Road to the Boston Marathon- Entry #3

“You can keep going and your legs might hurt for a week, or you can quit and your mind will hurt for a lifetime.” – Mark Allen

Hello again Grandma’s Runners! We are less than 3 months away from Race Day! Isn’t it crazy how close we are to June 18th already? I hope all your training is going well, regardless of the weather that you may be battling within these past few months. Here in the Midwest, it’s been a whirlwind of climates between cold weather, snow, and some warmish days mixed in, just enough to tease us into thinking winter is over. All I can say is that us midwestern runners are ready for some 50–60-degree weather to train in!

Throughout all those conditions however, the “Road to the Boston Marathon” is still going strong! My mileage is starting to creep up into the 40’s per week. Nutrition, which if you’ve read my previous posts has always been a struggle, has been going surprisingly well. It could still do with a little fine tweaking, but all-in-all going very well. Somehow, I’ve remained injury free (knock on wood) despite me not stretching as much as I should, and I’ve gotten in a small amount of strength training as well. As we run into April here soon, the mileage is going to increase exponentially, but luckily the temps outside will too!

Luckily, and after many trials and errors in my past training experiences, I’ve finally found the groove of my Marathon Training. Usually about this time in my training, I would have fallen off my program and resorted to very low mileage and an inconsistent training program would’ve been born. What is different this time around? What am I doing to make sure I stay on track and focus on the mileage? How am I not becoming bored with the miles and training?

Well back on February 1^st, my wife and I began the 75 Hard Program. This program isn’t a diet or weight loss fad. It is marketed (and accurately might I add) as a mental toughness program. From DAY ONE you are required to do these seven things each and every day, no compromises, no exceptions:

• First 45-Minute Workout
• Second 45-Minute Workout
• Take Progress Picture
• 10 Pages of Reading
• Drink 1 Gallon of Water
• Follow a Diet
• No Cheat Meals or Alcohol

(Workouts cannot be consecutive, and one of them must be outdoors. Reading must be a nonfiction book, something that you will take notes and learn from.)

This program, along with starting 2022 off with a 46 Day Run Streak, has been the key to my success these past few months. It has kept me consistent and committed to putting in the work each and every day. When I wake up each day I know what I must do, and every day I set myself up for success by planning and making the time for each one of the seven tasks I’m assigned. Yes, it hasn’t been easy. Yes, there have been many days where I’ve wanted to simply quit! Yes, there have been days where I’ve struggled to get in the work, and then that led to many late-night workouts or reading sessions. They didn’t call it 75 Easy though, they called it 75 Hard for a reason. 

Something that I’ve learned is that motivation can only get you so far and you can’t rely on it solely. You need more than just pure motivation if you are going to succeed, and because motivation is a total mental game there will always be days where you have it and then days where you don’t. If you want to achieve your goals and aspirations, in running and in life, you must be more than just motivated. Commitment, determination, and consistency must play a role, and you must know your reason why you are doing this. If you don’t have a why, then what’s the point behind any of the work you are doing?

My “Why” is simply that running is a part of who I am. I run because I like who I am when I’m consistently running, when I have a goal in mind and am actively chasing that goal.  It helps me be a better husband, father, boss, and all-around better human being. It defines who I am and makes me a better person all around, and I’m proud to say that this round of Marathon Training has been my most consistent ever. This is due to being the most determined I’ve ever been! I’ve taken new steps and different approaches to my training than in previous training years. The goal I’m chasing is that Boston Qualification, which is imbedded deep inside my training, and I’m running down that goal because 2022 is going to be my year!

Every training doesn’t come without its hiccups though. There is always something I could be doing better. Some part of my training that I’m not doing right or completely avoiding, and as mentioned above it would be doing more strength training, and not doing any stretching or recovery post-workout.

Strength Training along with recovery are SO important if I want to remain healthy and avoid any injuries like in the past. So, I need to take a more serious effort with incorporating it into my daily schedule. Some ideas to help get me more consistent with these are:

• 10-15 minute stretch after each run/workout
• Create a Weekly Schedule for Strength Training like I do for my Weekly Runs
• Theragun/Foam Rolling
• Yoga @ local Yoga Room
• Epsom Salt Baths
• Chiropractor Visits
• Massages

Overall though I would say I’m off to a very solid start to my training for Grandma’s Marathon this June! With a little fine tweaking I’ll be more than ready to run my best race . . . IN LESS THAN THREE MONTHS!

Thankfully I started the year off right with a run streak and then jumped right into another crazy challenge, 75 Hard. Throughout those however, I’ve learned a lot and in the end, it has helped me stay consistent and determined with this Marathon Training! Race Day is vastly approaching, and I can’t wait to put all this hard work towards running my best race in Duluth!

How about you? What has helped you this year with your Marathon Training? What hiccups have you encountered, and how have or are you planning to overcome them? Are you ready for Race Day?

Let me know in the comments and I can’t wait to see you at the Race!