I am a Runner!

I get the Runner's World Quote of the Day email and the timing couldn't have been better for today's quote:

"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run."

-John Bingham, Runner and author

In the car yesterday I commented to my wife that I'm not a runner. Genetically I just wasn't built to run. This of course was said out of frustration because the quote hit it on the nose. I am a runner!

Starting Over Again

In 2008 I started running. I didn't mean to. I just started running. My wife and I had decided to lose weight together. We started with better eating habits and graduated to walking every day. I eventually grew bored of the walking and started running. I started with just a quarter mile, then a half, three quarters and finally got my first mile in. At that point I decided to run a 5K. I signed up and sent in the money without having run more than a mile. I trained diligently as I had done with my walking and July 19, 2008 I ran in the Kelly Carter Memorial 5K finishing in a respectable 26:56 and winning a medal for second in my age group. I loved the competing and continued to run 5K races throughout 2008 culminating in my PR of 25:54 which I got at the Somerset Stampede. I ramped up my miles and finished my first 10 mile run in October of 2008 and finished my first 10K in November of 2008. After the 10K I set my sights on a marathon and chose the 2009 Chicago Marathon. I raced in a 5K in 2009 only once and chose to dedicate all of my training to the marathon. I followed a plan by Dave Kuehls that he had in his book "4 Hour Marathon in 4 Months". It was pretty straightforward with 4 runs during the week supplemented by 2 days of cross training and 1 rest day. I was injury free until the mileage started getting into the 15 mile range. I suffered a calf injury that set me back two weeks and being a rookie runner I didn't handle it well. Coming back from it was tough, physically but even worse mentally. That Summer I also accepted a position coaching the Cross Country team for the school district that I work for. I was clueless on how to maintain my own training while helping them prepare and eventually injured myself playing soccer with the team. The sprained foot had little impact on the first half of Chicago but a pit stop at mile 13 last 15 minutes and by the time I got going again my foot was throbbing. I hobbled through the last 13 miles to finish in 5 hours 11 minutes and 15 seconds. I was ecstatic to just finish. Most importantly, I was hooked. Despite the time, the pain, and the work, I immediately signed up for the Glass City Marathon in Toledo, OH. The race was April 25, 2010 which gave me almost exactly 16 weeks (I started at Christmas) to train. The training was done almost exclusively on the treadmill during the first 12 weeks. Michigan winters are not kind to runners and this runner does not like cold weather at all. Amazingly, it went very well culminating in a 21 mile run that gave me the confidence I needed for this race. I also changed strategy and used Jeff Galloway's method of Run/Walk during the race. My strategy was 7 minutes running and 2 minutes of walking. It worked quite well and by mile 18 I was still averaging below a 9 minute mile during the running. The finish was still tough but I finished in 4 hours 38 minutes and 15 seconds. At this point I should have noticed that I needed a break but I wanted more. I love the feeling of telling people I have finished multiple marathons and I signed up for the 2010 Detroit Marathon immediately after finishing Toledo. Training was tough for Detroit. The Cross Country Team had grown and the summer running club paired with early season training left little time and plenty of excuses to slack on my own training. By the time Detroit rolled around I had logged less miles than either of my previous marathons and I was running at my heaviest weight of a marthon by about 5 pounds. Detroit went fine for the first 14 miles but a pit stop separated me from my pace group and the reality of my poor training began to set in. I struggled mightily with thoughts of quitting coming very close at mile 16 of dropping out but the thought of disappointing my family and myself helped me overcome and I finished Detroit in 4 hours 58 minutes and 56 seconds. Honestly, I was lucky to finish under 5 hours because I was hurting pretty bad in the final 4 miles. After Detroit I decided to take a break and really let myself go. Since the marathon I have gained nearly 20 pounds and have struggled with my 30 minute maintenance runs. We welcomed our fourth child (Sophia) in November and she has been the center of my attention since. I know that I need to get back out there but it is hard to accept that I am starting over again. Regardless, this blog, journal, whatever is my start. I have no idea who will read this but it's purpose is to inspire me to get going. I hope it inspires those that read it as well. It is December 23, 2010 and I have no intention of running until after Christmas. By then I will have decided which marathon to target for 2011.