Update on Training, First Long Run with Reading

Well the holiday season has hit officially with Thanksgiving happening this week.  I went out and ran 6.5 miles on Thanksgiving morning in my hometown.  It was a crisp 15 degrees with no wind and it was great to get out and run.  I tried something that I swore I hated and I am not sure I am completely sold yet.  I ran with music.  I got a new pair of headphones that fit in my ears nicely and decided to test it out.  Running has always been a time for me to think and reflect and I feel music gets in the way.  I did find the run moved faster at moments depending on the song, but I also found myself frustrated when I had to skip songs because they just weren't doing it for me.  I don't know, I might continue running with music here and there, it just depends on my mood.

I missed a day of training due to a busy schedule of seeing family and traveling.  My rest day is Friday but I did not run on Wednesday.  I did get 6 miles in on Tuesday (2 more than I was supposed to) and 6.5 in on Thursday (2.5 more than I was supposed to).  Today I went out and ran 16.5 (.5 more than I was supposed to).  The long run felt great.  I combined a bunch of my shorter routes that I typically do in Fort Dodge to get the right distance.  Instead of listening to music I listened to an audio book.  I am a reader but I have a hard time finding time to read everything I want to read, so I figured, I run a lot, so why not try reading while I run.  I enjoyed this more than listening to music.  No, I wasn't able to do my typical thinking while running, but I felt a little more accomplished as I finished 16.5 miles and 10 chapters of reading all within the same time period.  It was a beautiful day to run with the temp at just around 45 degrees.  I may have dressed a little warm but at least I was dressed enough.  This was the first long of my training which is a milestone of sorts.  The first of many but I made it through the first one and I can't wait for the rest.

First run in the series (6 miles)

My first run in my training was supposed to be 4 miles but I did 6 instead.  You will notice this is a trend.  I will try to stick to my training as much as possible, but many times I simply want to run more.  My philosophy is, if you are enjoying it then why not do more.  Many would argue I could get hurt or injured, and while this is a possibility, it is a possibility even if I don't run more.  I don't recommend this for everyone, but my body has grown accustomed to this mentality and I haven't had an injury yet (knock on wood).  Now time for some perspective on the run itself.

The temp outside was 17 degrees with a 10 mile per hour NW wind, so based on weather.com it actually felt like it was 4 degrees.  I bundled up appropriately, mapped my route (mainly in town Fort Dodge), put on my headlamp (it was 8:45 when I started so it was dark).  I was constantly jumping over and dodging ice patches, which will become a skill set throughout the winter.  Nothing too exciting happened on the run itself.  The bottom line is: it was cold, and the worst part, it's only going to get colder.  I am up for the challenge and was excited to get back out on the roads after a four day absence due to some food poisoning over the weekend.  Six miles seemed short, and easy, which is great to start training.  It helps that I have been putting in a lot of miles up to this point.

I am more focused now than I ever have been.  The winter months though brutal, long, and cold will be an adventure that I am looking forward to conquering.  I have run in the winter before but never to this extent.

Day 1: Introduction

As I continue to post about random running information and tidbits I will also be chronicling my experience of training for my first ultra-marathon of 50 miles.  The ultra takes place on April 12th in Theilman, MN.  The link to the race information is here: Zumbro 50.  The training schedule I have is intense, especially if you pay close attention to my weekends.  Training for an ultra, from what I've read, takes a considerable amount of discipline, which makes sense.  My long run days are Saturdays and Sundays, yes back to back long run days, and cap off at 28 miles for the longest run I do.  The main goal is simply running...just running.
I think the hardest part of all of this is the training time.  I will be doing my training in the coldest months in Iowa.  Anyone who has lived in the Midwest knows these winters can be pretty brutal.  Heck, just walking out to my car in the morning is enough to keep me indoors.  I will be posting about my experiences, hopefully on a daily level.  This begins my posting on the training and the process.  My training starts today so I will be posting later about my first run in the training.  Below is a link to my training schedule in case you are interested in seeing just how crazy all this looks on paper.  Thanks for the support.

50 mile training schedule

Mental Training

I am a strong believer, as are most people, that running is a mental sport.  Just as it is important to physically prepare your body, it is important to prepare mentally.  I submit a few ideas to prepare mentally.  The bottom line is, get out of your comfort zone, disturb your mind.

1. Run by yourself.  If you usually have a running partner, try running alone every once in awhile.  Your partner provides someone to talk to, pace with, and feed off of.  In many races you won't have that person there.  When I did my first marathon four weeks ago I spent much of the race in solitude.  I was ready for it, because much of my training was done alone.
2. Ditch the music.  I don't run with music, I hate running with it.  Many people "need" it because it gives them that extra push.  What better way to train mentally than by giving up that extra push.
3. Go minimalist.  Not just with shoes, but leave all the extras at home.  Too often we are too focused on pace, route, time, distance, etc.  Leave the GPS, cell phone, iPod, etc. all at home.  let your run be free.  
4. Go the extra mile, literally.  Feeling exhausted and tired and in pain?  Try going an extra mile or two.  Push through the exhaustion.  You will hate it, but it will be rewarding afterwards and is great for strengthening the mind.
5. Long straightaways.  The worst routes have zero variety, and zero scenery.  Every once awhile throw one of these in.  It's great for mental toughness.  A 3-4 mile straight road is brutal, but man nothing says "brainpower" like working through that.
6. Run at your lowest point.  Usually this is right when you get home from work.  All you want to do is relax, eat, and watch TV, instead go for a run.  
7. Train in crappy weather.  Obviously you cannot control this, but don't make weather an excuse not to run.  I love Bill Bowerman's quote "there's no such thing as bad weather, just soft people."  Run in the snow, rain, wind, heat, whatever makes you uncomfortable.  Make sure you dress appropriately, as you want to be safe, but make sure you don't cut yourself short just because there's a little rain outside.
8. Run far away from your starting point.  This is my favorite method.  Create a loop on mapmyrun.com that takes you far from your starting location.  Once you get out 5-6 miles you have no choice but continue because whether you finish the loop or simply head back you still have a long ways to go.  
9. Hills.  Hills are great for physical training but, I argue, even better for mental training.  When you come to a hill charge it.  Try incorporating more hills in your workouts and push your body through them.
10. Motivate yourself.  This ones a little different because the first 9 all basically tell you to punish yourself.  This one develops from finding a purpose to run, finding a way to make it through those tough days because you have motivation.  Here is a great article from Runner's World.  Find books, movies, stories, etc.  Keep searching for motivation.  I love reading those stories of people who beat the odds.  The stories that continually remind me, "Hey this isn't so bad."

Focus

One of the hardest things to do with running is maintain focus.  I think the difficulty derives from most of our busy lives.  I work as a teacher, coach, and I have a wife and son at home.  Finding time to run is difficult, but I am able to do it with the support of the people I care about.  I think the most important part of focus is trying to remind yourself why you are doing what you are doing.  I recently ran my first marathon in Des Moines, IA and finished in just under Boston qualifying.  I remember hitting mile 16 and looking to the guy running with me and saying, "Can't believe we still have 10 miles left."  He replied, "trying not to think about it."  Those miles from 16-22 were rough, I was separated from the pack, very few people were out sheering that far away, so the only way I was able to continue was focus.  I reminded myself that I couldn't give up, I had gone too far, I had worked too hard to give it all up with only 10 miles left.  All the training, all the hours, all the sweat, blisters, pain.  It all came down to this moment.  I continued on and my second half of the marathon was just as fast as the first half.  I surprised myself, all because I controlled what my mind was telling me.
I don't know if there is a set recipe to follow to stay focused.  Some people repeat words in their head of motivation (family members names, quotes, etc.).  I've tried that and to a certain extent it works.  The one thing I do that works for me is train my mind to believe that the pain is good, the exhaustion is good.  Your body and mind will start to believe it if you keep telling yourself it's true.  One method I do, and I don't recommend this to everyone based on ability level, but it keeps my mind and body trained.  When I go out for a run, I always map my run out based on my training schedule.  When I go out for my run I always find ways to extend the run by adding distance on.  If I go out on a 6 mile run, I typically come back doing 8 miles.  This trains my body to always want more, and if I do less I don't feel it was sufficient.  In a sense I am disappointed with myself if I stick to my training schedule strictly or if I do less.  Some days this doesn't work as my body and mind just aren't up for the task, those are the bad days I talked about in a previous post.
I also always go back to my purpose.  Right now I am training for my first ultra marathon of 50 miles.  I think innately many times our minds try to talk us out of running as far, or at all.  Many times we give into what our minds tell us.  Think about it this way: Your mind tells you to run one less mile, and you decide to give in, after all it's one less mile.  Now what if you did that everyday?  That's 30 miles in one month and that could equal a whole week of training that you gave up on because your mind took control.  Train yourself to take control of your mind.  Find purpose in your running, don't give in to your mind.