I am, by nature, a cautious person.
My first experience of throwing caution to the wind and running a marathon with only one long run of 16 miles under my belt ended with shooting pain and serious respect for the distance. I made sure that I had at least one 20 miler in the bank before my next two marathons, as well as a solid base of 40 - 50 mile weeks. Even still, I felt like I had not trained enough for those marathons. If one 20 miler was good, four would surely be better.
So I have been stuck in this trap of thinking that I need to run mega miles and numerous long runs to be able to go the distance. It has been messing with my head.
I didn't have the confidence that I could run the entire Wildwood Trail without having done more 20 - 25 mile long runs first.
I was not going to even try. I was totally going to chicken out.
But with a friendly push from my friend Deb, I found myself out at the trailhead Saturday morning.
You know how that story ends.
I could go further than I thought. And you probably can too.
The key, I think, is to start slow. I was not trying to do that distance at top speed. Or even medium speed. Heck, it was hardly slow speed. But it was fun speed, and it was confidence building speed, and I managed to cover the miles without getting hurt. And now my body knows what it is like to be moving for eight hours, what it is like to go 31 miles, so that next time, it will be more prepared.
So dare to dream a little. If you have a goal to run 10 miles, or 20, or even 50, you can do it. Just take it slow and believe in yourself.
A little push from a friend can't hurt either.
Have you looked at the Hanson brothers training? They max out at 16 miles or so and have had great success with their athletes. Still, everyone needs to find what works for them!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great reminder. One slow mile at a time right?
ReplyDeleteVery wise and interesting post. I agree 100%.
ReplyDeleteRemembering again the pain after my first marathon run with only 2 workouts 14 miles long.
Really wise words. Starting slow is the key. Not many runners can do this when required. I think you can run a marathon with less training but how you feel afterwards and how quickly you recover is another story. More distance helps speedy recovery and definitely less pain. To me that's the difference, not whether you can finish, but how you feel afterwards.
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