Running a Marathon

[SteveO]

After hijacking someone's progress thread after the topic of competing and sports came up, I thought that a new post might be the right thing to do. @Determined2012 and @throttleforward seemed interested in the marathon training process.

I have been a runner since I was in second grade. I knew I could run and did so regularly. Long distance is what I really enjoy. When in jr high, I took first in San Diego County for the jr olympics for the half mile and 3rd in Southern California (passed by 2 people at the finish line).

Now I don't look like a runner. I am not built like one. In fact on most weight charts I am way up in the overweight category really close to obese. Of course I am not obese but at 5'7" and 170 pounds, my competition is usually around 135-140 for the same height. Try strapping on 30 pounds to your midsection and running 26 miles!

There are so many favorite races. Some involved puking and others collapsing on the ground. In one case, a trip to the medical tent with barely a recollection. The races that had the most enjoyment usually involved an underdog pulling out a victory.

Training for running is relevant to many of our paths and is especially relevant to starting a business. Marathons in particular present some strong challenges.

When you train, you need to build up to a certain mileage level and intensity over a few months period and do so without breaking. The discipline required to lace up and hit the road 6 days a week is tough. Regionally, you have to deal with freezing weather or extreme heat.

It steps up a notch if you want to compete. Not just get through a marathon, but actually take a place. Now we are talking about ramping up with speedwork and pickups in the middle of a 16 mile workout. All of this is necessary if you want to run fast for 26.2 miles.

There is a strategy for running a race of this distance. You really only get two, maybe three shots a year at this kind of a race because of the toll that it takes on your body. I know there are some people that run more than that but they are not maximizing their speed. You really need to build up, race, then recover for a few weeks.

All of your training and preparation efforts can be shot at the beginning of a race. All you need to do is get over excited and take off a little too fast. Your muscles only hold enough energy stores in them to get so far through the race. A little too fast and these stores deplete rapidly.

Hitting the wall at mile 19 or 20 is literally like having your body stop cooperating. You are running along and feeling like you are going to really kick in a great time. All of a sudden you start cramping and your muscles lose strength. You get dizzy and feel all the pain of the miles behind you. This is where the race actually begins. This is where you suck it up and crank for another 6-7 miles.

I have just run a few marathons. Probably 6 of them. I did not finish one and had to walk part of the race for another 3. Even walking my times were under 3 hours and 15 minutes (with the exception of my first race).

My fastest time was 2 hours 53 minutes. There was a head wind the entire race (the course went one direction). The last 6 miles were brutal. I could not bend my legs without cramping and ran virtually stiff-legged for the last three miles. A friend of mine recorded the finish. I looked more like someone finishing at the back of the pack barely able to move.

I regained a bit of focus in the medical tent with a number of my teammates standing around me. They said a couple of people dragged me in there because I was wandering around incoherent. I jumped up happy to hear that I was 16th overall out of more than a thousand runners. At the same time, I was pissed that I was second in my age group.

A lot of this applies to what it feels like to build a business. It is not easy. You are required to lay a lot of groundwork without the benefit of seeing any money for a long time. If the process does not succeed, you have to start the cycle all over again. But this time you have some knowledge behind you. The cycle becomes easier and faster.

When you do hit it successfully, it is not instant money. You still need to work the process for a long time and you may get tired.

 

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