Tag: Life

186 Days

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I haven’t updated this quest in a while.

My goal in 2022 is to run every single day, without fail. Today I hit day #186. I’m on target, I’m strong, and I’m feeling good.

I have exercised every day for a year. I’ve done that a lot. But I have never run every day for a year. I tried a few times, but the first time I didn’t make it out of January and the next time I didn’t make it out of February. This year I was determined to make it.

And I am. I’m well on my way.

***

Some days, like today, I don’t feel much like running. I love to run, but doing it every single day is a drag sometimes.

It’s a drag until I get out the door. Once I’m out, and moving, I usually feel good. Today I figured I’d run three miles. Instead, I did six.

My longest run this year is seven miles. That won’t be good enough soon as in a few weeks I’ll have to start ramping up for the 16-week training program for the New York City Marathon in November.

I have figured out how to run every day and not get injured (yet?), but the big test will be able to rebound from real long runs, like 15 to 20-milers, and still be able to run the next day. I’m not how sure that’ll go.

I’ll soon find out.

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100 Consecutive Days Running!!!

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The first HUGE step is over. 

Today I hit my 100th consecutive day of running.  

I set out this year to run every single day. 

And I am doing it!

Continue reading “100 Consecutive Days Running!!!” →

Stages of “Arriving”

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I’m not a famous author, at least not yet. Maybe I never will be.

But, as I take this journey, It seems like I am “arriving” more and more as an author of some note. I an no longer a nobody, that’s for sure.

As I look back at my journey as an author, I think back to all of the steps I have taken as I have lived this dream aspect of my life.

Each positive step, I might call a “stage of arriving.”

Continue reading “Stages of “Arriving”” →

80!

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I killed my run today.  Crushed it.

After 1 mile, I was at 8:56.

After 2 miles – 17:39 (That was an 8:43 mile.)

After 3 miles – 26:17 (8:38)

After 4 miles – 34:41(8:24)

After 5 miles – 42:50 (8:09)

All of that, a faster-and-faster five-miler to celebrate my 80th Consecutive Day of Running!

Continue reading “80!” →

#44 On The 44th Thinking About #44

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My favorite football memory of all-time is of my favorite football player of all-time running and running and running in Super Bowl XVII.

I’m talking about John Riggins and his amazing performance against the Miami Dolphins that day.

In that game, John Riggins carried the ball 38 times for 166 yards, and one touchdown. That touchdown came on his famous fourth down run where he broke through the defense and ran 43 yards for the score. It’s my favorite football moment of all time.

One day I’d like to meet John Riggins and thank him for that memory. I replay that game in my mind often. Never have I enjoyed such happiness watching a football game.

John Riggins wore uniform #44

***

Today is the 44th day of the year.

Continue reading “#44 On The 44th Thinking About #44” →

What Is Success?

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Hey, for a moment there I felt pretty famous.  My book, The Least Among Them, was listed in National Review Magazine as one of the Best Books of 2021.

I’ve always wanted to be an author.  And now I am an author.  And a book I wrote was in a national magazine as a best book of 2021. 

Who woulda thunk it? 

Little old me? 

No way. 

Continue reading “What Is Success?” →

1,000 Miles!

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2016 was a long time ago.

I was still in my forties, barely, by most measures, but I was still there.  I turned 48 that year.
2016 was the last year that I was able to accumulate 1,000 running miles in a calendar year.  In the immediate years before 2016, I started breaking down, started having multiple running injuries. 

But, still I ran.  On and on.  As I always hope to.

After reaching 1,000 miles in 2016, I was unable to make that mark again.  I pushed my body as best I could.  I still worked out every day, or almost every day, but I couldn’t maintain high mileage weeks or months.  

And, in January 2020, almost two years ago now, I went under the knife to repair the tears in my right Achilles tendon.  (The tears in my tendon had led to the tears in my eyes as I pushed and tried to struggle through an injury that just wasn’t going to heal on its own.)

I have chronicled the surgery and its aftermath on these pages time and again.  

The surgery went well.  The physical therapy went well.  And I found myself getting stronger and stronger, day by day, week by week, and month by month.

Well, today I reached a milestone.  A big milestone.  Huge, if you ask me.

Today, after I ran a nice solid (and somewhat fast for me) seven-miler (57:44), I once again reached the thousand-mile mark.  2021 has been a success.  It’s been a great success.  Huge, if you ask me.
It’s funny, I never had any doubt that I’d eventually get back and be the runner I used to be.  I’m not there yet.  I’m older and slower.  I might never be as fast as I used to be again.  (And that’s okay.)  But I still want to be the guy that can run and run and run some more.

I want to be the guy that can reach 1,000 miles (and more) year after year after year.  

I don’t ever want to stop.

I believe that in life we have to find ways, many ways, to push ourselves.  We have to always strive to be more than we were and better than we are.  

I took a big step back today.

I rejoined the thousand-mile club.

It’s great.  And I feel great.

I can’t wait to see what 2022 brings.
***
(I’ll be working on a running book in 2022 that will be a completely original, motivational, and fun.  Stay tuned!)

My 2021 New York City Marathon

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NOTE – This article can also be found at Start Spreading the News.

***

Let me begin by saying that New York City, all five boroughs, are amazing, awesome, inspirational, supportive, and, just plain wonderfully great. I love all of it. Every person, every borough, every street… All of it.

New York is the greatest city in the world.

It just is.

***

Continue reading “My 2021 New York City Marathon” →

A Host of Numbers With One Week To Go…

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In one week, exactly, from right now (as I write this), I’ll be on the streets of New York City running my favorite marathon, the one race that I often feel defines who I am. Somehow, a long time ago, I realized that the New York City Marathon is part of me, part of who I am at my core.

I cannot wait for next week to arrive, to be there, on the streets of New York, running, struggling, laughing, pushing, persevering, high-fiving, and probably even crying, as I push over the greatest 26.2 miles there are.

I love the noise, the crowds, the energy, the passion, the people, the police and firefighters. I love the volunteers. I love the Gatorade. The love the quiet of thousands of steps and the noise of the bands and sirens and cheers.

I love all of it.

My heart is racing just thinking of next week.

I love preaching at the religious services tent before the race, inspiring others. I love the smiles and the hugs and the “best wishes.”

I love Sinatra’s “New York, New York…”

I love it all.

***

I just finished what will be my last hard miles outside in advance of the marathon. I did four miles in 35:20. My last mile (yes, it was mostly downhill) was a blistering fast 8:06.

As I looked at these numbers I thought to so many other numbers that helped define my training and quest to get back to the streets of the greatest city in the world.

Here are some of the numbers:

662 – That’s how many days it has been since my Achilles Surgery on January 8, 2020

318.27 – The miles I have run the last 12 weeks since ramping up my training.

26.52 – My average weekly mileage the last 12 weeks.

2 – Number of 40+ mile weeks in my training

2 – Number of 20-mile runs I did this training cycle

843.57 – The number of miles I have run in 2021

30 – The amount of pounds I have lost since December 26, 2020

21 – The number of previous marathons I have run

7 – The number of NYC Marathons I have run

2002- The year I ran my first marathon (NYC in 4:20:47)

3:25:16 – My fastest marathon (Chicago, 2006)

4:47:47 – My slowest marathon (NYC 2018, Hey, I was injured…)

12 – The number of years since I last broke 4-hours in the marathon (yikes, I used to be fast)

13 – The number of years it’ll be after this year. (I’m stronger than I’ve been in more than a decade, maybe ever, but I’m not 4-hour marathon fast…yet!)

4:26:00 (approx.) – The average time I have run for my last seven marathons (dating back to 2011)

4:30:00 – The slowest I want my 2021 NYC Marathon to be

4:20:00 – The fastest I think I can be next week if everything goes right

10:18 – That’s the mile pace I’ll have to keep to reach a 4:30:00 marathon. I think I can do this.

5 – The number of boroughs in NYC. I love them all.

1,000,000 – The number of miles and marathons I plan to run before I tire of this crazy sport

1,000,000,000 – The amount of consecutive hours I’ll be smiling after I finish the race.

371 – The number of days until the 2022 NYC Marathon!!!

Thanks to my many readers and friends for all the inspiration and positivity you’ve shared with me. Your good words and optimism help me to keep moving forward. I hope I’ve inspired you back in some ways as well.

Never quit.

Never stop trying to be your best.

“It’s not about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!”

Absolutely!