Pre-Glacial Thoughts

This Sunday I'm returning to the Glacial Trail 50 Mile trail race.  It starts and finishes in Greenbush, just a couple miles from my house.  I've run the 50 miler once and have finished the 50 kilometer race three times.  When I first started running, especially on trails, it was the Glacial Trail race that really piqued my interest.  I had grown up in Plymouth and was living in Plymouth at the time, and I didn't even know this race existed!

Thinking back to that time, and looking ahead to Sunday, I started thinking about what I've learned since my first Glacial Trail finish in 2010.  Here are some of the thoughts that come to mind:

1. When it comes to running and health in general, NUTRITION RULES! I'm not sure I'm running or training any faster now than I was in the past, but I'm finding better times and results, and I think it's directly related to some changes in my diet I've made recently.  I've cut back even more on grains and junk (with a couple splurge exceptions :) ), and have actually increased my fat consumption.  Yes, that's right--I'm eating more fat!  And I'm feeling leaner and running faster.  It's all about the quality of the food.  It's not whether it's carbohydrates or fats or proteins.
2. Priorities must be kept!  Let's face it, training to run a 50 mile race is kind of a selfish endeavor.  It simply takes time to put in the miles needed.  Ellie has always been very supportive of my running problem, provided I follow two rules:

• I can't destroy myself and be a useless husband/father by running races or training runs for which I'm not properly prepared.
• I can't just be gone all the time running.

  So, in order to be properly prepared yet not missing out on family time, I do almost all of my

  running before the kids are awake in the morning, over my lunch hour, or after they're asleep at
  night.  There are exceptions to this rule, but the majority of  the runs get done as what I call
  "Invisible Training", where the family doesn't know that a five-mile run even occurred.  The
  same goes for life in general, too.  There is time for anything in your life, but there isn't time for
  everything.  Know what's important and what gives your life meaning, and prioritize!

 

    3.  Stay Positive!  There inevitably will be low spots when I'm trying to cover 50 miles on foot. 
         That goes without saying (although, I guess, I just said it).  Your mind is powerful, and your
         body will follow it.  Positive and upbeat thoughts keep your body in the right frame of mind. 
         Last year, at mile 37 of the race, I was in a real low spot.  I was hungry, tired, sore, and just
         kind of "done" with the day.  Unfortunately, I was at mile 37.  Not long after that real low point,
         I was able to see my family and kids, and I made it to an aid station where I put some food in
         my belly.  In the end, it really is about the little things.  Seeing my family and having a 
         PB&J sandwich turned my day around.  So I'm hoping to simply stay positive during Sunday's
         race and, in the low spots of the day, think that it can only get better!  

   

So there you have it.  My thoughts going into a 50 mile, 7+ hour "adventure" on Sunday.  Yes, I'm a bit nuts.  I've stopped trying to rationalize or justify my desire to run 50 miles.  But, for some reason, the preparations, the adventure, and the unknown are what put a fire in my belly.  Find what wakes you up in life, and go get it!