Beautiful Sights and Uphill Battles

If music be the food of love; play on.-- William Shakespeare

Today marks the unofficial beginning of Fall marathon training with the Chicago And Marine Corps Marathon in October and the New York City Marathon in November. I have no intentions of running a marathon this Fall but I'm conditioned to get in gear in early July.

Atlanta is a cool running town. It's big enough to have tons of things to see and small enough to get there on foot. I did a 6.28 mile run and I had to control myself from taking more pics. Skybiew Atlanta was cool last week when I visited with the family but seeing it with lights in the dark was downright artistic. 

I do wish that I had known about the less than gentle incline along Auburn this morning. I didn't expect that much work today but seeing some is this stuff was worth the extra effort. I also wish I did a better job at choosing a playlist. I ran past the Ebenezer Baptist Church where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Was a preacher. As I ran by, the I listened to Pusha T, My God. It was almost disrespectful. Maybe disrespectful is extreme but it certainly did not fit. 

I want to build a playlist with Classic Western Music but it has to work with my route and my intensity. I probably wouldn't shuffle a list like that. It would have to be precise, almost surgical where the surges in the music match the surge in effort. Or even those moments where one needs to reign themselves I the music could match with calming, serene melodies like Fur Elise by Beethoven or uphill runs could be soundtracked by Promontory from Last of the Mohicans. It always seems like that song is for battles or going uphill.

Despite the score of this particular run would have been best served by classic western music, as I approached my turnaround I felt that "We gon' make it" by Jadakiss and Styles P would have bought me into the halfway mark strong and ready for a good kick back home. 

For now, it's foam roller time and learning more about my new running headphones. The wireless bud from Yurbud. I read reviews and it said best fit. After that I was sold. I just spent the last six months or so running with the Apple headphones. Those are great for anything but running. I sweat like Patrick Ewing back in the days and after half a mile, I'm tucking those things back in my ear every hundred yards. I'll report back Saturday how they felt in the AJC Peachtree Road Race.

Soundtrack

To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift-- Steve Prefontaine

I didn't actually run today. It was an off day although I love running on the first day of the month. After the trifecta yesterday I didn't want to cheat my system of one off and one on. Bill Bowerman believed in going really hard when it's time to work and resting effectively. I did calisthenics today to strengthen my body. I never lift weights because I was oft injured and without having to tackle anyone I lost interest in being massive. That said, the gym in my building has a machine leg press and I do high reps to get my quads stronger and strengthen my knees (if that actually works).

Although here was no pavement pounding or trail blazing today I did register for two of the twelve marathons I plan to run in 2016. It was like a moment of truth signing up for the first one for January 30, 2016. The Callaway Gardens Marahon in Pine Mountain, GA will be the marathon I actually train for while the others will be an adventure in figuring it out. I imagined some sort of music in the background as I clicked and swiped and added emergency contact info. Maybe Vivaldi Four Seasons played with the anticipation and anxiety. Amazingly this step isn't the easiest. It is the hardest. Once I register for a race my record of completion is impeccable. As much as I talked about twelve I twelve, it wasn't real until today. There is money on the table and bibs to be set aside for me. The other race was the Publix Georgia Marathon on March 20, 2016 which, will begin 10 minutes from where I live. 

I'm not sure if music for anxiety or anticipation fits or if a joyous tune like Night in Tunisia by Dizzy Gillespie is more apropos or music to express relief like Vincent Guaraldi Christmastime is Here (don't judge me just listen to it)

Three Times a Runner

Celebrate rarely, grind daily.-- Colin Cowherd

I decided that I would try a run club sponsored by REI. The meetup was about 1.5 miles from where I live so I said to myself, self, what would the Raramuri do? They would run to the meetup, run the run, and then run back home. That is precisely what I did except for the fact that I ran .8 of a mile in e wrong direction. A 1.5 mile run turned into 2.6. My easy jog to the meetup had to change into a 5k pace run so I could make it on time. The best part was before I left home. I put on my running gear and my son said, "hey daddy, are you going to work now?" Yes son, daddy is going to work.

Aside from the small turnout and my mapquest on my phone sucking, it was a pretty cool run with Atlanta natives in areas I hadn't run yet. We ran on the outskirts of Grant Park. 

Probably the coolest part of the run was running through Oakland Cemetary and learning about the Battle of Atlanta as curated by the REI tour guide of sorts. Running in a new place is so refreshing. Sometimes, back in New Jersey, my routes felt stale. I ran them because I love to run and they were easy to get to, I could go right outside my door, and I knew the distances. There is, however, a certain je ne sais quoi about a new route. The exciting new turns and sights are worth the change in heart rate that one receives when attempting the unknown. 

Short Run, Short Note

Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve. It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle-- when the sun comes up, you'd better be running. - Roger Bannister

Today I went for a short run around my new neighborhood. I went for a short run because I couldn't wake up early enough to run longer. Still, I am very deliberate about my short runs. Some say that short runs have to be fast but I don't really believe that. Long runs can be fast. I've had weeks when my ten mile run's pace per mile is faster than my 10k or 5k. I ran today because I want to run everyday but my body won't allow it so I feel horrible when I miss a day.

I said that I am very deliberate about my short runs. Maybe I meant meticulous. Very rarely do I take random turns to get lost on these runs. I choose my shoe by what I feel my body needs. I wore shoes with more explosion and support because I've been really achy and I want to relieve my joints a bit. Typically I prefer a light shoe or a minimalist shoe. I picked six of my favorite songs to ensure that my playlist was all power songs. I picked my new favorite route along the Atlanta Beltline on a short trail

and I snaked over towards Krog street so I could run under that bridge and admire some really cool street art.

I finished on a familiar straightaway where I could open up if I felt like it. Short runs for me are purely for the love of running.  

Twelve Marathons in Twelve Months

Education is not the learning of facts, it is training the mind to think- Einstein

So after lots of thought and deliberation with my wife, we have decided to give this marathon a month thing a shot in 2016. 2016 will be my fortieth year. Instead of buying a Porsche or a Harley Davidson (which I can't afford), or perhaps bungee jumping into an active volcano to accomplish item number 757.4 of section 18 on my bucket list, I've decided to run 316.4 miles over a 12 month span. 

Certainly training will tabulate much more than that but the idea of running twelve marathons, for 12 medals in 12 different venues, in multiple states is very intriguing. For those that have started and finished a marathon, we understand that it takes effort, dedication, discipline, and focus, to name a few. Trust me, when I say to name a few, I mean the list can go on and on for the things one needs to do in order to cross that finish line. In addition to what a runner must accomplish emotionally and physically, said runner needs to get family and friends on board. Those late night bar crawls begin to disappear as training ramps up. Rolling out of bed hungover after a Friday night blackout is replaced with early Saturday morning long run since you get about 16 weeks out from D-Day. Granted at my age and status of a husband and father of two young children, I know very little about Friday night binge drinking. The commitment however, to training, is something that my wife needs to agree to and understand. 

Why do 12 in 12? I've done 2 in 1 year and one a year since 2003 but there is a next level and next step for me. I played team sports and boxed and the nature of games would be to train and prepare for game time. The game, in theory, would be you at your best. I miss that constant game time feel. I run year round without taking any significant time off but when July hits and I have a marathon in November my mentality changes. I no longer run recreationally, I train for a marathon. Before July and after Marathon day I sort of shut it down and simply run for the love (haha). There is nothing wrong with that but I want to live and train like a pro athlete. I'll have to watch my diet, my rest, how much I exert myself, for an entire year. Floyd Mayweather Jr., one of the greatest boxer ever is said to walk around at his fighting weight while other fighters need to cut weight in order to be prepared for fight night to make weight. I won't be able to taper for twelve months. I will be marathon ready from January 25, 2016 (or thereabouts) to some time in December. Foam rollers, Sticks, vitamins, and water will be important staples to get through with 12 medals in twelve months.

I am not the first to do it. I'm not the last to do it. I'm not the coolest. I don't have a cool story Bro. I don't have a sad story nor am I raising money. It will not be as difficult as Dean Karnazes doing 50 marathons, in 50 states, in 50 days. It is not an ultra and I have not overcome any particularly difficult ordeals. All of that said, this is my journey that means a lot to me, my wife and my kids. 

I quoted Einstein because I am getting an education on running in general and my running in particular. The challenge is, how do I look at what I've done and what I need to do in order to accomplish my goal, not how to do it. That answer is simple.

Long past gone

My instinct was to win, destroy anyone who is in competition, and move on without any type of hesitation at all.- Arnold Schwartzenegger

I write these words coming a week after I failed by 2 minutes to beat my Marathon PR. Many of us runners arrived at the door step of the running community after spending a good portion of our lives watching and playing other sports. For me it was football and, to a small degree, boxing. Those sports are team sports and, in general, you have at least a 50/50 chance to defeat the person in front of you to help your team accomplish their overall goal. There is no such comparison in the world of long distance running. The gap between the winners and others is so big that the goal is never to win but more to challenge oneself. Ironically, this is what makes it such a beautiful sport. 

From the moment you register for a marathon, you know that it is a virtual impossibility that you will win. Even more interesting, it is highly unlikely, based on the average NYC marathon time in 2008 of 4 hours and 32 minutes, that one will even come within 2 hours of the marathon champs. Some of the most accomplished 3 hour marathoners live an hour away from the winning mark. I have a colleague that is considered sub elite. He is about 15 minutes away from the winning number and it appears as though that number is insurmountable. Again, this is the beauty of the sport.

So in the instance of distance running, the competition is with you and your fastest time. The PR looms and is the sweetest accomplishment or the most painful reminder of how much more or differently you need to train. So with a nod to "Arnold", my instinct is to beat my PR, destroy any notion of not beating a PR, and set a higher mark without any type of hesitation.

The Underdog

"What gives ideology it's force is passion..." -Daniel Bell

Every day millions of people open their front doors and go out for a run. I call these people runners. A runner can only be defined by either the initiative to open the front door. Better yet, a runner is defined while on the run. What else can you be as you run through the streets, the woods, the beach or around the track. At that moment in time perception is most certainly reality. As you listen to your tunes or listen to your breathing or just the sounds of your surroundings no one can say, hey buddy, you're not a runner. What are you if not a runner while you are running?

So what's the point of this miniature tirade? Everyday someone attempts to label what you are. In this particular instance, whether or not you are a runner or not. Without fail the sub-labels begin. Social runner, veteran runner, rookie runner, urban runner, trail runner, blah blah blah blah blah. Recently, runners who've run for years simply for the love of running are placed in a non-trendy category. Almost viewed as stodgy and not necessarily with the current "movement". It is no longer cool to do out and backs. It is no longer cool to have run multiple marathons or races... Unless those races are of the moment races or in far away locales. All f these cool places that are being run now have been trampled by runners for decades sans photos. Maybe it's like the tree in the forest; if it isn't photographed it doesn't exist. Well cool runner, it does exist. It will still exist after social media moves on and all or us old uncool runners trek back over the same bridges and under elevated train tracks.

I celebrate all runners. As a collective, I feel connected to every single person who laces them up and bound down the street like 8 year olds on Friday after school. From Elite runners with Olympic Gold to urban crew runners creating a revolution to that runner who just earned the title by opening the front door and voluntarily placing one foot in front of the other to those that have run for over a decade and can only squeeze in random miles in the neighborhood because without it they cannot function at an agreeable level. I do not feel however that we should be separate. Regardless of which adjective one decides to place in front of runner, we all still have the same last name.