Final

This may well be my final blog post. Or at least for now. I've actually been writing in this blog for a homework assignment in my communications class. It's been pretty fun, although I think the people that read this blog already know most the things about my life that I talk about.

Class is now over and I have finals week to look forward to :) Each final is going to take some serious studying so I think I will probably just space it out and take one every day of finals. I have five finals and their is five days. Hopefully I'll be able to fit in some runs during the week as well.

I went to Divergent last night and it was pretty awesome. It was fun to see and the only part I didn't like was how the parents died. I was thinking about what faction I would be categorized in. I was thinking probably Erudite. Dauntless is a bit much for me.

Well thanks for reading my blog. If you want to know more about my life you'll just have to talk to me :)
May the force be with you

13.5 Miles

I felt mentally prepared for the pain of marathon training, but what I failed to realize was the amount of time it takes to train for a marathon. It takes two hours for me to run 13.5 miles. Running every day 5-15 miles takes up a ton of time! With end of the semester crunch time, I have really had to make an effort.

Today I went for a quick 3-miler and it felt great. The long runs are dreadful, but it makes the short runs enjoyable. I really do like running and that's why I do it. It makes me feel healthy and happy. 

Here's a classic video clip to keep things interesting:

Also, with this being the last week of classes, I will no longer be required to blog...

Longest Run Ever

Last week I ran the farthest I have ever ran in my entire life. 13.7 miles. It was hard, but I did it. For the first time I tried out energy goo and ran with a water bottle because the run took Jared and I two hours. I think it worked. I didn't feel out of breath or out of energy, it was more of a tired muscles and body and soreness all over.  My legs were shaking when we stopped for water and so were Jareds. The difference was that I felt pain and he didn't. Somehow Jared can just run and run and not feel a thing. Or so it seems.

I was sore in my legs all day and then the next day I was sore in my lower back. My roommate tells me this is normal, that when you run long distances it uses more of your core and back. I'm wondering more and more why I decided to run this marathon. I'll let you know if I can think of a really good reason, but for now, I'll just keep running so I actually can make it the 26.2 miles without killing myself.

March Madness

Unfortunately, my march madness as referred to my classes, not basketball. With midterms, papers, projects, presentations, reports, and homework, I have not been able to see a game of march madness. Honestly, the work load isn't impossible, but I think you are supposed to exaggerate on a blog, right? With all the madness, I haven't thought too much about the marathon. I try to run when I can, but when it is either work on homework or go running, my conscience tells me to get the homework done. Do I need to resort my priorities? I don't think so. And in the midst of this chaos, I still need to register for future classes, find housing for fall, make money for school/rent, do my calling, apply for business programs, and somehow have a social life. It's madness right now. March madness ;)

Soreness

I went to the gym last Thursday and worked out hardcore. Today is the first day I haven't felt sore since! I know, it's sad, and I need to go there more often. On Saturday Jared and I ran a 9 mile run. Although Jared thinks it was only 7. Either way, it was long and hard. My legs were feeling it and the Saturday runs will only get longer until the marathon June 14th.

My best friend from high school, Kaleb Seaton, is getting married on the day of the marathon. Although it is very sad I won't be able to be there for his wedding (in Iowa), I told him I would run a marathon in dedication. So happy for Kaleb and his fiance. When I told Kaleb this he asked me, "why would you torture yourself and run a marathon?" Thanks Kaleb. Interesting since he ran on the cross-country and track team with me all four years of high school.

Beautiful Weather!

Starting to look like beautiful spring weather! Great for running. Sunny and into the 50s for most of this week! I was in Wyoming yesterday so I missed my long 12 mile run. I'll have to make up for it by running very consistent this week. 

Also, I just filled out my March Madness (which is now basically April Madness) Bracket. I can't help but be bias. I have Iowa and BYU making it to the sweet sixteen and Iowa State to the championship game...Not impossible, but yeah. Go BYU and ISU! 

Stake Conference was also awesome today. Elder M. Russell Ballard came and taught us well. What a blessing it is to hear from apostles and seventies on a regular basis here at BYU. After the meeting I air-shook his hand!

REX LEE RUN

Jared, Annie, Shannon, and I ran the Rex Lee Run last Saturday! It was super fun. I volunteered at the packet pick-up booth but didn't get a volunteer t-shirt :( But that's okay because I have a race one.

And I think someone must have sued BYU because now all participants have to sign this waiver and show ID to pick up their stuff. Annie and Shannon did not know this and it caused us to almost miss the race. Luckily, the gun went off when Annie and I were just finishing putting her chip on her shoe and we only started about a minute and a half behind. And it is timed with the chip so it cuts that time off at the end.

Anyway, Jared and I were booking it to pass all the huge crowds that were walking and get up toward the front. We probably ran a little too fast that first mile because the second mile was a killer. I felt like dying. The problem was that there was this little ten-year-old kid ahead of me and I just couldn't let him beat me. So I stayed with him and finished the race in 21 minutes! If only I had known I was 10 seconds from getting a medal I would have ran a little faster :)

Go Rex Lee Run! Until next year...

Long Saturday Run

My training schedule sets Saturdays up to be the long runs. Last week was an 8-miler and this week a 6-miler. I'm sore from both. I was talking to my roommate about it and he told me that his friend ran marathon without training for it. He signed up for it, forgot about it, ran like 8 miles the week before, and then ran the marathon. He ended up running a decent time, but couldn't walk for a week. Interesting game plan... 

Jared and I have been running together, at least for these Saturday runs. Jared is in much better shape than me and I struggle to keep up. It's nice to have someone to push you though. My brother Jason is also preparing for this marathon and I asked him about his training this week. He said, "my training is not as good as it should be, but I have been doing some. A marathon is way harder than you think. Seriously, I wanted to cry at the last marathon. Not joking. It's hard. I need to take training more seriously."

Well now I am scared. I definitely need to take my training more seriously. March is a new beginning and a good opportunity for me to set it up in my training. I'll keep you updated...

Mental Preparation

A marathon requires both physical and mental training. Even watching the Olympics you can see how some people are physically better than others, but lose because they lack mental discipline or get freaked out. I feel like after 15 miles of running it will become more of a mental race than physical one. I will feel pain guaranteed. The question is how will I deal with the pain. At the same time, my pain will be significantly less if I am physically prepared. But I don't think anyone will be feeling great the last few miles. 

"No doubt a brain and some shoes are essential for marathon success, although if it comes down to a choice, pick the shoes. More people finish marathons with no brains than with no shoes." 
-- Don Kardong 

After watching some of the Olympic events this marathon is seeming more doable. The Olympic athletes just make it look so easy. Currently the Olympic leaders are the Norwegians (13 medals), the Dutch (12 medals), and the Americans (12 medals), respectively. Non-coincidentally my ancestry is Norwegian and Dutch. I'm obviously American. The Olympic spirit is in my blood :)

"You have to forget your last marathon before you try another. Your mind can't know what's coming. " 

~Frank Shorter, 1972 Olympic marathon gold medalist

Spoken like a true Olympian. Also I came across this quote and thought it applied pretty stinkin well to my situation.

"I think people can handle 150 to 200 miles a week. But something has to give somewhere. If he's a student, how's he going to study? He may be at the age of chasing and courtship, and that's an important form of sport and recreation, too." 
~Bill Bowerman, legendary University of Oregon track and field coach and Nike co-founder 

Inspiration

I have always loved the Olympics. In 2002 I actually attended the Olympics in Salt Lake City. It was a curling event :) My favorite winter Olympic sport to watch is probably speed skating. Anyway, last night I was watching a little of some of the events and it just makes me want to do something active. With my marathon training schedule starting next week this is prime time for the Olympics to inspire me to run. In the cold. I'm grateful for a healthy body that I can use to exercise and to enjoy life.  

Training Program

My sister-in-law (who is running the marathon with me) sent me a marathon training schedule for novices. I think it's probably a good idea for my first marathon. It is an 18-week program so I'll need to start it the second week of February. I still struggle to run daily but I think I will be more motivated when the training schedule begins.
I talked to a fellow student in my MCOM320 class who tried out for the BYU cross-country team. He sounds like a very serious runner and has ran a mile in 4:30. So he is fast too. He told me he ran his first marathon last year and I asked him how it went. He response, "It was so so hard. Just really hard. It hurts a lot." #howencouraging
http://magazine.byu.edu/?act=view&a=2440
(link to training schedule)

Yesterday I ran a 3-miler and felt pretty good. The whole time I was thinking in the back of my head, "I just need to run this loop 9 times..." :) The farthest I have ever ran in one run is 12ish miles. That was back in high school when I was training with the cross-country team. Since I returned from my mission in May of 2012 I think six miles is about the farthest I've ran. So.....I have a ways to go and need to start stepping up the mileage.

Magic Bullet

Training has begun. For Christmas I was given a Magic Bullet. Since I got back to Provo I have started using it, and I have absolutely loved it. The vast majority of my blends consist of some type of protein spinach shake. I know, it sounds nasty, and my first attempt in making one turned out disgusting. It was basically water, spinach, banana, pear, and frozen peaches. Well, I've been learning and now I think they taste great. My ingredients now include of some combination of the following: milk, banana, frozen fruit, spinach, avocado, vanilla yogurt, orange juice concentrate, and protein powder. I'm still not sure if I believe in protein powder or not. I went to Smith's to get some and it was thirty something dollars. I do not have that kind of money to experiment with so I didn't buy it. However, my sister loves to get her groceries at WinCo, which sells protein powder in those bucket things. So I had her buy me a scoop or two to test it out. I can't really taste it in my shakes and I can't tell if does anything. But I'll keep trying it. I'm not a body builder or anything, but I do want to be more fit.

"I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure." 
- Eric Liddell

This year of 2014 I will fulfill one of my life goals, that is, running a marathon. The Utah Valley Marathon will take place Saturday, June 14th. That gives me five months to prepare. Honestly, it is difficult at this time for me to find motivation to train because the race seems so distant. At the same time, I realize that if I don't start training now, I can not prepare adequately for a race of 26.2 miles. In this blog I will record my training, preparation, and progress as I approach this daunting feat. Enjoy reading!