Mental Challenge

I can't believe I haven't blogged since New Year's Day. I hope that 2011 is off to good, if not great, start for everyone. Old Man Winter has reared it's ugly head a few times already making running outside difficult. Most of us are not the biggest fans of the treadmill. I, for one, feel like a hamster on its wheel. We go through the motions of running without going anywhere. I don't care what's on TV or what music you listen to to help pass the time, it's still not a substitute for being outside, inhaling fresh air and noticing the subtleties of the neighborhoods we run in. However, safety always comes first. If the roads are not safe, I always take my run inside rather than risk an injury.

My assigned run for this past Tuesday was 1:30 in heart rate zone with a 3 minute finishing surge. That's a long time to be on a treadmill. I got it done, running 10.36 miles (8:41 average mile pace). As I was writing my post-run thoughts to Coach Jeff, I saw the silver lining in running that long on the treadmill. The marathon is just as much a mental challenge as it is a physical one. I had no problem running the distance physically, the hard part was focusing mentally. If I lost focus for one second this could have happened:

In all seriousness, I learned from Tuesday's treadmill run that marathon training is not just about the mile repeats, tempo runs, and long slow distance, it's also about making sure you're dialed in mentally so that you remember everything you need to do to run a successful race.