Last night I went to the first informational meeting for the Running Spot's marathon training program. I think they have me sold, and I haven't even had the chance to ask any questions about the other store's program. I just really like the Running Spot and the people that work there. Oh man, I hope I can remember everything that I experienced yesterday and learned. Here goes...
The program starts Saturday, January 3. Last year they had so many people (I think he said over 200 just for the marathon running program) that they divided the group up into 2 groups. There are about 20 coaches just for the marathon running program. Lots of people to contact if you ever have a question! They typically meet at the O'Bryonville store, but sometimes meet at one of the other stores in Glendale and Loveland, or at Crossroads, Newport, or Lunken. None of these places are what I would call "close" to my apartment, which led me to ask the question, "Has there ever been participants who just did the Saturday morning runs with the group?" The guy said "absolutely", which made me pretty happy. I just don't see myself waiting until 6:30 pm to go run on Wednesdays when I get home at 4:15 and have a crazy dog who needs exercise. At least at the beginning, I can manage the weekday runs on my own. When April rolls around and the mileage is getting higher even just for the weekday runs, I might end up doing a group run or two....but what I'm most worried about are the long runs on Saturday morning. That is when I need the motivation and accountability. Could I roll my butt out of bed at 7:00 am to get down to the Running Spot for an 8:00 am run? Sure. I'm willing to make sacrifices for a few months so I can do this thing!
So all of that basic info sounded good to me. Lots of knowledgeable people, lots of running on the actual race course due to the store being on the course, and lots of support. I about died when another lady asked a question right at the beginning of the meeting when he was just getting in to the different program options they had. The lady starts her question with, "I've never actually run before in my life" (ok, so I'm thinking she's there for the half-marathon program...potentially as a walker). She then continues with her statement/question: "No offense to anyone here, but the half marathon seems kinda wimpy and I would rather just run the whole thing. Would it be possible for me to make it with 6 months of training? How far is it exactly?" My jaw about dropped to the floor. First of all, you're contemplating running a marathon and you don't even know how long the distance is. Second, and mostly of all, you just called the half-marathon WIMPY???????? I wanted so badly to say something at that moment. Something along the lines of, "just go out and try to run 3 miles (or even just a mile at your current physical level) and see how you feel...then we'll talk about wimpy." or "I"ll show you what wimpy is!" I was actually angry. But, of course, I kept my mouth shut and quietly listened to the guy's response. He did a good job of covering up any sort of emotion, if he had any. He pointed out that there wasn't 6 months left and that anything is possible as long as you followed the program. He later said that the store recommends you start off with at least a 5 mile base before starting the marathon program. I saw the lady take a note on this one.
Moving on...another guy got up to speak who is in charge of the walking programs. He started talking about how completing a marathon is one of the biggest accomplishments in life and nothing else compares to crossing that finish line. He said if you don't get choked up at the end of that race, then there is something wrong with you. I started getting choked up at the store last night when he was just talking about it! I'm sure there will be no lack of emotion when I finish! He speech was very motivational though and verified why I am doing this. I am doing this to show myself that I can do it....to prove to myself that I am capable of doing something that neither myself and probably no one else ever thought I would be able to do. I am doing this to push myself beyond what the limits are that I have set for myself. And maybe a part of me is doing this to do something that not many people can say they've done...just to show off. I've always been a show-off.
Last night at the meeting I was extremely pleased to see the response to the question of "who has run a half-marathon before". Out of the group of probably 6-7 people who were there to learn about running the marathon, only 3 of us had ever run a half. When the guys said we should build up to a 5 mile base, I smiled to myself knowing that I ran 5 miles this past Saturday with relatively no problems (minus the crazy hills). I just feel very well prepared. I know how hard it was to do the half-marathon...and I can imagine how difficult it will be to do the whole. But at least I can imagine that difficulty, because that's more than most people can do. This is not going to be just a walk in the park. It is going to be hard, and it is going to take a toll on me. But I can do it.
So, even though I haven't heard anything about the other store's program yet, I know it costs the same amount of money and I know I won't want to wait around on weekday evenings to run with the group. I think I'm going to go ahead and sign up for the Running Spot's program when I go to pick up my Thanksgiving Day Race packet next week at the store. The only downfall I see is that I will have to drive an extra 15 minutes to get to the store on Saturday mornings, but the positives are that I will do more running on the actual race course and I just like the store and the people there much better. I think it's worth it.
I feel that it's time to let people know about this blog. I'm sure most people won't be too interested, but I know that at least my parents will read it to see what I'm up to :). I won't be offended if people find this to be long-winded and boring and decide to stop reading it. I just figure I'd let people in on this big part of my life. So, if you're here for the first time, welcome! If you're already bored, I apologize. To save yourself from 5 months of bored, just check back on May 3 to see how this all turns out!
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