The Peak of Marathon Training: Sticking to Your Goals and Why You Should Schedule Your Own Marathon

[Chett]

This past week I hit the peek of my marathon training. On Sunday I completed my scheduled 20 miles, the longest run in my training plan before I actually run the 26.2 miles scheduled for the marathon. I wanted to share a little about what I think has allowed me to stay on track with this goal and the steps I've taken to achieve what I set out to accomplish.

Establish a Reason for Running

Without a concrete reason for running a marathon, beginning a budget, or any other personal challenge, you are less likely to follow through and complete the task. Make your reasons personal and if necessary, bring someone else in on the goal with you. I'll start with why I decided to run the marathon in the first place. It has been seven years since I last ran a marathon and I began to have an itch to challenge myself again and push myself to my physical and mental limits. I remember the feeling I had after I completed my last marathon, okay maybe I shouldn't say feeling, because I hurt for a day and a half. More appropriately I remember the confidence I felt in taking on any task and knowing that with patience, effort, confidence, and mental toughness, any obstacle that lay before me could be overcome and any goal I set out to achieve could be accomplished over time. Do you know what a powerful feeling that is, to not be afraid of taking on a challenge and when times get tough, having an experience that reminds you, "You had the grit to complete a marathon, this is nothing."

The other reason I decided to run this marathon was I wanted a way to encourage my students to reach their reading goals. For the past two years I've had about 5 students each quarter not reach their reading goals. This affects their own self confidence when they don't reach, or don't try to reach goals that have been established. I brought my marathon in to the class and told the students I would run 1 mile for every student who met their reading goal. I also made it visible. As each student met their goal, I put their name above a mile in my classroom. Students soon began to say, "I'm going to be responsible for making you run mile number 18." My response was "Prove it." They didn't realize it, but we were challenging each other in our own goals. Many students go an entire school year without challenging themselves. They have a hard time seeing past the initial struggle and discomfort of reaching a goal and never get a chance to feel the sense of pride and accomplishment that waits on the other side of achieved goals. I wanted them to experience this at an early age. By the end of the quarter all but one of my students had read the amount of points needed to reach their reading goal. I was very proud of their effort and willingness to stay committed to their goal, how could I not follow through on my end. This leads me to my next point, sticking to your goals.

Sticking to Your Goals

Sticking to a goal you set for yourself is likely to be the largest obstacle you overcome. It's also the easiest if you have a plan. There are a few strategies and acronyms that have been used to try help people with their goals. One is the SMART acronym that David, a member of 5k 5k who has lost an incredible amount of weight, posted a few months ago. From my experience, here are the methods I use.

1. Visualize success. Mentally put yourself at the finish line of your goal. You have to begin with the end in mind (as Franklin Covey would say). If you can't see yourself completing the goal, you will have a hard time getting there. Make the image vivid. Who will be there with you, what does the day look like, what emotions will you feel, and what are you going to do immediately afterward to celebrate your success? This step is essential, so don't skip it. As you encounter difficulties these images will be one of the things that helps keep you on track.

2. Get a plan. You wouldn't leave for a trip across the continent without a scheduled course, so don't began a challenge without guidance. If your plans are to run a marathon, and it's your first, search the internet, or get on running forums and find out what a good beginners plan is. If you are trying to pay your way out of debt, don't throw a little money here, and a little there, make a plan and stick to it. Plans keep us from the whims of life that WILL come up.

3. Give Yourself Permission to Veer of Course. It is extremely difficult to stick to each step of every plan. As I trained for this marathon, I have missed several training days. I knew that I would when I started, but I committed to not allow a few training days missed to keep me from my goal. I focused on making progress and getting the most important training days in no matter what. I doubt I am as conditioned as I should be going into this marathon, but I don't plan to win, I just want to finish doing my personal best. Know that in any personal challenge, there will be days when you will miss training sessions, you'll cheat on a diet, or spend in an area outside of your budget. Don't let this keep you from success. Know that everyone has missteps along the way and it's those who keep going anyway who eventually reach their objective.

4. Make Your Goal Public. Why is it we have no trouble failing to reach a goal when we make a promise to ourselves? It's only when we make our commitments public that we feel the pressure of reaching established goals. When I told my students of my plans they became excited and would ask me often, "How far did you run this week Mr. Daniel?" I knew they were going to be asking, so I had better be running. The people who knew about my marathon goal helped keep me accountable. Post your plans on this site, or on Facebook. Don't keep you goals a secret. There are people all around you who feel hopeless and powerless. When they see you taking on a challenge, you give them permission to feel confident in themselves and you can rely upon each other for strength.

Failing to achieve goals doesn't just keep you from moving forward towards personal challenges, it affects your over all self confidence and could lead to a mentality of being stuck in life. So when you set goals for yourself, go after them. Do you have any tips that have helped you reach your goals?