Making it to the marathon

“The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win.” – Sir Roger Bannister

Roger Bannister pushed past the pain when he broke the four-minute barrier and Canadian Olympic marathoner Reid Coolsaet, when asked for marathon advice, said “learn to hurt.”

I guess I need to stop whining, but here is my marathon training update:

For those who don’t know, I have been training hard for the 2014 Ottawa marathon under the guidance of two of Canada’s top marathoners. I have been using a great online training program, talking with all the experts I can find, and have been trying to push the limit of smart training to achieve a personal best.

I have been pushing myself in training and am holding onto the doors and parts of this aging jalopy, trying to stop stuff from shaking loose.

I have run 2,088K since January 6, averaging about 139K each week. I have tried my best to stretch after workouts. I have a foam roller, have been eating well and am trying to use all the advice from the experts. I feel like training is going well, but there is still the unknown.

In the end, a marathon could still bring me to my knees and blow my plans apart.

Making it to the start line

With one month to go, it is time to get a couple more solid weeks of training in before tapering. I will be trusting my plan and the advice I have been given by Eric Gills and Coolsaet.

What I’ve learned so far

• Build a solid foundation of fitness before starting a hard training plan.

• When pushing the body, you need to do all you can to keep it from shaking apart.

• Train smarter, not harder.

• You are an individual; make sure your plan is for you and tap into the resources and people who can help.

• Rest and recovery is as important as training.

• Find ways to stay motivated.

I think I also need to remember that life is a bit of a mystery and can often throw unexpected turns and bumps your way. As my friend, and Black Lungs running club runner, Dan Way, says “marathon = mystery.”

Run on my friends.

See you on the roads or in the blogosphere.

Do you have a running story to tell?

runningwriter@hotmail.com

Canadian Running magazine articles about the marathon:

Marathon-training-5-steps-to-your-best-racemarathon

Marathon-training-tips-from-a-pro

Feel free to also follow me on Twitter @NoelPaine or on my personal blog where I have more information on my training and adventures.