What I Learned Training For A Marathon
Training for a marathon is not about physical development- well, it IS about physical development but it is just as much mental development. It may even be MORE mental and that’s saying a lot giving the physical strains running such distances places on the body.
I mean the training schedule shared with me by my running team is brutal to say the least. Honestly, as I work through it, I have had to check myself and make sure I’m completely dedicated. However, I push through because the greatest motivator for me is developing my mind in such a way that I can work my body into submission to complete a challenge such as a marathon. Talk about reaching a new mental peak in life.
Well, all the running I’ve been doing has given me lots of time to think (sometimes that has worked against my training) and after hours of contemplation and self-reflection there are 3 principles I have learned that have helped me along my training path.
- Mindset Matters
I figured out very quickly that it would be almost impossible to run a marathon, let alone a 5k, without the right mindset. I would give myself excuses as to why it was ok to stop short of the day’s running goal when I first started training. “You have months to get in shape, plus you have lots of work to do.” “You did 5 miles today! That’s good so it’s ok to shave off a couple miles.” “You can make it up tomorrow.”
I soon realized it was my mind I had to watch more than my body and so I changed up my mental approach to training. Instead of listening to music while I ran, I started listening to motivational pod casts, leadership audio books, affirmation recordings- anything positive that would help distract my brain from the fact I was running long distances. It helped too and in multiple ways. The days I would run 10,12, 13 miles, it was easier because my thoughts drifted to the subject in which I was listening rather than focused on “how much more do I have to go to finish today?”
- Posture is Power
Motivational Speaker and author Tony Robbins is known for teaching folks that how they carry themselves, their physical demeanor, impacts how they think and feel. I totally agree. In fact, I was listening to one of his interviews while running where he was talking about the superman and wonder woman stances and what it does to the body and mind. I came to and realized that I was running slumped over, head down, and shoulders hunched forward. I immediately straightened up, picked up my head, and pulled my shoulders back and WOW what a difference that made. I felt more energized. I felt like I had more to push through the pain. Being aware and attentive to my posture has helped to progress my running development.
- Breathing is Life
Watching my posture sort of help me stumble across the power of breathing. But I should have known though. I’ve come across plenty of writings and videos that discuss the benefit of breathing (well duh, it keeps us alive) or rather “PROPER” breathing. I even attended executive leadership seminar where the guest speaker showed us some breathing techniques and tied it back to our effectiveness in the workplace. Needless to say, after all that forehand knowledge about breathing I still managed to surprised myself one day when I was almost out breath while running. I started breathing the way I had learned listening to meditation sessions to gain my stamina back. (Yes, I meditate but that’s a whole other blog to come.) While running, I took a very deep breathe in and held it a few of seconds then I slowly exhaled. Then I did it again- 6 or 7 times. No joke- not only did I catch my breath, I felt a sudden burst of energy. So now every time I hit “the wall” I use breathing techniques to re-energized and muster the strength to finish.
Sadly, the marathon has been canceled due to the pandemic by the time I finished writing this blog. I am still working on building up to 26.2 miles in a full marathon but I have run more and farther than I ever have in my life. To be able to now run 13 miles non-stop as a newbie runner is a huge physical and MENTAL feat. It helps reinforce the fact that as humans we are limitless it what we can accomplish. So ultimately my training is another example the reinforces the fact that our limits are defined only by what our mind believes is possible.
