Today was Day 1 of training for the Murray Half-Marathon! I just finished my interval workout, and I am on top of the world. Thanks to some realizations, I am excited about this event.
First, let's do a brief recap of what happened in 2013. I hired a coach from FTP Coaching to design a training plan to help me break two hours. I did not make that goal; in fact, last year's Murray Half-Marathon was my worst half-marathon performance ever. My coach said in the plan for race day: "Do not start at race pace." What did I do? Yep, exactly what she said not to do. The first seven miles were wonderful, but what came after that was a lot of walking to the finish line.
The plan was well structured, and I am following it again for the 2014 event, so my downfall had nothing to do with the plan. And my race day performance was not a reflection of just one day. A couple of things precipitated my demise, one being work environment. I won't go into specific details, but let's just say although I enjoyed the work I did -- and was good at it -- I was not in a supportive office. Plus, the office was full of black mold, and little was being done quickly, so I suffered frequently from allergic reactions and dizziness until I was placed on allergy drops. Now, I enjoy immensely my teaching career, and I am not near as terrified of the research component as I was previously. I have accomplished a lot already with a semester under my belt, and more great presentations, papers and projects are in the works this semester. I have wonderful, talented colleagues who are experts in their disciplines, and we all support one another in our endeavors. (And I no longer am on the allergy drops!) Someone told me a few months ago that college faculty are treated like adults, and she was right. Just as weather can affect a person's mood, office climate (physical conditions and employee relationships) can do the same on an individual's overall health and well-being. Research supports that.
But perhaps the greater aspect that contributed to my poor race day performance was that I was so fixated on the goal of breaking two hours that I did not focus clearly on each workout. Each day, I mentally jumped ahead to race day when I should have been concentrating on that workout's particular interval or mile. This realization came to me this morning. I did a one-mile warm-up with four 20-second bursts and then three 800-meter intervals at my critical velocity pace with 400-meter jogs after each set, with the workout ending with a one-mile cool-down. I was able to meet my CV paces because I wasn't worrying about April 12, which is the day of the 2014 race. In fact, the half-marathon never entered my mind. I just did the workout, staying focused with each stride and thanking God for my ability.
Isn't that how we should approach things in life? Focused but not fixated? Even in my academic career, I am motivated to make tenure and will work my tail off to win the "publish or peril" battle. I also want to improve my athletic abilities, eventually returning to triathlons. Will I meet my goals? I think I will on some, but in everything, it's about the process. I won't and can't let the end result consume me.
Focus is key, not destruction. I mean, after all, we have some living to do, right?
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