It Really Comes Down to This: How Bad Do You Want It? (Book Review)

I’ve been asked quite a bit how I was able to take such a big chunk off my time in New York and it really is because of two things: building up my mental strength and following a good training plan.

I’ll talk about the training plan I used, Hanson’s Marathon Method, in a separate post; but, I do want to spend some time talking about something I knew I had to do if I wanted to break 4 hours in a marathon.

The latter part of 2015 left me injured and out for 6 weeks. During that time, I reflected on what had gone wrong in my marathons up to that point and especially the Chicago Marathon, a race where I thought I could certainly PR and get the sub 4:30 goal I wanted. But, I didn’t even come close finishing in 4:45.

The anger I had post Chicago fueled me to work hard during my non-running injury time. I biked, I swam, I even did my first triathlon (a sprint-tri). I worked on my core strength and did some other body strength training exercises. And I also read this book:

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…because I knew the biggest muscle I needed to work on was my brain. I wouldn’t say that I lacked mental strength as I consider myself a strong, disciplined person; but, I knew that what I thought was committed training could be taken a step further. I knew there would be more I would have to do if I really wanted to run a good marathon (and PR). It would just depend one how bad I really wanted it.

Well, I wanted it pretty bad.

The book isn’t a step-by-step “how to” book. The way it’s organized is by a collection of personal stories of struggle and triumphs from different athletes. As the author, Matt Fitzgerald, recounts each narrative, he explains several types of strategies the reader can use to overcome their own similar struggles.

I especially liked how the author incorporated different types athletes–there are triathletes, swimmers, bikers, runners, Ironmen, Olympians–and while they are professional athletes, the author makes sure to tell the reader that while at first glance we might not think we’re relatable to them, by sharing their stories of struggles we can see that we’re more alike than we think.

How Bad Do You Want It? makes sure to emphasize that the work is on you. When you encounter something that is “hard,” how much more can you push yourself? And when you do push further, you’ll see that you only lengthen that barometer of “hard” and it just grows and grows (which is a good thing!).

Here are a few excerpts from the book:

–side note: I really love how the author uses both male and female pronouns to describe an athlete.

“An athlete can have either a good or bad attitude about any given level of discomfort. If she has a good attitude, she will be less bothered by the feeling and will likely push harder.”

“The more discomfort an athlete expects, the more she can tolerate, and the more discomfort she can tolerate, the faster she can go.”

When I got my half marathon PR in Phoenix this past February, I employed some of what I read. I remember when I got to mile 10, I was still feeling comfortable so I pushed myself to make it hurt. I had never done that before. I also had at that point, never ran so fast for so long, and to push myself to run even faster was unbelievable to me. But I think because I accepted the discomfort, and expected it, it allowed me to actually do it. The last 3 miles of the race were my fastest.

A section of the book I particularly like, and what made me shoot for a sub 4 in New York instead the sub 4:30 I tried for in Chicago, was this:

“Setting time-based goals that stretch you just beyond past limits is like setting a flag next to a bed of hot coals to mark the furthest point you reached in your best fire walk. That flag says to you, “This is possible, and you know it. So why wouldn’t it be possible for you to make it just one step farther the next time?'”

I knew I could do a 4:30. I hadn’t done it, but I knew it was possible. A sub 4 scared the shit out of me. A 4:30 didn’t. The book noted that often times, an athlete will hold themselves back by trying to achieve time goals close to their previous best because the amount of effort and discomfort the athlete will experience is doable–they know what the pain feels like of their current best time. So when I decided to run New York, I told myself to test my limits. Go farther.

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now, you’d know that I talked a lot about wanting a marathon PR and sub 4:30. Fitzgerald writes that “the more time people spend fantasizing about desired outcomes–the less effort they put into pursuing them and the less likely they are to achieve them.” I thought I was training hard, but was I really? Could I really say that when I toed each start line I had done all I could to prepare? That I was really ready for a sub 4:30?

I could certainly say I was ready for the New York City Marathon. In fact, it was the first race in which I had had zero negative thoughts going in and during the entire race. It was preparation that made me feel that way. “Real confidence comes from real results and real training,” says Siri Lindley, an athlete whose story is told in the book.

Anyway, I could go on and on, but this book was really instrumental in helping me work my mental running game. I’ve achieved a PR in every distance this year, and I know that a big contributor to my success was showing myself I could embrace discomfort, that pain was okay. You can find so many quotes and sayings that tell you “Embrace the suck!” but you have to practice, you have to train. And as cheesy as it sounds, it really does come down to how bad you really want it.

–When was the last time you raced and tested your mental strength?

–Have you read this book or other running related books? What are some of your faves?

–I was not paid or compensated in any way to write this review. The book was purchased by me and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

Lost Dutchman 10k Race Recap

This race had been on my list for quite some time as I’ve always heard people rave about it. The race has uh-mazing views and an awesome atmosphere. The story behind it is that it’s the rumored site of the legendary Lost Dutchman Gold Mine. Pre-race, there’s a campfire and racers get together and chat. I didn’t make it to that but I did get there pretty early. It’s a bit of a hike from where I live, about 30 minutes, but you’re driving to mountain views and that’s what you’re looking at when you run : )

Morning View Photo by: M. Kerschbaum

Morning View
Photo by: M. Kerschbaum

Photo by: M. Kerschbaum

Photo by: M. Kerschbaum

I arrived about an hour early than my start time. Quite a few members of my run club were set to run the 1/2 marathon which started before my 10k and I wanted to cheer them on.

After they were off, I was on my own and I just hung out and stretched. As go time neared, I made my wait to the corrals–there were no official set corrals, you kinda just chose your minute pace and hung out in that area. I was in the 8 minute corral when I found a friend–she’s the one that took those awesome pics ^. We talked all the way up to when they shot the gun; I had completely forgotten about the race because I was so caught up in catching up with her! lol!

Once I realized I had to get a move on, I started my Garmin and off I went. I had in my mind an 8:30 pace and wanted to try my hardest to maintain it. As I turned the first corner, I was met by Mr. Hill. Yep, a hill at the very beginning of the race. Of course I had looked at the race map but it’s still different when you see the hill in person. The race description read slight uphill the first half with a slight downhill the second. It was an out and back course which I actually like since that’s what I had trained doing.

Anyway, I battled that hill and then turned the second corner. Ahhh, once you turned that corner you were met with such a beautiful view. This is what you were running towards:

It truly was such a gorgeous thing to look at. It was about a mile and a half of running towards that and then you had one last turn which led you to the turn around.

As I was approaching mile two, I hadn’t yet reached mile two, I already saw the first runner running back!! He was just hauling it! I could hear people around me murmur, “Wow!” “No way!” All I could muster was a shake of my head.

I kept going and was feeling okay. I could feel the uphill and knew this wasn’t going to be my best run. I definitely need to work more hills in my training. I didn’t feel like I was doing horribly; I felt good with my pace. I was getting closer to the turn around spot and could see people already coming from the other direction. I started counting off the women as they passed and then stopped at 15. I knew at my pace I wasn’t getting any overall awards but I was still crossing my fingers for an age group, but, after seeing so many girls pass me, I started to let that go.

I reached the spot and turn the other direction. I started to see a few of my run club friends running towards the turn and we high fived. I love high fives : ) I also saw my starting line buddy and we shared a high five too.

I was hearing my Garmin beep the miles and my splits were all over the place. There was zero consistency in my pace and I was started to feel that in my body as I ran. I was just so tired. I started to think about how nice my bed sounded, how nice it’d be to stop and drink some cold water, how nice just not doing this sounded like. I even started to think about how I was looking forward to being done with training. It’s amazing what fatigue and struggle does to the mind.

Towards the back end of the race, you run through a “brick wall” where there are photogs. It makes for a pretty cool picture.

It was around this time I started to fall apart. Mile 5 was my worst mile at 8:47. I was just so tired. I was getting close to that downhill (where it was uphill at the very beginning) and I just let my body roll with it.

I turned the corner to start running towards the finish line and I told myself to finish strong. The last .2 I wanted to give whatever I had left. I crossed and stopped my Garmin at 53:01. I hoped to finish under that and crossed my fingers my official time would be a high 52 minuter. Either way, I saw my average pace was 8:32 and I was so happy!! For me that was a win since that was my goal. It didn’t feel like my best race but I was pleased nonetheless.

I made my way to my run club’s tent and saw that the screens with the rolling times were close by. I walked towards them and began looking for my name. Then I saw it: 52:57. YES!! I got it under 53 : ) Then I saw something else. THIRD PLACE in my age group!! I was in complete and total shock and disbelief. I seriously thought I had no chance considering how I felt during the race. I immediately called my husband and told him the news..

YAY!!

YAY!!

I’m so happy with how that race turned out. I had such negative thoughts as I was running and to still do well surprised me. I know that I need to work on my mental strength and add that to my training. It’s so easy to make sure you’re doing speed drills, tempo runs, hill work, that you eat right, get enough sleep, etc. etc. but it’s also so important to believe in yourself. That mental tug-of-war can trump any hard training you’ve done if you let it. I don’t want it to. Especially during my next race: My first marathon!!

–How do you deal with mental struggles during a race?

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