Week 2: Day 11

Stats of Todays Run:
Distance: 5.1 miles
Time: 41 min. 21 seconds
Avg. Pace: 8:30 min/mile
Avg. Heart Rate: 15o BPM
Weight: 135 lbs.
Total Miles to Date: 31.24

Today was a good day! You know after 3 years of swearing off treadmills I think I'm beginning to appreciate them...a little. Although I am scared of getting lulled into a false sense of security since I do know that running inside is way easier than running outside. I do believe they have their place though. They might help you achieve a faster pace than you would be able to keep outside, but on the flip side that can help you with your stride turnover. Long story short, I think as with all things used in moderation, treadmills do have their place in training regimens. On to today's run. It was a nice 5 miler with a warm-up at 9:05/mile and ending with a final .25 mile kick at 5:52/mile. Still to this day it amazes me that the world's elite marathoners will average close to a full minute faster than my fastest quarter mile for the whole marathon! That's why they are elite I suppose.

On another note, I would like to address some of the questions as to why exactly I've decided to conquer this feat. My answer is simply inspiration. A few years ago I stumbled upon a story of a man named Dean Karnazes. Karno, as his fans call him, is an ultramarathoner or simply put a guy who regularly runs distances of 26.2 miles or more. When he was 30 Dean came to a crossroads in his life. He had the choice to continue on his normal mundane life of working, drinking, and being a normal guy, or battle against the status quo and become something great. Dean's been running for sometime now and holds countless number of records and titles in the world of ultrarunning. At the time I too was at a crossroad. I could continue drinking, smoking, and partying or like Dean battle against the status quo and strive for something great. Dean became my inspiration to challenge life everyday and see what great things that I can accomplish. While I may not hold great titles in the world of running like Dean does, I would like to think that I have passed on the gift of inspiration to others. Two people in particular would be my mother and father.

After telling my parents that I wanted to complete my first half-marathon, they looked at me like I was a little crazy, and with good reason. They knew of my smoking and drinking habits and logically thought that my goals and habits did not exactly align themselves. After 6 months though, on my 24th birthday I completed my first half-marathon in Lake Tahoe with my dad and grandparents watching as I crossed the finish line. After that race I saw a change in my parents as they started to believe that anything is possible if you really do put not only your mind into it, but your heart as well. Shortly after they challenged my brother-in-law to compete in a 5k with them. This has lead them to countless races up to and including the half-marathon. I like to think that my determination inspired them to find the drive to complete things that they never thought they could. That is a small way that I feel I can repay them for the countless times that they have set an example and inspired me.

Which finally leads me to the reason for setting such a lofty goal. I promised my parents that if they signed up for White Rock, that I too would sign up, but I figure to truely inspire them I gotta go above and beyond. 3 hours and 10 minutes is fast. 7 minutes and 10 seconds per mile for 26 miles fast. Can I do it? I don't know. Will I wake up every day and give it my all to try to? Of course. And if thats all I do and that inspires someone else who may stumble upon this. Than I have more than accomplished my goal.

Tomorrow brings a 6 mile recovery run. Probably try to keep it around 9:30/mile with an average heart rate around 135 bpm. Fridays are always kinda hard though. Running 6 miles then standing on my feet for 14 hours can be tough. Whenever I think I wanna skip it though, I think back to my parents and remember all the sacrifices they have made for me, and suddenly my legs don't hurt so bad.

See ya tomorrow!