5k Training Fun

I know I’ve written a lot of “words” in my posts so far.  I love to write… in a world of many forms of media, I like writing.

My point here is to tell you that a few have asked me to  “distill down some of all those words, before you get into the meat-and-potatoes of all this running stuff”… to the most important 3 things it takes to succeed in 5K training…. ”

So here goes.

First is FOCUS – you do have to give it your attention – prepare in your mind, know you are going to do it, run per a schedule, and persuade your “inner voice” that this IS worth your focus, and you WILL do it… rain, shine, snow, work schedule, kids, life, anything – you WILL do it.  And enter your focus zone.  And Just do it.  People will get to know that when you are in your FOCUS zone, you ARE going to run.  And they will respect that – eventually – including your inner voice.

DETERMINATION – You have to have that compelling reason to run, whatever that is for you.  You need something to put that fire in you to run.  Whatever it is.  Different for everybody.  And whatever it is for you, is the right thing for you.  Just nurture your determination.

Note-for me, if you’ve been following me a bit, you’ll know it was my son, Tom’s “joie de vivre” and his joy at seeing me DO something I like, that got me running.  After he died, sitting at 10,000 ft. up the mountain which claimed his life , I looked up into the sky and promised him I would keep running, doing this thing I liked so much, just as he had done what was the fire in his soul – mountain climbing.  “I get it, I understand, just as you did so will I from now on ‘live my life to the fullest’.  Thanks for teaching me this, son.”  I felt this in my soul as I sat looking out from high up his beloved Mt. Shasta.

CONSISTENCY – Keep at it.  Good thing I am consistent in my running (unlike what I’ve been like in this blog so far, and I apologize to you for this).  You don’t have to demand that you perform “the best” before before each run.  You just have to consistently – RUN.  Just work at it, day after day, week after week, month after month.  Consistently.  Be there.  Every time you’re supposed to be there.  And run.

If you embrace these fundamentals, you WILL be rewarded.  You will hit that tipping point.  “Eureka”!! The day will come when your little voice in your mind will cease trying to talk you out of running and will prod you to SCHEDULE your run into your day.  And you will find that you will start to find excuses TO run, and won’t consider your day complete unless you DO run.  It happens to all of us.  It happened to me, as I was training for my second Sun Run, about a month before my son died.  I knew on that day that I was “hooked”.  And still am.

(If you want to read up on my son, I am starting a site at tomspirit.com to celebrate his amazing life of 26 1/2 years and to pass life on to all who will listen:  “live your life to the fullest” as he did, as I do now, as you, I hope are doing, too – or will, shortly, if you hang around here for any length of time)…..