Racing and Growing – RunningWell

Hey Everyone!

Huge congrats to everyone who raced this weekend! In the Georgina marathon Jason ran the full (BQ and PB) and Andrew McKay(training/comeback run) and Nir ran the Half. In Vancouver Miguel ran the marathon with a solid BQ, and here in Toronto, Amy (BQ and PB!), Adam (BQ), Jon McRea (BQ), Dave Steinberg (BQ) and Avia ran the full while Erin and Colette ran the half. I think pretty much everyone in our crew has put themselves on a starting line this season, and I truly love that.

I’ve been thinking about why I love racing. By no means do we have to race – I go through seasons where I’m just not feeling it. So no judgements on those who aren’t. But this follows the theme I spoke about in my last newsletter: honest and clear self-evaluation and learning. It is not to show our times to others (again – no one cares) but to expose ourselves in complete vulnerability, and experience everything that comes along with that. When we race we can see how we show up. What do we do when it gets hard? How do we ask more of ourselves in a moment than some people do in a lifetime? How do we react when things don’t go according to plan? How do we handle not living up to our own expectations with grace and self-compassion? How do we look back and find wins in our losses and dust ourselves off and try again? These are the character building blocks we get out of racing. We don’t have to do it, but most of us are wired to push ourselves into growth mode. And racing is a good way to do that. As I continue to race as I get older and slower, I’m still learning about myself every time. I feel like I’m still growing and expanding, even as I’m slowing down.

I heard an anecdote the other day that stopped me cold. A friend was talking about the new weight-loss miracle drug. Friends of her sister-in-law’s had been taking it. They’d all lost the weight they wanted to and attained the sizes they’d been trying to reach. But they could no longer play basketball, which was the activity that had originally brought them all together. Their muscles were no longer strong enough and their bodies couldn’t handle the effort. I know some people have to do this for health reasons, and that trade-off is probably not one they would have chosen. But I am also sure there is a South Park episode that parodies this exact scenario. All this to say: I think when we run and race, we obtain a view of our bodies as part of us – working in conjunction with our minds and emotions, and we inhabit them fully. Our bodies aren’t external to us – things to be molded and shaped separately from “us”. They ARE us. And they allow us to experience these opportunities for personal learning and growth as well as a strong connection to community. Isn’t that the whole point of being a body? I say being a body, not having a body. We don’t have them – we are them. And we change in harmony with them through the cycles of life, and I guess, that’s just living man! I’m glad we’re all doing it 😉

On to tomorrow’s workout!

Let’s get back to something a little snappier but not too crazy. We’ll do strength 400’s. Meaning, 400’s with not a ton of rest. Don’t go down to 5K pace or you’ll get in trouble. Start at around 10K pace for the first set and you can pick it up slightly for the second if feeling good.

2 sets of 6 x 400 w 1 min rest. 3-4 min between sets.
If still feeling your way back into workouts after a marathon, do the first set, and feel out how many is your number for the second set.
If running Sporting Life 10K, just the first set and keep them in check.
If you raced this past weekend, stay in bed and enjoy the sleep in!

That’s all – see you in the am!

Seanna