Garmin.
Looking for Motivation? Read This
Little Kid at the Bluebird Cafe
If you’ve ever been to Nashville or watched the new ABC show with the same name, you’ve probably heard about the Bluebird Cafe. It is a legendary music venue that seats 100 people, kicks you out if you talk during the song, and has hosted most of the world’s greatest songwriters. Tonight, I went to watch my buddy Roger steal the show.
Some of you may remember Roger as my “Wisconsin buddy in Nashville” and this story about how we both decided to change our lives on the same day. This Thursday he will take “changing his life” to the extreme. He’s packing up his guitar and moving to the Florida Keys to be a full-time musician.
It’s a bitter-sweet move for both of us. We have become very close and ran our first half marathons together. I was also there in December when he ran his first full. Roger is one of those guys who gets something in his head, sets a plan, and makes it happen. It’s very inspiring and I will miss him.
Roger is exactly the kind of person I like to surround myself with. Positive, ambitious, and determined. My Ironman training teammates are the same way and on days like today it hits home in the simplest of ways.
My training patterns are slowly but surely falling into place. I am not yet the 5am guy, but I’m routinely waking in time for 7am pre-work workouts. I have been cautious about going too far too fast with changing my sleep patterns and training. Today was a good example as they were on bikes at 7 and I showed up at 8 for spin class. But, other than a little ribbing, it was incredibly motivational to see these guys digging in. It truly reminded me of a team that was determined to do whatever it takes to win. And winning in this case could be as simple as finishing under 17 hours.
After the bike, we walked to the front door of the Y and stared into the pouring rain. After years of adulthood, my natural reaction was to think that we would just run on a treadmill, but not one of these guys blinked. They stepped through the door, put backpacks in their cars, and started running down one of Nashville’s sketchiest streets.
We jogged in silence for a while as the rain soaked our head and shoes. I admired the potential of the rundown neighborhoods I normally drive through in the dark — and as fast as possible. Today landscape was still, and almost inviting. The soft sounds of our feet prodded past the urban blight and we barely saw a soul.
It was an easy pace but East Nashville is loaded with hills. We started joking about how runners yell back to warn other runners about oncoming cars or bikes or whatever. “Car up.” “Bike up.” Then took it to the extreme.
“Puddle up.” “Mailbox up.” “Stick down.” “Bird up.” Nearly everything we saw became an obstacle.
“Street sign.” “Curb.” “Trash can.”
As we made our way back toward the Y, we realized the time was a few minutes short of the targeted 30 minutes. It was a similar moment to standing there looking at the rain. I fully expected everyone to opt for the easy way out, but the quick decision was to veer off and run a few blocks out of the way to complete the goal.
It seems simple, but I found incredible joy in that symbol of dedication. They had already been on bikes for two hours and we may have been two minutes shy of the total run time, but they decided to go the distance and I guess that’s a microcosm of the Ironman mentality. Finish.
I have always known that being around positive and ambitious people makes a major difference. Once again, I am seeing it first hand.
After working various printing jobs for 17 years in Nashville, Roger hasn’t lost sight of his dream and is transforming his life into that of a full-time musician. Jim, Daniel, Kevin, Mark and our coach, Robbie are are incredible inspiration and because of them, I am tackling something most people I talk to can’t even comprehend. The little kid in me is coming back and reality is changing thanks to the motivational forces that surround me me.