Running Logs

As the 2014 chapter of my life closed, quite literally with the completion of that year's running log and starting fresh with my 2015 version, I realized that I have now been running for 8 years! The 1,200 miles I logged in 2014(while being the least in those 8 years) would have seemed immense and unfathomable back then.

My, how time flies. Actually slightly longer than 8 years, since I started running in September in the cornfields of Wisconsin while on a clinical affiliation at a neuropsych behavioral hospital. I think back to my first long run out there, running totally unprepared for a)the fatigue about to settle in, b)the drop in temperature that night would bring, and c) the length of time it would take to walk back to my place. So I tried to hitchhike back;  only to get picked up by a state trooper. After spending several minutes shivering while convincing him that, although while yes, it is crazy to run outside in the dark while it was snowing, no I was not committed to said hospital. After patting me down, he finally gave me a ride back to my place.

Not long thereafter and only 5 months since starting running at all, I ran my first marathon finishing in 4:44, which stands as my slowest road marathon(although I almost did beat it in Alaska this year).   Not sure whether that worthy of bragging about. Later that year at Cape Cod I was able to take off an hour and twenty minutes. From that point, throwing in a few ultras, Ironmen and 6 mile swim for good measure,  I have embarked on a 21 state journey looking to run a marathon in all 50 states. This weekend will be my attempt at state number 22 as I head down to Jackson, Mississippi to pace my friend, Kendra, in her first marathon. And interestingly enough, this will be her first race logged in her first running log. Although luckily for her she is far better prepared and has run other distances prior to jumping into a 26.2 endeavour. It will be interesting to see whether the marathon bug bites or whether she thinks marathons bite.

I won't be wearing my Spiderman or Minion costumes to pace her. I leave costumes for 1/2 marathons

If she's like me she'll use her training log not only to document hours trained and miles run but also who she did it with and where she was. It's a way to keep you motivated but also to look back on and see where you've been. For someone notoriously bad at keeping track of anything, I have been fastidious about keeping mine up to date to the point where it has turned into my running diary.

Don't remember what you did on a certain day? Well, I can look back at my log and know exactly where I was, who(if anyone) I ran with as well as likely what I ate for dinner. For me it is also probably my greatest motivator. I absolutely hate goose eggs. But not for the reason most runners do which is because it means a lost day of training. For me, it's a lost day of adventure or something fun done. I pretty much will always document any fun activity I did that day. A goose egg for the day but one spent with my niece, Olivia, is not a goose egg in my training log.

After all, I'm not training for a race but for life. The log is just there to remind me to appreciate every day I have on this earth and live each day in a way that it will be memorable. Sometimes that might include a run and sometimes it includes nothing but playing with the cutest baby alive or having some dinner with friends after work.