When it rains........I catch up!

It has been one of those summers. The temperature hasn't been excessively hot, but it has rained more than any other summer I can remember. Last summer, it seemed that it didn't rain for weeks upon weeks and the temperature most definitely reflected as much. Tens of days with the temperature above 100 degrees made training for a marathon a death trap of it's own. So much so, that by the beginning of August, I was forced to take 4 or 5 days off just from the sheer exhaustion of it all. This summer is so very different. We've had some hot days, sure, but nothing in comparison to a year ago. With the more mild temperature, you'd think that I would have sweat less. Haha! Not so much. High humidity due to the rain makes even the shorter runs feel like a trip to the sauna. 

In the early spring of 2009, I decided that I needed to do something absolutely ridiculous to get into shape. I'd just come off a couple of difficult months in the gym trying to get ready and in shape for the upcoming baseball season. This couple of months were the most difficult I'd ever experienced in the gym and made me wonder if it was age starting to creep up on me, if maybe I was eating too poorly, drinking too often or a combination of them all. I spent a month or so thinking about what I could do to accomplish this ridiculous feat. How could I get into ridiculous shape? How much was I willing to change my entire life to get into this kind of shape? And lastly, and very much the least important at that time, what would I do once I got there, if I did? (Of course, I never thought I'd seriously follow through on this effort!!) It didn't take me long to figure out that I wanted to run a marathon. I had always viewed people who run the marathon as the elite of fit people. I believed, and still do, that you are truly fit if you can finish 26.2 miles. So, I signed up for my first marathon without a single freaking clue as to how to train for or accomplish this feat. Half of the battle for me was writing the check. Once that was done, I was fully committed to this effort and have been ever since. 

8 marathons later, I've improved my race time by more than an hour over that first race. 8 marathons later, I still believe that I have room to improve as a runner, a person, an employee, a friend, a son, a brother and an uncle. Most people view running simply as a physically activity, and while it can be that, for me, it is so much more.  Running gives you a chance to think, or not think.  To reflect, or not.  To listen to nature, the city, or your favorite hip-hop artist, or not.  Running gives you a chance to work out the angst from the day at work, the frustration with friends or loved ones, or a chance to glow and enjoy a significant accomplishment in your life.  Running is 'free therapy'.  It listens and consoles, or congratulates as needed.  

I've learned an enormous amount over the past four years about who I was before I started this process and who I've become since. I've learned that the human body is an incredible machine that is capable of almost anything if you train, rest and feed it properly. I've also learned that runners are not typically people that are content with the as-is and are willing to work as hard as it takes to make those improvements.  I've also learned that some runners take the day off when it rains.  

This summer, after many conversations with friends and acquaintances, reading, studying, listening and more conversations, I decided to get more aggressive with my training.  Previous training plans had maximum weekly mileage of about 55 miles per week.  That's where I would start this plan and go up from there.    This week is the final big week of my training plan before I begin my taper for the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, 80-85 miles by the end of the week.  During this training, I find myself very reflective.  Thinking about my first race just as much as I think about the next.  Thinking about where I was as a runner the day that I started this nonsense just as much as I think about where I am today.

October 13th is 27 days away and whatever happens that day, I've already won.  I've won a lifetime activity that gives me perspective on life from many different angles.  From the homeless guys on the benches at 6 a.m. in downtown Nashville, to the kids and puppies on the greenways, perspective of life from so many things that I never dreamed of seeing years ago.  

I am a very blessed and lucky man.  I'm blessed with my health to be able to pursue these ridiculous goals of mine.  I'm lucky to have an amazing family, amazing friends and incredible running friends that push me to be better every day.  If you are a better runner than I am, when it rains, I don't take the day off.  I catch up!