Triumph of the Willpower

Last weekend I had a complete lack of willpower to do anything. I literally didn't do a thing on Saturday and it took me virtually all day to get myself out of the house on Sunday. I ended up going on my long run, which usually happens on Saturday morning, at 4:30pm a day later.

Contrast the weekend with the weekday and I'm a bit puzzled. LastFriday I did a treadmill workout of 3 x 1 mile at around 5:45 pace with .2 miles recovery. Then when I got home I did 30 minutes of yoga. So it seems like days when I have less time, I get more done. Why is that? Is it a lack of willpower?

I was reading External Supports for you Willpower on Timothy A. Pychyl's Don't Delay blog today, and I was trying to see how it fit my own life. I think what most everyone struggles with is a struggle to will oneself to do the boring, tedious, or painful daily tasks. Even though I enjoy running, sometimes I just get so adverse to doing it that I put it off until the very last minute.

When I do run on Saturday morning, I tend to run with people. Maybe that is part of the external supports that Pychyl discusses. Maybe I need to make myself a schedule. This weekend my father comes to visit so I have to get it in earlier or I don't do it at all, which isn't really an option. I'll see how it goes.

Lost Post: The Flying Pig Marathon

The Flying Pig Marathon was awful, so awful that I didn't even write about. I didn't neglect writing about it due to laziness, it was pure hatred that caused me to omit this from my blogging history, but with enough time I am able to discuss it. Let's start before the beginning.

Way Before the Race

The previous two weeks that I spent prior to the marathon were in Yuma, AZ, the lettuce capitol of the United States. There is nothing in Yuma, but lettuce fields and several strip malls. There isn't nary a sidewalk, and the only place to run is the side of the road. I also judge cities by their support of a Panera and a Whole Foods. If there is only a Panera, I can get by. Whole Foods is a bonus. I will travel for hours just to go there, and Yuma had neither. I ended up eating at Olive Garden three times in two weeks! So I ate like crap and I didn't get in solid runs. That was the point of me telling you all that.

I traveled from Yuma to Cincinnati, OH, on the Friday before the marathon. I met my friend Craig at the airport and discussed stratagems for Sunday. We stayed with one of Craig's very nice friends whose name I can't remember, but he loved P90X. That's kind of all you need to know anyway. The three of us went out to dinner at a very nice place probably owned by a mobster because he was very Italian and a ball buster. I ate pasta, of course, that was better than anything you'd find at the Olive Garden.

Then on Saturday we went to the marathon expo, which was well organized if a bit crowded. I met my parents there who drove down from Michigan. There was Flying Pig Merchandise galore. I don't think I've ever seen so much pink. I guess it was whimsical. They did their thing with it. I don't really remember buying anything specifically though because of all the pink and what I would describe as "crafty fug whimsy." The technical t-shirt that they gave away for running the marathon looked alright. I think everything was a bit feminine even for me. Oh, and there was also an event unfortunately titled "Pump and Run," where you would bench press on Saturday and then run on Sunday. I've been told short people will always win that event.

I think I met back up with Craig to eat lunch and drive the course. This was a good thing because there was one part of the course that gave me pause. I never really thought the hills would be that big of a deal and therefore never trained on them. (Also I trained on this island in the middle of the Pacific for about five weeks that was pancake flat and only 6.5miles in circumference.) So that got me a bit worried. Then we went back home and ate dinner and prepared for the next day by pinning bibs and laying out what we want to wear the next day.

The Day Before the Race

I always like to shower when I get up for the Marathon, even if I have to get up 20 minutes earlier than I normally would and it's already the crack of dawn. I feel more refreshed and I want to look good in pictures. I'm vain. Most running pictures really do look awful as it is, so I get help from wherever I can.

Looking good didn't really matter that day because it was pouring. There was torrential rains that I hoped would cancel the marathon. Even though I trained for 14+ weeks, I really didn't want to run in a monsoon. Also it was about 40 degrees, so it was a cold, wet run in addition to thunder and lightning. I honestly thought there was a 60% chance of it getting called off. It was NOT called off. Getting to the start line was chaotic because everyone, including Craig and me, decided to wait until the last minute. I dropped off my bag and I peed in the bushes. I took off my garbage bag poncho because I really didn't need it; I was going to get really wet regardless.

I lined up closer to the front and the gun sounded. Within a minute my shoes were water logged and my hair matted. I had to blink repeatedly to see with all the rain. In the beginning you go over to Kentucky for the first few miles. There is a bridge to get over and back which is at a slight incline. My parents were in Kentucky (in the rain!) with a sign that read "Robert You Were Adopted... From Kenya!" That made me laugh. My mom really came through with that one. There her and I are with it at right.

The Race Itself: Miles 1-9

To be honest I don't really remember a lot from that race. There wasn't a lot of people there because of the weather. From the advertisement, it seemed like there would be a lot of over the top crowd support and there really wasn't, not that I can blame them, but I will say that Cincinnati is a really charming city. I don't know if it's beautiful, but it is unique. There are a lot of stone buildings, and fun neighborhoods. I didn't know anything about the city before, but I would have fun exploring it if I were sent there for work.

The worst part of the marathon were miles 5-9, where the elevation increased over 300 feet. Even after the New York City Marathon, I didn't really think it would be such a big deal, but retrospectively, I think I really did a disservice to myself by not taking it seriously. I thought it would be fine because of the law "what goes up must come down" but I neglected the law of "it's harder to go uphill than it is easier to go downhill." Basically my legs (re: quads) were wrecked after this endeavor and never really recovered. The good news was that the rain had gone down to a drizzle, then a dense fog, then the weather was overcast but dry.



The Race Itself: Miles 11-26.2

I remember at about mile 13 and I was not too far off pace to make it sub 3 hours, but I was really hurting. So I made the mortal mistake of walking for a few seconds. I can't really describe the feeling except to say that my legs were like concrete. I thought to myself, "Whoa, that's not good," and I continued on watching people pass me who dressed in wacky outfits.

Around mile 16 I ran past the house where I was staying, and there is a turn around where I expected to see Craig, but I didn't see him. I got a little nervous because his goal was to qualify for Boston and he should've been somewhat behind me at this point. I continued on until about mile 20 when I really hit the wall. I stopped running and started walking. Then I started running again and continued run-walking until the finish line. I met a nice guy from Kentucky and we kept each other going until the finish. I don't know if I was physically tired so much as I was mentally tired. I knew that I wouldn't even be close to hitting 3 hours, so I just kind of gave up and wanted to finish. I was looking around for Craig and expected him to pass me at any minute. I initially was resentful of this because I have an ego and didn't want him to beat me, but eventually I decided that I really did want him to beat me because I doubted if I could make it under 3:10.

I think I finished just before 3:11, which was still a Boston Qualifier. So that felt good. I waited for Craig for about 10 minutes or so at the finish line but it was hard waiting there with everyone coming in. So eventually I met my parents at the designated meeting area sopping wet. I hugged them and we posed for wet pictures with the wet sign (see above). I think I ate a banana. Eventually Craig came through the chute having battled with asthma throughout the race. I think we were both disappointed with our results, but under the circumstances we were both happy to have finished with respectable times. It was a mixed bag.

Craig and I traveled back to the house and changed, relieved and tired. With my parents I drove back to Auburn Hills, MI, after having eaten the most delicious burger in the world. I wouldn't really recommend the Flying Pig Marathon, but I think the weather conditions really tempered my feelings. I definitely would recommend a flatter marathon for beginners or those who want to PR.

Forget a Towel, Don't Run

Why oh why did I forget a towel? It's almost 50 degrees out here today! This just means I'll have to wait until work is over. This throws off my day because I have to run at night now. The sun officially sets at somewhere around 5:20PM EST and since it's cloudy, it will probably be dark before then.

A friend suggested an emergency towel, and I might just try that. I'm constantly forgetting to bring a towel, but knowing me I'll forget to put the emergency towel in my car.

Illinois Marathon: Origins

I've decided to register for the Illinois Marathon, if not run it. Let me back up.

I originally wanted to run the Boston Marathon, but it was sold out within less than 24 hours. Then I wanted to run the Big Sur Marathon, but that was sold out too. The Flying Pig Marathon is kind of a disaster, so that's out. There is a Grandma's Marathon in Minnesota. So that really left me in a bind.

My sister, who lives in Champaign, IL, previously asked me if I would like to run the Illinois Marathon and I declined since southern Illinois isn't all that exciting. I reconsidered since my options were limited and I have few opportunities to see her. So I'll just be bored for two hours, fifty-nine minutes and fifty-nine seconds. No big deal.

Actually, I registered in secret. I'm not sure if I really want to run this, or I just want something to do. I like running, but the whole training thing is a tedious practice. I'd like to devote more time to finding a new job, but I worry that the lack of exercise will lead me to feel unmotivated. So... I will continue to practice for another month where I can still sort of half-ass it, and then decide later.

Thinking vs. Doing (and/or)

Can you think your way out of depression? Does enough self knowledge lead to a realization that cures you of whatever it is that you just can't overcome?

In a recent New York Times article Dr. Richard A. Friedman discusses the limitations of insight in psychiatric therapy. His position is that an insight-oriented psychodynamic therapy may not actually "cure" the patient so much as the cognitive behavioral approach, which helps to reroute the channels in our brains to a more effective way of dealing with problems.

There was a portion of a book I was reading a little while ago called Buddhism: Plain and Simple by Steven Hagen. In it he describes a fable about a man who gets shot by a poison arrow. He calls a doctor to get it out and the doctor deliberates and wonders what kind of arrow is it? What kind of poison is on the arrow? Etc. What the man really needs, however, is for the doctor to yank that arrow out of his back before he dies. The lesson is that perhaps it doesn't matter what it is that's killing you, you just need to do what you need to do in order to survive. I guess you could argue that you need to know what kind of poison is needed for an antidote, but you get the point.

I've often felt as though thinking about my problems doesn't really do anything. I know what makes me depressed and I do think that helps because I'm more aware of any triggers and then I can figure out how to deal with myself. But I think Dr. Friedman's point is that all the self knowledge in the world might keep you from being depressed, but won't really make you happy. And don't we all just want to be happy?

Strength

From an article in the New York Times today comes information from several studies that seem to confirm that lifting weights is just as beneficial to cognitive development as cardiovascular exercise. As with running, strength training increases blood flow to the brain, which in turn improves cognitive functions as well as neurogenesis.

This bothers me for several reasons. The first reason is that I want to engage in the activity that's giving me the best twofer. This news that guys who look like one of the werewolves from Twilight shouldn't be allowed to be smart too. It's just unfair. The second reason this news bothers me is because I really despise lifting weights. I find it the most tedious, boring task ever. It's a very Sisyphean way to spend ones time. By contrast, running is spiritual. You get to run outside, discover new places. You can run with people, next to people, behind or in front of others.

The second reason is that I just don't want weight lifters to be on par to runners, and for that reason I refuse to believe in science for this one. Global warming, I believe the science. Meatheads and No Necks are just as good as runners, is just heresy.



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