On Being a Borg & Mental Strength

Being a Borg

Above is a great picture Gert took of me just before a run in Utah. Gert calls this my Borg look. I have on my GPS watch to track distance and pace & my regular watch for easy access to the day's time. Around my waist and sitting in the small of my back is my water bottle carrier & and at my belly in front is my mp3 player and case. Of course I need my white hat, sunglasses and headphones. What is not shown is actually a few more additions I made to my Borg-ness. Now, on each side of the mp3 player are clip-on pouches. One holds my goodies: Now-And-Later hard candies and Starburst chews. The other holds 1 Gu training gel for each hour of my workout (6) and extra batteries, a small tube of sunblock, lip stuff, and and this other kind of goop that you can use if skin starts to get tender. It's all about easy access, Baby!

Mental Strength
This weekend I had a series of mental fart episodes extrodinaire. I needed to do a long training of 10 miles: 3 walking at my 13 minute pace and 7 running at my endurance pace of 10 1/2 minutes. And I just felt scared. And it's weird, because at this point I can do that kind of training pretty easily. But I felt tense, scared and tired. I think it is because I am really getting so damn close to the actual marathon, and because I know that coming around the corner - this Saturday- is my last super long training of 20 miles: 3 walk/7 run repeated. And that 20 miler is definitely not easy. I'm afraid that I can't do it although I know that I can. Isn't that weird: knowing you can and you can't at the same time?!? And that is the key to this whole damn thing. You train yourself to lengthen the endurance of your body and your mind. And the proverbial wall... that is also both mental and physical. I experience hitting walls all the time. And I hit one this weekend and simply did not get out of the house and did not get my run in. This morning, however, I tamed that bull and went to the gym and did my 10-miler on the treadmill. And get this.... after all my tenseness and worrying, I felt great when I actually started. Not only did I do my miles, but I did it on a hill program at a higher incline and pace than ever before. Break on through to the other side...

MORE THANKS
Big ups to my dear cousins Sharon and David Baratz & Family for their supreme online donation. David has trained before for a marathon and understands the pain. I'm carrying you with me buddy!

And also, yet again, another donation from a member of the great IH Class of 1988! I want to thank Bernadette "Limtao" Chang & Family for their wonderful gift. It warms my heart to hear from you and know that you are doing so well.