And Now It Begins

"Success is the sum of small efforts repeated day in and day out" - Robert J. Collier

So, you've decided to (maybe) sign up and train for the Mercedes Marathon. Good for taking that first step. Throughout this process, Monica Henley, The Trak Shak, Alex Morrow and the rest of the crew will lead you down the training road. Monica's schedule for last year's marathon and half-marathon are on the Mercedes Marathon site, and will be updated soon, but I doubt the distances will be much different. She will schedule runs every Saturday at 6am from the Trak Shak in Homewood and if you're on FaceBook, you need to join the "BTC - Saturday Morning Long Run" group. That's will you'll get all the necessary info each week. Training with a group is so much easier than trying to do this alone.There will also be pacers for the training runs and of course for the race itself, this year organized by Coach Alex Morrow of Resolute Running.

After being a past running coach for this event, my main input now to the training will be writing weekly posts on this site concerning all aspects of training. In the past, I have coached many runners to their first marathons, and take great pride in that. However, now we have many excellent coaches and resources in the Birmingham area and I find my best way to help you is present a timely subject each week that is easy to understand and backed by experiences gained by my own successes and many errors. Please comment as you feel moved to do so, or email me if you have a specific question ( trainingwithal@yahoo.com ). I'll plan to post each new TWA on Wednesday or Thursday. I'll post it on the BTC-SLR and The Trak Shak FaceBook pages. Also, you can go directly to the site by clicking here and saving the site on your homepage or you can sign up to get it by email from the site.

When you dove into this marathon thing, you knew that it would take dedication and commitment. No artificial ingredients here. You train right, you improve. You train once in a while, or train haphazardly, well then, don't expect to come across the finish line with a big "yippee" smile on your face. You can't go to CVS and get a marathon pill. Dr. Phil can't talk you through it. Oprah can't give it to you. That's what makes this experience so different from other races you've trained yourself for. You're putting it on the line. "I'll get up early, I'll get out in the rain, I'll freeze my running butt off, and I'll do it every week".

If you don't try to climb the training ladder quicker than the schedule tells you, if you honestly assess your past and present abilities, and if you're consistent with your training, every cell in your body will learn! That's what training is: tear down, build up, adapt. If you tear down faster than you can build up, then that's where trouble brews. Be patient with the training. No guarantees, but most of the time it works.

If you're really going to do this long distance thing, you'd better be committed to the program. It certainly changes your lifestyle. You young chickens will find yourselves cutting those Friday night bashes a little early when you know you have to get up and put in a Saturday 15 miler! Don't worry. it'll become a habit - you'll stay away from (most) bad food, you'll go to bed a little earlier, you'll bore all your friends and coworkers talking about running, and you'll pay more money on your running shoes (that you spend one hour a day in) than you do on the shoes you spend all day in. Eat like a marathoner, drink like a marathoner, exercise like a marathoner, and most of all, think and act like a marathoner. Be confident in what you're doing. Less than 1/10th of 1% of the population has run a marathon.

As you're about to enter the base building phase of your training, sometimes the most difficult part of the training is just getting out the door. Even experienced, highly trained athletes have trouble on some days. Early on, temptation not to train is pretty big when something seems to be in the way, but the more you get out there, the smaller that temptation devil gets. Oh, there'll be days that you "just don't want to". And that's OK. Just don't have too many of those days. Your body will adapt to the training if it figures out what the heck you're trying to do. Give it a chance. It'll be tough at first for you first timers, but go easy on yourselves and things will fall into place - it always does. Just know your limits and set realistic goals. But, as my friend, Jerry Dunn used to say, "Challenge your limits, but don't limit your challenges". Try these simple things to get the wheels rolling:

Keeping a diary will help, because nobody wants to write a big, old, fat zero in the diary. Seeing all these completed workouts will impress not only you, but all your friends who pick up the diary you "accidentally" left on the coffee table in the TV room. This will also help you find where you strayed from the program right before you got injured.

Goal setting shouldn't be a problem, especially at the beginning of the program when you're not exactly sure of the enormity you've gotten yourself into. Sitting at your desk saying "I think I'll run a marathon" is a lot different from getting up in the rain and the cold to train for that elusive carrot. You have to keep that carrot in front of you. Tell every one you know what you're going to do - that'll keep you honest!

Group training is a big boost to getting in your training, but that's only one day a week, so try to arrange to meet a training partner on those other days - you don't want to listen to them ragging you because you didn't show up. You'd rather run on a day you don't want to than hear that!

Finally, follow a schedule. That doesn't mean any schedule is set in stone, but if you know you've got a shorter day today and a longer day tomorrow, you're more apt to get out there. You can pick up 25 books about training and find 25 different schedules, and they probably all work, not because of the guts of the numbers of miles, but because they reinforce consistency. Just running with no plan breeds more off days, easier runs, and lack of the training "hunger".

Now, some things about when do you run. All the time!!! EXCEPT when there's ICE or THUNDER. Then you're on your own. Training for any endurance sport is all about dedication and consistency. You can't do it now and again, or just when you feel like it. You do it for a few weeks and it becomes a habit.

I'll see you on the roads - AL