Setting a Goal: Making a Plan

The first, and arguably the most important, step in achieving something is to set a goal.

I do it all the time in business and life then build plans to help me get to where I want to go.  Sometimes I succeed and sometimes I don’t, but I have learned that due to my ADD if I don’t have a goal and a plan, then I’m not going to get anything accomplished.  I’ll just look around at stuff and be busy as all get out then look around again and realize I’ve gone nowhere.  It’s like going to the grocery store without a list to get milk and cereal.  I’ll come back with four or five items but no milk.

 

The longest memory is a short pencil.  I live that.

 
Some of the goals I set are beyond what I really think I can do, but I’ve found that helps me do more than I actually thought I could.  Especially when dealing with physical things like weights or running.  When I set those stretch goals I also have secondary ones that I plan to hit “on the way.”  That way I build in successes so I feel good and keep working.  That’s worked really well the past two years as I try to run a mile in under five minutes.

Only about ten people a year in my age group, or the one above or below for that matter, do that in any given year.  The air is rare up there.  Those guys are fast, fast, fast and I’d like to be up there with them.  Of course I haven’t run a sub-5 mile since I was 18 but, pffft, I don’t care.  It’s a stretch goal! 

I’ve already hit several of my secondary goals and had some great races along the way, plus I’ve learned a great deal about training and perseverance.  I’ve also had the good luck to be able to share a lot of those learning’s with other folks and hear about their successes, too.  So today I want to do some more sharing and give y’all some basic pointers for accomplishing any racing goals you might have.

 

First: Set the goal

 

Write it down, tell someone about it, and talk about.  Those things will help make it real to you and keep you working towards it even if you hit some setbacks.

 

Second: Have a plan

 

Things that are worthwhile don’t just happen.  They take effort and you work for them.  With the limited amount of time we all have, we can’t just be wasting it if we want to do something big for ourselves, and having a plan will help us be more efficient and improve the likelihood of reaching our goals.  Think the plan through starting with the finishing point.  If you’re goal is a PR in a Half Marathon, start with the race date and work your ways backwards understanding that you’re not going to be able to run the needed distances at the needed speeds if you don’t build up to it!  Knowing where you need to be and when will help lay out what you have to do to get there.  And be smart about it.  Don’t just go throwing big numbers out there like running 6 days a week 10 miles a day if you’ve never made yourself do it before.  If you’re a three day a week runner, stick to three days.  Play to your habits and strengths if you can.  If you do have to change something do it in small steps.  It’s really easy to get discouraged so it’s important not to plan for discouragement.  Plan for success and go after it in little, manageable steps.

 

Third:  Vary the plan

 

We all know shit happens.  Sometimes it’s self-inflicted; sometimes it’s not but you know it’s going to happen, so be ready to go with the flow.  Missing a workout isn’t going to be the end if you gave yourself the leeway when putting together your plan.  The other key point here is the “variety” in the “vary.”  Regardless of what you’re training to do, just going out and running several times a week is not going to get you very far.  When I began my training I first looked at what the world class “elites” do.  No, I’m not going to be one of them, but they obviously know what they’re doing so I imitate them!  Which brings up a pet peeve of mine: training plans where you don’t ever run the distance you’re going to race.  Please.  To me that’s just a plan to help you FINISH a distance, not race it.  Now, obviously, finishing is the goal for many people.  That was my goal when I ran my one and only Marathon.  I did pretty well even though I hit the wall hard at 23 miles, but I’d never run more than 18 leading up to that so what the hell else should I have expected?  Elite marathoners do 30 mile runs in their training from time to time.  Those of us who want to really race a marathon should think about doing that, too.

 

But back to the “variety.” 

A good training plan addresses lots of different systems and muscles in your body to help you get the most you can get out of yourself.  Marathoners do speed work, and sprinters do long slow runs.  Just in varying quantities and speeds.  Here are the pieces I suggest everyone needs to do when training for any distance.  There are a gazillion variations on these workouts as well as cross-training opportunities that make a difference but these are the ones that will give you the most bang for your buck.  Read that: give you the most benefit in the shortest amount of time. 

Sprint Work:  Short, 40 to 80 meter, full-out-hard-as-you-can sprints with about 4 to 5 minutes rest between each rep.  Those build leg muscle and help you learn to move your feet faster and faster. 

Speed Work:  Distances from 200 meters up to a mile.  Intervals, where you run at a fast pace then rest and repeat, work the best here.  One of the most used workouts anywhere is a “10 x” where you run ¼ the distance you’re going to race at your goal race pace, then rest for about a minute or jog for about a minute and a half then hit the rep again for a total of 10 times. 

Stamina Work:  Distances ranging from about 1/3 to the full distance of your goal race.  The iterations that exist here are also numerous but think Tempo Run since that’s the most used workout.  These runs are done just a little slower than race pace and usually for a distance a little shorter than your goal race.  These are the workouts the Kenyans (a generality, but there’s some merit there) focus on most.  Supposedly it’s almost all of their training and that makes sense since this most closely resembles your goal race.  If you’re training for a 10K then 2 to 5 mile Tempo Runs will be what you’re doing. 

Endurance:  Distances as long, or longer, than your goal race.  These are really important just so your body is prepared to do what it needs to do for a given period of time and distance.  It’s going to be very difficult to race for an hour if you never run that long in practice. 

The balance and focus of these segments depend entirely on your goal race and secondarily on your physical capabilities.  My goal race of the mile means my time is spent on Speed, Stamina, Sprint and Endurance in that order.  If you’re training for a Marathon then it’s going to be more Endurance, Stamina, Speed and Sprint.  But all of the pieces should be there. 

Plus one more:  Easy Days. 

One of the best things you can do for your body is have a day where you run, but it is short and very easy.  This type of run gets the fluids flowing through you to speed up healing, elevates your heartbeat and breathing so there’s a little cardiovascular benefit to it, but it doesn’t stress your muscles and joints at all.  Very, very beneficial. 

That variety of training will not only improve you physically faster than doing just one type of running, it makes running a whole lot more interesting and fun!  And those two things, interesting and fun, bring me to the last word on a training plan.

 

You're the designer, so make the plan fit YOU!

 

One size does not fit all in the running world and while a plan by Higdon might be a good one, it might not be good for you individually.  The same goes for any plan out there.  I've got books and articles you could read on the subject, but I realize not everyone is as geeked about running as I am.  Just think of yourself and your goals when you lay out a plan to reach them.  Play to your strengths and deal with your weaknesses in ways that you CAN and WILL deal with them.  If you hate rigid things, then it doesn't make much sense to have a 7 day a week plan complete with the time of day you run, rest, stretch and eat does it?  No.  Just make a list of three or four runs you're going to do that week.

 

Interesting and Fun.

 

If you keep those things in your running, you will do it more and do it better.

 

 

Winter Running and Finishing Strong

It was cold this morning!

Not the first frozen morning of the year, but 22 degrees is right chilly.  Makes you realize men have nipples, too.

That first step outside was coooollllldddd,

Since it was Saturday I slept in a bit and didn't head out until 7:00 am.  Other than the temperature it was a gorgeous morning.  Very sunny, not much of a breeze and a bright blue sky.  With the right gear it wasn't bad at all really.  I had my hat and gloves, a couple of long sleeve shirts and my Nike track team running tights.  Those things are incredible.  I don't care how cold it gets I'm comfortable in them.  If it gets down below 15 degrees I'll wear two pairs of tights, but if it's any warmer I'd burn up.  I also wore my running jacket, but even with the underarm zippers undone it got kind of hot towards the end of the run.

Saturdays are my long runs and last week's was done as a Progression Run with a Fast Finish, so it was a hard workout.  This is supposed to be an easier week, so today was to be 10 miles at a relaxed pace.  The purpose of these runs is to keep the aerobic capacity up, maintain good endurance, but also let the muscles have a little break from the hard stuff so they can heal and get stronger from the work in prior weeks.  Most coaches advise having one "easy" week out of every four.  I put that in quotes, because your mileage will still be fairly close to normal and there might even be a hard workout in there, too.  But not as hard a week as others.  Think of it as the flat part of a stair step.  The hard work is moving you up and you use the flat part to position yourself to move up again.

That being the case I brought my phone for tunes and to take pictures.  I didn't look at my watch a whole lot and decided to do a video for the blog!  Once again I found out that I have no discipline when it comes to pace.  I kind of just run until I realize I'm getting too tired and then either back off or more often than not, push a little harder.

Yeah, I'm a dufus.

I realized after cutting off the camera that I was also running up one of the long hills while I was recording.  It's one of the few times I'm on a sidewalk and in this case next to a pretty busy road.  Because it was late I only saw one other runner and we high fived as we crossed paths.  That's so cool.  I've never seen this guy before that I know of but we both pointed at each other than high fived like we'd done it dozens of times.  It's a club.  A very cool club.

I exercised a little bit of discipline after this and brought the pace down somewhat, but not by a whole lot.  I just felt fine so I kept trotting along.  I still pushed the last mile a little because that's just a good habit to have in training.  And today's tip!

So there you have it!  Finish strong each and every time to train that kick into your races.

One last thing.  I can tell my shoes are getting "old" which means they have over 400 miles on them and the cushioning isn't quite there.   My calves were getting tight and actually hurt a little bit towards the end of the run.  Looking at the soles there's some good wear there, too.  So it's time for another pair!  Now where should I go to look for a good deal on shoes?   I wonder....

Outer Banks Marathon Weekend

Outer Banks Half

I had a great time over this past weekend and didn’t even run.

It was the Outer Banks Marathon weekend in my adopted home town but I wasn’t going to be running in any of the races this year.   Kind of odd how many people thought it was weird that I wasn’t running and it came up in every conversation I had.

“So are you running the Half?”

“Nope, just volunteering this year.”

“Why not? Are you hurt?”

That conversation was repeated a bunch.

I just did the MCM10K and am wrapping up the Rest Phase of my training for the year, so my training needs to get pretty particular at this point and I’m planning my rest days as much as I’m planning my workouts.  I need to have fresh legs to get the most out of the track and the hills, so tossing in a 13 mile run haphazardly isn’t really the best idea, plus it ain’t cheap.  Next year I’ll put it in there and maybe even see if just doing long, steady state runs can get me a decent time in the Half.  That’s what the Fall is for me: three runs a week of moderate effort and weight lifting to put back on some weight lost in the summer track season.  Not the best thing for racing, obviously, but not horrible either.  And, of course, I could make it for fun instead of for ego.  ; )

The weather in Dare County was great for races and a lot of my friends had great races.

David was running his first ever marathon after going through an amazing weight loss transformation.  He was a sprinter and talented athlete in high school, but had gained a bunch of weight after that.  The past couple of years he buckled down diet-wise and started running.  Now he’s a challenge sort of guy so simply doing a marathon just wasn’t enough:  he signed up to do the OBX Challenge and run an 8K on Saturday followed by the Marathon on Sunday.  When I raced my Half I did the same mini-version of that by running the 8K with a 13.1 mile chaser.  David hit a sub 7 minute pace time for the 8K then turned around and ran a 3:31 Marathon!  Dude…

Gretchen is a friend of mine who I helped along with a plan so she could “finish a Half Marathon and not die.”  She clocked in her first ever Half with a time of 2:16!  A whole lot faster than what she figured it would take because she didn’t have to walk any of it.

Another longtime friend of mine, Blake, was down from Maryland and surprised me with a 1:36 in the Half!  Geez…and the guy always tells me he’s not very fast.  Puhleeeze….

There were bunches of other great stories, too including Kathy who was celebrating her 1 year anniversary of beating cancer by running a 13.1 mile “victory lap” with her sisters.  Made me smile AND cry.

As for me, I got to experience the races from the other side of the barricades.  I’m being literal there.  Literally, I was on the other side of the barricades during the race.  I also got to set up those barricades the day before.  You should see what goes into the finish line area.  One serious logistical exercise being done with smiles and enthusiasm by volunteers, and it was a lot of fun.  Plus, I got to hang out and talk to friends I haven’t seen in a while which is always fun for me.

I took a couple of pictures of the “chute” and the emergency area that is massive, but somehow on race day you almost don’t even notice it.  It’s an entire hospital just like on MASH!  Okay now that just showed my age….

 

 

 For next year I’m issuing an open invitation to come run in this festival.  The first few folks who want to can avoid the hotel bill and stay with me in my house just three blocks from the finish line!  Of course you also have to pass an interview with my wife, but there won’t be any background checks (Bob) so you’re good.

I don't really like this one, but I came to far to delete it.

I have decided that it is hard to stay motivated and driven over long periods of time.  To combine eating healthy with strength training with marathon training with daily pushup/pullup goals while trying to lose weight and gain muscle is a bit of a challenge.  At times, something has to give.  This weekend, what gave was that I ate a bunch more than I have for awhile.  Not terrible, but more.  The realization hit me that I have to remain dedicated to my fitness for the rest of my life.  I have been up and down in weight.  I have had periods of intense dedication to running and lifting followed by periods of letting everything go.  When I let stuff go, I always get mad at myself for doing so, because it is so hard to get it back.  The one concession I will give to age is that it gets harder every year to get back in shape.  To lose weight.  To re-motivate.  It is so easy to put on weight and so hard to take it off.  I was chatting with a friend the other day and we both agreed that until people reach our age they will never understand what we are saying or dealing with.  At the level of activity I am at now, I would have lost weight and gained muscle and speed so much more quickly if I were 40.  Or even 45.  It can be frustrating.  Yet, I hate the standard cliches of people telling me that I look okay for my age or they would like to be in shape like me when they are my age.  I do not want any age allowances.  I want to be in good shape for someone of most any age.  That doesn't mean that I think I am the same as I was when I was 20, or 30.  Whatever.  The frustration I have with myself is the knowledge that if I worked this hard and with this kind of dedication when I was younger, my performance in everything would have been so much different.  But, I can't go back in time...yet.  I'm still working on that.

I have been reading and studying a lot lately.  About the body and performance.  The key to everything is maintaining strength, balance and form over the long haul.  When things go off kilter, that is when we get hurt.  Even though I love doing lots of things that could end up in injury, I have learned one thing.  It can be very dangerous when I have no injuries, when I feel like I am twenty.  When I feel invincible.  While that is wonderful, it also leads to potentially doing something that I probably should not do.  I know that I have to be careful with speed work.  I can never be lax with my form.  I worked hard on my running form, my stride and my foot strike a few years ago.  I make sure that I don't stray back to my old ways of landing on my heel.  Of being a plodder.  I do exaggerated strides on the football field.  I make sure I hit every hashmark.  I high kick and land on my forefoot. I feel this helps my kick and my stride and strengthens my feet and calves.  It is one of my favorite exercises.

Today, I decided to get some supplements.  I have lost close to 25 pounds now.  I feel I have done it in a wise manner.  Not too fast.  Eating good food.  No fad diets or things that could hurt me.  Just smaller portions and better quality foods.  I do not count calories, but I am careful  what I eat.  I have so many goals, that it is hard to workout and eat to reach them all.  I want to lose weight, gain muscle, get stronger, get faster, run a marathon well and get pr's in a 5k and a half marathon.  Not too easy to achieve.  But, I want it all.  That means I have to eat enough, but not too much.  Lift and run for power, speed and endurance.  Plus, I need enough energy to do my job.  I told the muscular kid at GNC all this and I think he wanted to punch me.  I remember being in my 20's and wondering why someone in their 50's would even want to workout.  Who are they trying to impress?  Shouldn't they be playing with their grandkids.  But, he seemed to know his stuff and gave me a nice supply of protein and old man vitamins.  Apparently, if I take all this stuff, I will be able to lift a tree out of the ground.  I'm afraid that I may end up wanting to hump the tree as well, because apparently it helps with your testosterone levels too.  Everyone who knows me, knows that I like trees but not in that way.  Anyhow, that is what I walked away with.

I will end with this.  There is nothing like the feeling of being strong.  Of regaining your strength.  of being in control of your body.  I love the feeling of knowing that I can do a tough run, or pick up a heavy weight or walk away from a delicious donut.   I hope this is my year of seeing the hard work pay off.