November 3, 2020 – Best in your category

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Hey Gang! 

 

I guess yesterday we had a little reminder of what running in the winter is like. And we managed! We’ll be able to do this. 

 

Here’s something that I was thinking about and inspired me this week. I was chatting with a friend who is a very accomplished runner. She has been a multiple national team member and elite runner, and now has a professional career and two young kids. She still loves running and working-out hard and setting goals, but was wondering how to stay motivated when she very likely won’t be setting any personal bests since she can only put so much into her running now. 

 

I thought about an interview I read with Lisa Bentley – 11-time Ironman Champion and super inspiring human. She has placed 3rd in Kona. Lisa also has Cystic Fibrosis. One time she showed up at a race with a lung infection. And her inner monologue became, “Well, I’m going to be the best person out here today with a lung infection”. And she went on to beat many healthy competitors. 

 

This mindset can take us so far. You might not always be the best you’ve ever been, but you can be the best ….. (fill in the blank). The best competitor who is dealing with daily teen drama while also meeting deadlines and not getting the best sleep? The best competitor who is coming back from injury and hasn’t really done any speedwork? The best competitor who had too much Halloween candy and is feeling a tad tired and unmotivated? You can choose the category that works for you and be the BEST you can be in that category.  

 

I find this so inspiring and motivating because we can all define what our own success means. And we can still keep trying to be our best – regardless of what that looks like on any particular day. 

 

On that note, I know a bunch of us are registering for the Tannenbaum 10K. Here’s how it works: There are 6 categories of teams: Men’s, Ladies’, Mixed, and all of those in the 40 and over categories. Any number of people can sign up for a team, but only the top 4 will count, like in x-country. No one knows who the top 4 will be, so everyone runs their best and if someone is having a rough day a teammate will be there to fill in. So no pressure!  

   

Then we can register here: http://www.tannenbaum10k.com/ 

 

If you’re the first person on a team, just register the team name and others can join. 

Registration is $70.00 and part of the fee goes towards Centre 55  – a community centre which does a lot of good work supporting people in the Beach neighbourhood.  

 

Ok, workouts for this week: 

 

  1. Pottery Rd Hills! These are great to keep in as it gets colder. Any combo of long and half hills. (anecdotally, I seem to find that after hills my tempos on that week are stronger – anyone else? Maybe the variance from speed helps every few weeks…) 
  2. A workout I enjoyed last week when lower motivation: 2-4K ‘warm-up’, little strength workout (try one of Kerry’s on file!), 2-4K ‘cool down’ 
  3. Tempo: 2 x 10 min tempo w 3 min easy – add 4-5 x strides at the end (seriously – do) 
  4. Fartlek: 1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1 min Hard w 1 min easy (2 min on either side of the 5) 

Have fun! 

 

Seanna