Hi Everyone!

 

Wow, what a weekend. In races we had Erin (5^th in AG) and Graeme (2^nd in AG) both in the Georgina Half marathon. Here in Toronto we had Shauna and Cindy run the full both getting official BQ’s and Cindy a PB and 3^rd in her AG! As I always say and would like to reiterate: just getting through marathon training and to the start line is a success. Then finishing the marathon is a second success. A strong race with a time you’re happy with is not owed or delivered to many people. This is part of what keeps us trying again and again. And it IS the journey!

Also in the Toronto half we had Lyndsay with a fantastic time (close to PB) despite many training setbacks. Sometimes you just have to say “eff it” and throw yourself in the ring anyway. Way to go.

 

This week we have a guest post from our newest member Cheryl! Thank-you Cheryl. I think it helps for us to sometimes step back and remember the bigger picture and our “why”. It’s not all about times and egos. Cheryl’s words really bring that home.

 

Running for Resilience

 

“I didn’t know what to do, so I went out and ran because it was the only thing to do”. ~ Terry Fox

 

Running has helped me navigate so many personal and professional challenges in my life.  It’s helped me though stressful jobs, heartbreak, fertility challenges, and most recently the passing of my Dad. 

 

My Dad was a long distance runner completing numerous marathons and half marathons throughout his lifetime.  However in September 2020 at the age of 67 he passed away very suddenly from a rare and aggressive form of cancer. 

 

His love for the sport sparked my own interest at a very young age and he was my running buddy throughout my life.  After his passing, I felt a bit like Forest Gump and went on a 100+ day running streak to try and process some of the grief I was feeling.

 

In 2023 and 2024 I had the privilege of running the NYC half marathon in his honour and raised over $7,000 in support of the Terry Fox Foundation.  In addition, I was also recently accepted to run the 2024 Berlin Marathon. After 16 half marathons, I am finally attempting a full marathon! 

 

I am looking forward to training with all of you in the LES Crew in preparation for Berlin.  I will also be running it in honour of my Dad and in support of the Terry Fox Foundation.  Berlin has always been a dream race for my Dad and I.  We actually applied for it in 2020, and my Dad was learning German in preparation for the event. However unfortunately COVID and cancer had other plans.

 

Running various half marathons around the world with my Dad has brought me so much joy.  After his passing I was worried I would lose my love for running, however I was pleasantly surprised how it helped me keep part of my connection with him.  It also allowed me to turn some of my pain into purpose.  In addition, I have two young boys (5 and 2 years old) and hope that they will inherit my love for running and one day, run with me, the way I ran with my Dad.

 

I will always be grateful for running and how it has encouraged me to keep moving forward. As Martin Luther King Jr. so eloquently said: ‘if you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward”.

 

Long may you run!

 

 

On to tomorrow’s workout! Lakeshore and Leslie – 6:05 drills, 6:15 GO

 

1. 4-6 x 800 w 1:30 rest – these can be a little cut-down. Start at 10K-ish pace and work your way down. A little longer rest than usual should mean we can get a bit more pace out of them. Then 3 min rest. Then 4 x 400 w 1:15 rest – a lil quicker
2. If running Sporting Life: 3-4 x 800 w 1:30 (race pace and down) and 2-4 x 400 w 1:15 a lil quicker. I’m giving a range based on how fatigued you are going in and how hard it feels. We don’t want this one to be extremely taxing even though the race isn’t till Sunday.
3. If you ran Boston, you can start to come back, but keep everything tempo paced.
4. If you ran London, you can come out and run. Workouts can start back next week.
5. If you ran Toronto or Georgina, stay in bed.

 

That is all – see you in the am!

 

xo

 

Seanna

Hi Everyone!

 

Huge congrats to everyone who raced this weekend! Chris Fortin ran the Half Marathon in Montreal in a PB of 1:25! And over in London in the marathon we had a very stellar crew. Amanda (BQ!), Fran (BQ!), Annick (PB and BQ!) and Meagan (fought through an injury and gets the toughy tough award). This weekend we have Colette and Lori running Mississauga! (am I missing anyone? )

 

Today we have a guest post by Carol McFarlane. Thank-you!

 

How was your race?”

 

I love this question, and I love it for many reasons. To start, there is beauty in the openness of it guaranteeing no wrong answer. Those who ask, and why they ask, are seeking an answer that ranges in depth and detail. Let’s be honest, the majority out there despite their love for you, don’t really care about your ‘time’, and if you say in the most matter a fact way, “it was good’, you both ticked some weird social grace box. I also love this question because you control the narrative. It can present itself as being a) a short response like an ‘elevator pitch’ of the race blurted out in fifteen seconds, b) a thirty-minute blow by blow ridiculously detailed novel; or c) something, & anything in between.

 

Finally, and probably most importantly, I love this question because of how my answer has changed. Not for good or bad, just different. Years ago, I instinctively answered by sharing details of the ‘race’ experience. The number of KMs I traveled; my emotions at the starting line; my race day gear; planned and actual pace; and the ‘do you avert/ not avert’ response to ‘what was your time?’ These days, the race is important, BUT it plays one small piece in the complex, colourful, rewarding when done, beautiful puzzle.  All the pieces that make up the experience are part of my response. 

 

Reflecting upon my recent race, when asked, I share the fun in making new connections, the aliveness of a city, the random conversations with strangers all sorting out pre-race nerves, smiling at kindness & compassion along the course, sheer happiness and girl like giggling with unplanned post race meet ups; and post race ‘blips’ that needed to be figured out in the most adult/pragmatic manner. So today, my personal response to ‘how was your race?’ describes, like it or not to the naïve sucker who may ask, and indulge me, the unabridged Soup 2 Nuts adventure.  

 

 

On to tomorrow’s workout: Let’s do a Fartlek on the spit! (warning, bring your midge goggles). 6:05 meet at Lakeshore and Leslie, usual spot for drills. 6:15 we’ll head down to the spit.

 

If you’re coming back from Boston or Montreal half or just feel like a social, come and run.

 

If you’re doing a regular workout: 2 x 5 min w 2 min easy, 5 x 2 min ON, 1 min OFF, 2 min easy, 5 x 1 min ON, 1 min OFF. Start at HM to 10K pace for the 5 minuters. Then see if you can get to 5K pace for the 2 minuters, and a lil faster for the 1 minuters.

 

If you’re racing Mississauga this weekend: 5 min @ marathon pace, 2-3 min easy, 2-3 x 2 min a lil quicker (w 1-2 min easy).

 

 

That is all – see you in the am!

 

xo

 

Seanna

 

Hey Gang!

 

Hope y’all enjoyed the sun this weekend – and that if you were out yesterday you got to catch some eclipse action – even if it was just the eerily darkening sky. There is something powerful about communally sharing an awe-inspiring experience. I enjoyed that sensation – even through the clouds!

 

Lately I’ve been thinking about making things harder vs. making things easier. We often shift back and forth in life between Hard Mode and Easy Mode, sometimes with less intention than we should. I was listening to Shane Parrish on The Knowledge Project, and he views certain habits as setting yourself up to play on Hard Mode. For instance he tells his kids: if you stay up late playing video games, don’t give yourself enough time to study for your test and then don’t eat a good breakfast, you’ll be playing on Hard Mode all day. Wouldn’t it be better to cruise along on Easy Mode by getting good sleep, eating well and being prepared? I’ve been mulling this over as I move through my days. Am I playing on Hard Mode? Obviously I want the hard things I choose to do to come more easily – but I think it’s ok to intentionally switch modes.

 

Last weekend my group tempo took place just before the Spring Run Off on the same course, so our usual loop was off limits. We had to choose a bigger, MUCH hillier loop. Tempos are hard enough flat. When entering the last 3 minutes of a section up a 2 minute steep climb, it can feel very defeating. Our tempo pace averaged 10 seconds per kilometer slower than when we run them on flatter ground. That was definitely Hard Mode. But here’s the thing: every now and then, when you shift to Hard Mode and still complete the task, it gives you that much more confidence and ability when you go back to Easy Mode. You can’t live your whole life on Easy Mode. Nor should you constantly be on Hard Mode. You have to switch back and forth. The key is to be aware of which mode you’re on.

 

I like to embrace Hard Mode sometimes. I’ve been playing Sodoku again lately. I can choose between Easy, Moderate, Hard, Expert and Extreme. I choose the level that is not easy for me (currently Expert). I make mistakes and I don’t always win. But playing on Easy Mode is not fun or satisfying. I just need to know which setting I’m on. This applies everywhere. If you were up all night with work or a kid and you’re in the middle of a hectic week and maybe haven’t been eating great: your runs will be on the Hard Mode setting. That doesn’t mean don’t get out there. It just means you have to evaluate them differently. Your wins will come with more effort but perhaps they’ll feel more rewarding. And then when you go back to Easy Mode, you’ll be sailing! That’s fun too.

 

On to tomorrow’s workout! We’re back to hills, but Boston and London marathoners will have something slightly different.

 

Hills people – Riverdale/Leslieville peeps meet at Pottery, Beach peeps meet at Glen Manor. Pottery crew arrives anytime between 6:10-6:30 (ish) and just gets into it. Beach crew meet at the bottom of Glen Manor at (?? Message Tanis).

 

The workout: 1 full Pottery (400m), 1 Half Pottery (200m), 5 min tempo. Repeat 3-4 times.

 

Boston Marathoners: 1 mile @ Marathon pace, 90 sec rest, 2 x 400 @ faster and smooth w 90 seconds, 800m @ Marathon pace

 

London Marathoners:

1 mile @ Marathon pace, 90 sec rest,

400-600-800-600-400 w either 1:15 rest or 200m jog if you need to get to the next start spot – ranging from 5K to 10K pace

90 sec rest, finish w 1 mile @ MP

 

I will be at Pottery sometime around 6:20-ish!

 

See you in the am 🙂

 

xo

 

Seanna

 

 

Hi Everyone!

 

Some really great runs over the weekend: at Around the Bay we had Colette, Carol and Brianna who all ran solid 35.4K PB’s! As I said to some of them – awesome resilience and attitude with being able to “go with the flow and a positive attitude” with the ever changing (increasing!) distance on a very challenging course. I know we had other teammates out there supporting our runners – love that too. Also, in international news, Jasmin Paris became the first woman ever to complete the Barkley Marathon (an insane event which I won’t explain here but you have to look up). The race director had said that no woman would ever complete it because they were not strong enough. Way to go and thank-you Jasmin. You have forged a path so other women can believe in themselves and can achieve great things when others are telling them they don’t and they can’t.

 

What I’ve been thinking about this week is what does drive us to do very hard things, and keeps us going despite challenges and difficulties. I see some people living their lives this way – undertaking big challenges and thriving in circumstances which I feel would make me crumble. And I myself have times when I’m invigorated by hard things and have felt most alive when pursuing them. What I think marks the difference between these things making us stronger and happier vs battled and defeated, is the passion and purpose we bring to them. If I were asked tomorrow whether I wanted to try the Barkley Marathon for ‘fun’, I would probably say – sure! Great experience. And then quickly decide after a lap (if I made it that far) that it wasn’t worth it and drop out. What allowed Jasmin to dig through her deepest pain and remain engaged and motivated and feeling like it was something she wanted to do? It was her deep passion and belief in the personal value of reaching her goal. This type of passion doesn’t just pop up out of nowhere, and it’s not an endless resource. My guess is that in a year, Jasmin won’t have the same passion and drive to complete it again. She also probably didn’t wake up one day with the courage and belief she could do it. She probably fostered the passion through training and dreaming and investing and building towards it. Passion doesn’t just land on you and strike out of the blue. Sometimes we have to work towards it.

 

I can think back to times in my life when I’ve had that energy – the belief in the pursuit. I’ve gone to bed excited about waking up early the next morning to train. I’ve taken on work roles where I’ve gladly driven hundreds of kilometers, stayed up late, woken up early, been on the road for days in a row, given presentations which scared me. I look back at some of these things and think “I could never do that now”. But the thing is, it’s only hard if you don’t care about the pursuit or the outcome. If you have a passion for what you’re doing, nothing feels all that hard. Or at least, the hard feels good. It’s the same with training. When you’re running with no passion, it is very hard to call up the same effort levels and enjoyment in the work as when you’re running with a dream and purpose. This is not to say you always have to have that passion – we all go through times when we’re just putting one foot in front of the other while other areas of life take precedence. Just don’t undermine the mental and emotional components. If you’re not feeling the passion, don’t measure yourself against people who do, or even yourself when you have it. It’s very different. 

 

I’ll be honest – I’ve found myself a little drained of passion the past few months. I’ve been in survival mode in various areas, and that’s taken most of my mental and emotional resources. And running has felt hard and a bit directionless. But I’m feeling myself coming out of it. Things are settling down, and I’m starting to feel the glimmer of excitement about certain challenges. Now it’s up to me to foster that feeling and nurture the passion and make it grow. My ability to do hard physical things is not at all about training my body to do them – it’s about convincing my mind that it’s worth it. Just something to think about.

 

On to tomorrow’s workout – back to Lakeshore and Leslie! 6:05 drills, 6:15 GO!!!

 

Many of us are in the phase of a marathon build where we could use some meat ‘n potatoes 800’s. So let’s do those.

 

1. 6-8 x 800 w 1:30 rest. The first couple can be HM pace, then let’s see if we can work our way down to 10K pace.
2. If coming back from ATB, listen to your body. Do the lower end, and keep them at tempo. That is if the aches and pains are mostly quiet.
3. If doing this by time: 6-8 x 3 min Hard w 1:30 Easy.

 

That is all – see you in the am!

 

xo

 

Seanna

 

 

Hey Gang!

 

Happy March Break to all! As such, I am on holiday so won’t be there for workout and not writing much of a post. Except to say, I am truly relishing the full detachment and break from my everyday routine and responsibilities, and am already feeling refreshed and ready to get back at it when I return. Even if you’re not “training” for anything, I think it’s still a good idea to disengage and take a break from your routine every now and then. Sometimes with space comes a different perspective: maybe you realize how much you love the routine you have and you can’t wait to get back. Maybe there are a few things you can change or let go of, or some things you want to bring back with you or add. It often takes a bit of distance to see and appreciate things more clearly. So whether you are physically getting away or not, try to create some space for yourself. Breaks can really help. And I don’t mean a day or two. This is different from a “down week”. Give yourself a week of completely different activities and routines. Step away from what you normally fall into and force yourself to do something different for a week. If you’re at home, maybe that’s a routine of jumping in the lake with the sunrise swimmers instead of a run. Or making the drive somewhere with trails for a hike. Or radically sleeping in and taking yourself out for breakfast. But do this every day for a week – it has to be a mental break as well. No guilt, no “should be doing”. You shouldn’t have to spend money to be able to transport yourself away and get some perspective. We all deserve a break – you may not need it right now, but if you’re putting it off, make sure to take it at some point soon. It will help.

 

For tomorrow! Lakeshore and Leslie – 6:05 Drills, 6:15 GO!

 

I won’t be there and I think a few people will be away. If someone knows where the 400m mark is and can signal it with something that would be awesome. If it’s warm you can drop a toque or jacket – anything will work.

 

1. Start with 1 mile tempo. 2 min rest. Then 3 sets of 4 x 400m. First set @ 5K pace w 1:00 rest. 3 min bw sets. Next 2 setw with 1:15, couple seconds faster.
2. If doing this by time, 6-8 min tempo, 2 min easy, 4 x 90 seconds ON, 60 seconds easy, 3 min easy, 4 x 90 ON, 1:15 easy, 3 min easy, 4 x 90 seconds ON, 1:15 easy. OR if it’s easier, 6-8 min tempo, 2 min easy, 3 sets of 5 x 1 min ON, 1 min Off, 3 min bw sets. I’ll prob do that one bc more simple.

 

That is all – I won’t see you but have a great one!

 

xo

 

Seanna