Marathon Training in My Mind: My 25Ks & Entering the 30Ks Zone

“I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended.” 

― Nelson Mandela

I LOVE the quote above from Nelson Mandela.  It summarizes beautifully, how I am currently feeling about my marathon training, and my passion for marathons in general.



Countdown!


45 days to go to Rotterdam Marathon 2015 (hashtag: #MR15 in social media)!

I am still - as always! -  catching up on recording running stories and training recaps  for #MR15.

This fact does not take away the happiness I feel, since I've been documenting my training better compared to my 3 previous marathons.  It can only get better from here on. :)

Monday, 23rd February
25 kilometers

Make It (KM) Count!


Last Monday, I recorded another 25 km run.  It was supposed to be 30 km but the battery of my sportswatch was empty, and went off by kilometer 25.

SO, I'll count it together with my 2 other previous 25Ks.

This coming Saturday, I'll run again the 30 km distance to officially document it on my Nike+ stats.  It is more for my mental prep to be honest.

Before I continue in the 30+ km zone, I wanted to write a blog that will save my 25Ks collages.  I would like to run the distances of 32, 35 kilometers before I taper.

Below is my tentative plan of how the next week's Saturday/Sunday training will look like (posted on the 25th of February/UPDATE - 16th of March):

Saturday, 28th of February: 28-*30*-32 km  I ran an 11.15 km run because I was not feeling so well to train for a long distance run.

Sunday, 8th of March: Half-Marathon, CPC Loop Den Haag 2015 (my first race in 2015) ✔ DONE! (blog link to follow - short version: I basically did not do anything the week leading to Sunday's race because I was still feeling poorly. On the day itself I was not sure if I was going to reach the finish line. But I treated the race as a slow long distance run, and was 15 minutes faster than I thought I would be.  With a total of 10-12 minutes loo/drink breaks: I finished with 2:44:40 net time.)


Sunday, 15th of March: 15-21-30 km - took yet another one week break

Sunday, 22nd of March: 32-35*35*-42 km (*-* - I will share about the details of this plan later…) THIS WEEK, I will finally decide if I will pursue this marathon further on, or cancel and run another one a month later.

Sunday, 29th of March: 25 km
Sunday, 5th of April: 21 km
Sunday, 12th of April: THE #MR15 Day! :)

An image I posted on my @HappyFeetNL Instagram account
on the 9th of December, 2014
officially announcing my
Rotterdam Marathon goal

So far in preparation for #MR15, I've ran:

November, 2014 - 125 km (My official first month of training)
December, 2015 - 61.8 km ( :( Deep dive  in the km due to flu virus!)
January, 2015 - 100 km (Relapse from flu virus prevented me from reaching 150 km but I forged on!)

February, 2015 - currently 90.3 km (Flu virus persist! Target was 150-200 km but I am happy with February; I feel confident that I will make it to 100 before the month ends! I am still "secretly" wishing that I will finally reach 150 km in February, though…)

#MR15 - 377.1 km - current kilometer stand 25th of February

(UPDATE, 16th of March: here)

Sunday, 1st of February
25 kilometers

Sunday, 25th of January

25 kilometers

Each collage  above represent each 25 K run of the last weeks.  I put the corresponding date to each collage, and hopefully, when I find the time & have the peace, I'll edit this blog to include the link (on the dates) to the  corresponding blogs about each run.



Marathon (Training) Magic . . .


As always, when I write updates, I like to list things about why I love marathon training; the preparation for Rotterdam Marathon helps me remember and keep them in mind:

• The beauty of life outdoors.  Looking at the pictures I was privilege to capture during my runs has been giving me  fulfillment as much as the run themselves.

• The joy over the friendships formed through the mutual goals & passion: Rotterdam Marathon/Spring Marathon/longdistance running/staying fit/healthy lifestyle! 

December, 2014
Bruggenloop Rotterdam

November, 2014
Zevenheuvelenloop, Nijmegen

September, 2014
Dam tot Damloop, Amsterdam

• The people you meet! Getting to know more inspiring & motivating people on the road to the goal you set for yourself .  The pursuit of the dreams and goals becomes a shared experience with like-minded souls.

The Mermaid Club
Watch out for my blog about how it is to be TMC Ambassador
and be amongst many inspiring women all over the world!

Janine & Mark from Belfast
More about them and their inspiring stories, next time!
(click on the link to check out Janine's new blogsite!)

Janine

SO MANY INSTAGRAMMERS!
I'll share more on motivating IGers, next time!

• The lessons learned! Revisiting* wisdom already learned and gaining new ones (blogalore* after a long dry spell !) contributes to the exciting road, which leads to the marathon finish line.

My (other!) blogs about life behind running:

My Daily Mooosings in the Netherlands
The Lightness of Being on The Bike

• The never-ending transformation.  Happy Feet=Happy Mind.  

Let's Goooo!
21st of February
(Saturday)
at km 5 of a
15 kilometers  run
#MyShadowandI :D

Once again, I wish everyone continued success in their preparation for various Spring marathon!

Please do leave a comment below to tell me how things are, or that I can check your blogs and offer support, on your way to fulfilling your goal what ever they may be. :)

All my previous blogs related to Marathon Rotterdam Training :

• Easy Sunday Come Back Run
• The Road to Rotterdam 2015: Update!
• Monday Marathon Training Recap: #MR15Reloaded
• #HFNLRunDiary2015: Friday Night Run

I greet you randomly, 2015!

#HOHO - #HappyOutdoorsHeadOn -
a tag I came up with for my Instagram running instaposts, to animate myself to go out for a run.

“Anxiety is the dizziness of freedom.” 

― Søren Kierkegaard, The Concept of Anxiety:  . . .

“Anxiety was born in the very same moment as mankind. And since we will never be able to master it, we will have to learn to live with it—just as we have learned to live with storms.” 

― Paulo Coelho, Manuscrito encontrado em Accra

In our village the wind howls, as I type the words to my first blog of 2015.  A blog that will be read in different countries all over the world.  It's a cool and daunting thought.

How do I know about the different countries?  A "fun gadget" on this blog is the Live Traffic Feed; it shows the different countries of the viewers/followers of this blog.  Through the years, I have found this feature entertaining, fascinating and more and more personally motivating (specially in times of blogging draught!).

Why am I blathering about this on my first blog for 2015?

Well that random piece of information above inspired me to share 5 random things about me (see list below).

This post is my quirky way of warming up to the new blogging year; it feels so long, since I last wrote to you, I need a warming up.

 As funny and strange as it may seem,  I don't exactly know how and where to start blogging about 2015.  I'll write about the deeper why behind this in another blog.

In any case, I hope some of the randomness I share below will ignite a flicker of inspiration to help you (like it helped me!) - if you have fear of "beginnings",  you think you're too old for "late beginnings" or just like me, it seem like you always are "at the beginning" - in (mentally) beginning 2015.

The list below is not a "how to" but more a "blog mind cloud/mind map".  I guess, this is a look behind how I "reboot" my mind to begin blogging again.  You are welcome to be a part of the process. ;)


1. Blathering blogs - I post a lot of them, well,  A LOT - I can write concise; I simply choose not to.

It always feel like I am a guest in my own home when I do blog the way I feel a blogger is expected to, as oppose to my free style of writing.

Yup, writing free style will continue in 2015. :)  I like feeling at home!

There are so many restrictions in life, and the freedom to express ourselves in our own unique way is precious.  The most wonderful part of it, the exercise to do so is absolutely free!

Furthermore, writing (/blogging) is liberating; it is in fact therapeutic.

When I think of a single most powerful reason, why I started blogging, the word: therapeutic always is, the first that springs to mind.

This is the same motivation, which urges me time and time again to continue blogging.

“I want freedom for the full expression of my personality.” 

― Mahatma Gandhi, The Essential Gandhi: . . .

“All I wanted was to live a life where I could be me, and be okay with that. I had no need for material possessions, money or even close friends with me on my journey. I never understood people very well anyway, and they never seemed to understand me very well either. All I wanted was my art and the chance to be the creator of my own world, my own reality. I wanted the open road and new beginnings every day.” 

― Charlotte Eriksson, Empty Roads & Broken Bottles; in search for The Great Perhaps

2. Connections, I thrive in and find them challenging at  the same time.

When I think about connections, the world as a small village, I think about my father.

He worked in the travel industry as a tourist guide, and through his occupation I was exposed to international relations at a very early age.  People in general thought of him as very social & outgoing - due to his job and connections - but he was in fact a very private person. Contradicting but true.

Yesterday (14th of January) was the 16th year anniversary of his passing away.

It is ironic that my father, the one who inspired me to travel the world, and is (spiritually) instrumental in my running in Europe never travelled beyond the region he was born in,  and as far as I could remember , he never ever ran in his (sadly, very short) life.

When I run and blog, I almost always think about my dad.

The feeling of being "different" (due to my mental disorder) often times hinders me from connecting.   But the memory of my father, his great influence in my life, clearly reminds me we how in connecting with others, we discover our strength and inspire others to do so, too.

“We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and among those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects.” 
― Herman Melville

3.  Disjointed blogs and thoughts, are what makes up my blathering blogs…

Make sense of what does not, is another reason what I am trying to do when I run and blog.

At both these physical, and creative processes, I have discovered (and constantly rediscover) that:

Life is to be lived not understood, and in the end, when it no longer truly matters, nor does the questions we have about life, have the urgency it once had, it eventually make final sense.

Ironic; I feel such is life.

“Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle.” 

― Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

4.  Dreams fuels me as much as goal settings.  Dreamers inspire me as much as go getters.

I dreamt about the life I am now living.  Not in all sense of the word but in the essence.

There have been countless times I heard people say to me,  that the dreams I dream (have dreamt, and continue to dream) are ambitious dreams.

For me, they simply are/were dreams of a simple girl, who read a lot of books that gave impulse to those dreams, which are now reality.  As I grew up, matured and continue to lead the life I live inspite of the (mental) struggle, I met many inspirin g people, who all reminded me through their stories of what dreams, dreaming is all about.

There was nothing ambitious about my dreams.  They simply were a part of me.

When I look at the Live Traffic Feed counter, and it shows the list of countries from different continents, it animates me to dream of meeting people from those different places. I dream of traveling (and running!) in those different places to meet those people.  Once again, simple dreams.  Nothing ambitious.

“I dream my painting and I paint my dream.” 

― Vincent van Gogh

5.   An individual's randomness leads to self-discovery.

“Define your uniqueness.

Define your greatness.” 

― Lailah Gifty Akita

Happy Beginnings in 2015! May you continue to be a dreamer; may you continue to pursue your dreams! 
                                                                                                                                                                         13/100