Why is it that you only hear the horror stories about marathon
running?
Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve heard a lot of them. Here’s a few
choice tidbits I’ve heard over the years, most of which are
designed to make you fear the marathon:
Why is it that you only hear the horror stories about marathon running?
Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve heard a lot of them. Here’s a few choice tidbits I’ve heard over the years, most of which are designed to make you fear the marathon:
Your toenails fall off.
Your muscles don’t just hurt, your bones ache to the core in a way you’ve never experienced.
And of course, there’s the ultimate potential embarrassment: Completely overwhelming exhaustion leaves you unable to control bodily functions in the middle of the race.
It leaves rational thinkers wondering, who in their right mind would want to participate in a sport that even remotely involves the possibility of such public shame?
You can’t see me, but I’m raising my hand right now.
For a while, I’ve been entertaining the thought of running a marathon. I actually was going to start training for last year’s Chicago Marathon, but in February, I tore the anterior cruciate ligament in my left knee playing basketball and it derailed my plans. I had to undergo my second major knee surgery, and since then, I’ve been more fearful than ambitious about going after my marathon dreams.
But last week, I met some members of the South Valley Running Club (SVRC), 12 local residents who will be running the Boston Marathon this Monday, and I realized, my perspective is all wrong.
I shouldn’t fear the marathon. Neither should you.
A marathon isn’t about going out and running 26.2 miles at once. It’s about training over a period of time and slowly building up to it. Which, when you think about it, means a runner won’t ever be running a distance he or she isn’t ready to handle.
Not that this is easy. No one needs to be told that training for a marathon takes some serious dedication, motivation and perhaps most of all, mental toughness. You know, the will to ignore the little voice in your head telling you to stay within the warm confines of your down comforter early on a Saturday morning instead of putting on the running shoes and heading outside.
Still, the “baby steps” philosophy makes things a lot more digestible.
“(A marathon) is a long ways, and you need to respect that,” said SVRC president Craig Lore, who will be running the Boston Marathon next week.
But Lore adds: You’re adding 10 percent of your mileage every week. When you think of it that way, it’s not like you’re trying to run a whole 26 miles.”
Then there’s the whole fear of failure thing. And the fear of injury thing. I guess, the solution is, you just have to not worry about that and in the words of Nike, just do it.
“My original thought was ‘Maybe this is too much,'” Lore said. “But then I thought, I might was well try to get to 20 miles (in training), and if not, at least I’ll be in pretty good shape.”
A former co-worker of mine, who had begun training for the New York Marathon but stopped after she injured herself, once told another co-worker, a seasoned marathoner, that she didn’t think she was built for a marathon.
The marathon runner co-worker responded, “No one is built for a marathon.”
I don’t think it can be put any better than that. Sure, some people are more suited for running. Some people might be better conditioned or faster than others, but anyone who makes the critical decision to follow through with the training can run a marathon.
“The first one is always the worst,” said Kim Moyano of Gilroy, who will also be running the streets of Boston. “You’re thinking, ‘If I can get through this, I’ll never run again.’ But then you’re running again and you become an addict.”
Perhaps the coolest thing about completing a marathon is the feeling of, ‘Wow, I just did that?’ It’s got to be an unbelievable feeling and one that is well worth the physical pain. And seriously, if P. Diddy can do it, why can’t I?
So to anyone who’s ever considered running a marathon, I say, go do it. And I suggest you join the South Valley Running Club to start training. Running with a support group will make the experience easier and more fulfilling. Plus, you’ll be more inclined to go out and run when you know someone’s counting on you to be their running buddy.
So when will I run my first marathon?
It might be a lot sooner than I thought.
