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New Habits = New Experiences

6/26/2016

The "Wake Up and Move" program is going well, although today is a "day off." I woke up. And I DID move, but I moved to the couch. I was joined by a furry friend who makes it tough to get up when he's resting on top of the blanket.

So I've spent this morning looking at plans and mapping my own. I created a Group for the Marine Corps Marathon on Garmin Connect to see if others are interested in some camaraderie as we train for this 26.2 mile tour around Washington DC. I read a couple blogs to get my head into the effort. I mapped programs, understanding the key is consistency (following Scott Partenheimer's approach over at ithoughttheysaidrum.blogspot.com/ who has kept his streak alive since sometime back in 2013). Consistency creates the habit, and the triggers for creating habits are very personal. For me, the concept of a streak works. Keeping the streak alive motivates me. And it also embeds the habit.

Before focusing on time and strength and anything around results, my priority is to get the fitness habit back, and breaking any bad habits. And that means consistency. To quote the great Eric Thomas, think of it as you don't GOT to, you GET

to go run. That means keeping my streak alive. From yesterday, focus on the process, not the product. THINKING before MOVING does me in, so once the alarm goes off, BAM, the feet need to hit the floor. If that doesn't happen, I get sidetracked and justify doing something OTHER than getting out the door. I thought, "But it's Sunday. I'm already a couple miles over my weekly plan. I got this. There's PLENTY of time today." That last point is a problem many of us have. We think there's PLENTY of time. The reality is the only time we have is right now. And if life is merely a series of habits and experiences, then what we're doing right now should either be an incredible experience, or a habit that'll take you to one of those experiences.

So it's 10:52am on a Sunday. One pup is laying on my lap. The other is on the other side of the couch. And to change the energy in this room, all I need to ask is "Wanna go for a run?" and the tails go from zero to 60 in .25 seconds. Again, life is nothing more than a series of habits and experiences. So I need to make those habits intentional and make those experiences amazing. And those habits need to create those amazing experiences.

Time to run.

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Running Like a Dog

6/25/2016

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It's been rather quiet on the blog, and on the road. I looked at the calendar, and had a wake up call on Fathers Day. The Marine Corps Marathon is fast approaching, and the habit of running hasn't stuck enough to set a high confidence level that I'd even RUN the Marine Corps Marathon, not to mention be proud of my effort (see, Chicago Marathon experience). The other wake up call happened as a result of actually waking up. Alone. On Fathers Day. It was similar to waking up alone for the first time on Christmas Day when I was in law school. Not a real "energizing" experience, until I started thinking about it. That's when I hit a series of "never again" moments. At the risk of creating New Year's Resolution Moments, I started writing them down. See, I'm guilty of approaching my time on earth with a ton of energy, countered by lack of focus. The result has been a series of unintended results.

And the foundation of it all is physical. In order to build strength throughout your life, you need to be strong physically. From physical strength will come emotional, mental and spiritual strength.

And that's where the running comes into play. This week I was able to hit the road every day. That's the theme for the "marathon program" - run every day. Not intensely. If I've learned anything as I've run over the past few years it's that my old body can't handle consistent intensity, but that my old mind needs consistency to keep with it and realize success.

One key is to love the process, not the product. That's stolen from Inky Johnson who is a wonderfully motivational speaker, who lived in poverty as he grew up, earned a scholarship to play football at the University of Tennessee, and was projected to be a top draft pick in the NFL. Then he experienced tragedy on the field where he almost lost his life, and lost the use of his right arm. His story revolves around falling in love with the process, not the product. He fell in love with the hard work, the discipline and the effort it was going to take to make it to the NFL. He didn't fall in love with playing football, and what it meant to be a top talent. And he's been able to build off that love of hard work and effort to build a new life for himself helping motivate and inspire others.

Amy Cuddy, author of Presence, says the same thing. In order to be really good, you need to focus in the INTRINSIC elements and not the EXTRINSIC elements. That's another way of saying it's important to fall in love with the process, not the product. Fall in love with what it takes to get on the road every day, not with the fact that you're "training to run a marathon." One defines you, and the other is merely a label.

Focusing on the process, I love running with the dogs. I also like pushing myself during workouts. I'm ready to do the first one, but not yet ready for the second one. Right now, the focus is on getting the dogs tired. The puppy needs to relax during the day, but he's a puppy. Running for a few miles helps slow him down. At least for a little while. With the process will come results.

Being results-oriented, I took a calendar and backed up from October 30th, the date of the marathon. The "training programs" online start this coming Monday. Most online programs for beginners focus on running 4 days a week. My approach for the first couple months will be to run every day, but at a particular heart rate level. My target heart rate is 135. Right now, my fitness level isn't good enough for me to run consistently at 135. I have to slow down to a walk. So I'll warm up for 5-10 minutes with a fast walk and some dynamic stretching. Then jog easy focusing on form - running tall, pushing my feet into the ground underneath me, and launching - until my heart rate hits 135. Once there, I'll slow to a walk until my heart rate lowers to 115 and then begin running again. This morning's run carried me through Winter Park, past the 9th Grade Center, to Rollins College, along Lake Virginia, then back home through Blue Jacket Park. The pace slowed the second half as I was able to keep my heart rate above 115 by walking quickly.

The dogs carried themselves well. Apollo (8 months old) ran like a puppy, and had his tongue out the last half. Hank (8 years old) stuck with it and kept his pace. Both tired toward the end, which turned out to be 6 miles. That's the farthest I've been on the road in 2016. I won't claim it's the farthest I've run because there was as much walking as running. That'll change over time.

And I finished listening to Presence on this run. Finally. I highly recommend the book. Cuddy does a good job presenting the connection between body and mind, and how you can influence your reactions and strength by how you carry yourself. Well worth the time.

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Run On, Sentences follows the path of the author as he evolves from a lackluster inaugural marathon time to pursue a qualifying time for the Boston Marathon. Along the way, he'll deal with the challenges of a short attention span, growing older and the chaotic calendar of a husband, father, corporate executive, and active member of the community.

New Habits = New Experiences

Running Like a Dog

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