Consistency

I have talked to many, many people about doing a race with me and I always get the same reasons on why they shouldn't do the race. One thing I usually also here is I should do that. So why don't people jump on in? What keeps them from joining the running community, which is a great community?

A lot of times it is fear. People fear the unknown and fear they can't do the distance! I spoke with someone last night and he was very pessimistic on what he was able to do. Why do we self-prophecy our own defeat well before we even take a step?

All it takes, and I say this to all, is consistency. Set the goal and stick to it! If you consistently go out and work hard towards a goal you will reach it and feel really good you did it! A lot of times I dread working out, but during and after I am glad I did!

On my training update, this past weekend was one full of hard work and enjoyment. I ran to my brother's apartment to help him move. The run was 10.75 miles and then I helped he and his wife move. Overall, what a great workout....I will say though, at the end of the day I was pretty out of it as the nutrition was trying to get back into my body and i was trying to recover from 2 hours of running and 2-4 hours of moving. Great, great weekend!

The Spartan Race: What am I thinking?

So my friend calls me, and tells me to visit the following site:

http://www.spartanrace.com/

and then proceeds to ask me if I want to do this race. I say yes, and then look at the time frame I have to train and think that is very quick! I can do the running portion (I am doing the Soldier Hollow race in Utah on July 9th, so it is 8 miles), but I had back surgery last year and am still working up my strength, so wish me luck. I will post about it after the race of course.

If the Shoe Fits

Recently I was given a chance to receive a free pair of running shoes. I went to one of my favorite local running stores where I received the prize, and thought I knew what type of shoe I needed: stability. I had been sized up and tested before, and I thought I remembered what kind helped me with my running form. I tried some on, ran on the treadmill for a short time and thought I found a good pair. I went home and started running with them. I started to notice my shins were getting worse and worse and worse. I started thinking about the shoes and if they were the culprit. I then remembered it wasn't a stability shoe I needed, but a neutral shoe. I am changing back to another shoe I had bought right before I received the free pair.

If you have never been sized up for a proper running shoe, go to a local running store (not a Dick's Sporting Goods, or Sports Authority) and have them fit you. The right shoe can make a huge difference in your running. I am now paying the price for just assuming I knew, and dealing with some major shin splints.

Moral of the story: get the shoe that fits right!

To Log or Not to Log?

I have never really kept a good workout log or journal. I have heard there are good things that come along with keeping a workout journal. Well, with my reupping of my runners world subscription, they gave me a new journal to use with my training. I am going to use it and see how much I like it.

On another note, I am doing well with my training regime right now. I went out on Friday for a nice 7 mile run. I still am having some pretty big issues with my shins, but overall they feel well enough to keep going. I have given them some good rest, which helps, and they seem to warm up on the runs the longer I go. One thing I noticed on this run was how much better I felt after probably mile 5 or 6. The last couple miles were my strongest and they felt great! I could have easily kept going, which is a good thing since I still have about 2 months before my first race (the Park City Half-Marathon). If I can get to the 13.1 mile distance early, I can make sure I am easily fit enough for the race.

A Few Tips

With summer upon us, many people want to lose some weight. I found a good article with some tips to help in this area if that is what you are after.

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/blast-off-fat-way-faster-2492233/

Time for a Break!

There are many signs a body needs a break, such as maybe a nagging pain that wasn't there before. I am one of those people that doesn't like taking breaks, but I have learned that they are necessary to really hit optimal performance. The following article from Runners World can help you know if you need a break too.

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/1,7120,s6-238-267--13950-0,00.html?cm_mmc=TrainingExtra_NL-_-06072011-_-training-_-TRAINING%3a%20Time%20to%20Rest%3f

The Dirty Dash - A Fun Time!

Today I did what was a really fun 5K called the Dirty Dash. If you have never heard of this race, go online and look it up! The race was done at Soldier Hollow in Utah. It is the dirtiest I have ever been, and that includes as a kid!

You start off running up a muddy mess hill. The mud is soaking wet, and you get your legs muddy and think yeah, this is going to be dirty. You rally over some hay stacks up the hills and then comes the first really fun part :). You get to the a really high hay stack and see what lies ahead: lots and lots of mud with two tubes to crawl through. The guy video taping said you have to do something fun, and well, my team was kind of just chugging along, so I decided to do a superman dive into the mud in front of me. Into my mouth it went, tasting wonderful, and over my back I felt the wave go. Through the tubes we went, and man was I covered.

We kept on the trail til the next obstacle which was fantastic: fences or walls. You have to scale these walls, and it is slippery, wet and messy of course. The first wall came, and I went over ok, but coming down was another story. I hit the ground with a fall. I then came up to the next walls and a big puddle in front. The guy filming said pretend to slip, and so I did. Then over the walls and more walls we went.

You then travel downhill for a little while. Through some tires, mud, a deep stream, steep hills, etc. Finally you travel back up a very muddy hill which is very, very slippery. At the top is a wonderful trip down a massive, long slide. Down you go into, you guessed it, more mud :).

Finally, there is a massive pool of mud and walls of mud. Into it I jumped, kind of cannon balling it and hitting the gravel/rocks, cutting my leg open pretty bad, but all in good fun. You then trudge your way to the end.

Great race, great fun!

I am training for a half-marathon, and doing some races in between. I will be chronicling training and the races I run in between too.

Ipod or not?

I have thought of this topic many times: Should you run with music on or not? So I don't mean just an Ipod, but whatever device you may have that you can listen to while running. Some people say it is a requirement, they need the music to go hit the road, and others like to get back to nature and not have any music in their ears. Some people site the safety issue that exists if music is blaring in your ears. What do you think?

Personally, I am a none music guy. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy music sometimes, but I have decided to eliminate music because I enjoy the clarity running without any type of musics brings. I enjoy having my thoughts and planning things out. Not that I think it is wrong, I just feel for me it is better to not have any ear buds in. So if you are one who doesn't use music, maybe try to the other and vice versa. Figure out for yourself what you like!