A goal. MY goal. THE goal of determined runners. A BQ.
I'm not sure when the original thought occurred to me, but at some point early in my running "career" (which, let's be honest was only in the last 5 years) I decided I needed to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Not just run it, because there are ways to get into the race without a qualifying time, but actually qualify. For me, at my current age, that means running a USTAF Certified Marathon course in under 3 hours and 35 minutes.
I guess the original thought came on like many of my thoughts that surround my running endeavors: "That sounds like a hard challenge but it also seems really possible if I work hard enough." This is how I ended up signing up for my first 5k. It's very much how I signed up for my first Half. And, you can bet it was how I got into becoming a Marathoner. Doing something that is really easy isn't nearly as fun as doing something that sounds challenging! Maybe it's my competitive nature, or maybe there is something wired inside of me that makes me want to push myself to acheive these running goals. I think it's nice to be good and able at something and it's even nicer when you're capable of pushing yourself to improve. Running gives you the opportunity to make many goals: run faster, run farther, run more, etc.
And, notice I said pushing yourself to improve. I am a big fan of running and I think a lot of the love I have for running stems from that whole concept. In running, you truly have to push yourself. It isn't a team sport (which is what I typically played my entire life until adulthood). You don't have teammates to motivate you. And, if you're an every day ordinary runner like myself, you don't even have a coach to motivate you. Running truly tests you as an individual. It tests your physical toughness AND your mental toughness. It tests you and helps you prove to yourself what you are capable of all on your own. I like knowing that all on my own, with no help from a team, I can run 26.2 miles without stopping. I like knowing that I am capable of spending 4 months out of my life, working really hard, to dedicate to something I am passionate about, while working a full time job. I like that nobody holds me accountable for getting in my training runs except for myself. I like that only I can let myself down if I slack off. I like that only I can feel the immense joy that comes with finishing a really hard workout that I made myself do and that I pushed myself through. Nobody is ever looking to make sure I complete my whole workout, nor is anyone reprimanding me if I don't. I only keep going because I am capable of self-motivation and I refuse to quit or slack off because I set high expectations for myself. I'm not running for a coach or a team or for anyone. I run for me.
It is truly hard to explain in writing as I am trying to now. Mostly, I just rambled that entire paragraph above. But, the concept of running is something that feels so freeing, so rewarding, and it makes me feel like a very powerful and independent person. I can almost associate running to any challenge in life. Running, specifically training for a Marathon, teaches self discipline like nothing else I've ever tried. It teaches you to set an attainable goal, map out your path to success, execute this path, and eventually it teaches you what it feels like to accomplish something you worked really hard for (even if it grants you with just a free banana and a bag of chips). How awesome is it to be able to get this feeling of achievement from something other than a monetary reward?!
The BQ would be the ultimate achievement, but honestly just finishing my Tuesday 6am workout gets me pretty pumped! But, to wrap this up, I hope to work hard and bust my ass to get my BQ this year. My Spring race will be the Delaware Marathon on May 14th. Billy and I will toe the line on Mother's Day and my goal will be to get a time of 3 hours and 35 minutes or less (hopefully less, otherwise I won't actually get a spot in the 2018 Boston Marathon). Last year, my best time was 3:36. I literally missed my BQ time by a little over a minute. It was still an incredible PR for me and I still gained a lot from that experience, though. Before that race, my PR was 3:55. So, I've been improving every year and this is my year to reach my goal! Here we go! #BQfocused
I'm not sure when the original thought occurred to me, but at some point early in my running "career" (which, let's be honest was only in the last 5 years) I decided I needed to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Not just run it, because there are ways to get into the race without a qualifying time, but actually qualify. For me, at my current age, that means running a USTAF Certified Marathon course in under 3 hours and 35 minutes.
I guess the original thought came on like many of my thoughts that surround my running endeavors: "That sounds like a hard challenge but it also seems really possible if I work hard enough." This is how I ended up signing up for my first 5k. It's very much how I signed up for my first Half. And, you can bet it was how I got into becoming a Marathoner. Doing something that is really easy isn't nearly as fun as doing something that sounds challenging! Maybe it's my competitive nature, or maybe there is something wired inside of me that makes me want to push myself to acheive these running goals. I think it's nice to be good and able at something and it's even nicer when you're capable of pushing yourself to improve. Running gives you the opportunity to make many goals: run faster, run farther, run more, etc.
And, notice I said pushing yourself to improve. I am a big fan of running and I think a lot of the love I have for running stems from that whole concept. In running, you truly have to push yourself. It isn't a team sport (which is what I typically played my entire life until adulthood). You don't have teammates to motivate you. And, if you're an every day ordinary runner like myself, you don't even have a coach to motivate you. Running truly tests you as an individual. It tests your physical toughness AND your mental toughness. It tests you and helps you prove to yourself what you are capable of all on your own. I like knowing that all on my own, with no help from a team, I can run 26.2 miles without stopping. I like knowing that I am capable of spending 4 months out of my life, working really hard, to dedicate to something I am passionate about, while working a full time job. I like that nobody holds me accountable for getting in my training runs except for myself. I like that only I can let myself down if I slack off. I like that only I can feel the immense joy that comes with finishing a really hard workout that I made myself do and that I pushed myself through. Nobody is ever looking to make sure I complete my whole workout, nor is anyone reprimanding me if I don't. I only keep going because I am capable of self-motivation and I refuse to quit or slack off because I set high expectations for myself. I'm not running for a coach or a team or for anyone. I run for me.
It is truly hard to explain in writing as I am trying to now. Mostly, I just rambled that entire paragraph above. But, the concept of running is something that feels so freeing, so rewarding, and it makes me feel like a very powerful and independent person. I can almost associate running to any challenge in life. Running, specifically training for a Marathon, teaches self discipline like nothing else I've ever tried. It teaches you to set an attainable goal, map out your path to success, execute this path, and eventually it teaches you what it feels like to accomplish something you worked really hard for (even if it grants you with just a free banana and a bag of chips). How awesome is it to be able to get this feeling of achievement from something other than a monetary reward?!
The BQ would be the ultimate achievement, but honestly just finishing my Tuesday 6am workout gets me pretty pumped! But, to wrap this up, I hope to work hard and bust my ass to get my BQ this year. My Spring race will be the Delaware Marathon on May 14th. Billy and I will toe the line on Mother's Day and my goal will be to get a time of 3 hours and 35 minutes or less (hopefully less, otherwise I won't actually get a spot in the 2018 Boston Marathon). Last year, my best time was 3:36. I literally missed my BQ time by a little over a minute. It was still an incredible PR for me and I still gained a lot from that experience, though. Before that race, my PR was 3:55. So, I've been improving every year and this is my year to reach my goal! Here we go! #BQfocused