I hope this message finds you well, training hard and looking forward with vigour in this early part of the year. February is here, and with it comes the reality of 'Real Life', working a regular schedule, kids back at school, weekend sport, social events... Hold on, what happened to all my holiday plans to stick to a fitness regime this year?
Ah yes, the holidays. When you were rested, revitalised and able to sleep-in at your leisure (George Costanza-style). Great days weren't they? One of my mate's Dads has this saying, "When you've got the time you don't have the money and when you've got the money you don't have the time." It all seemed so simple back on 'goal setting day' when you had nothing else to do. The world was your oyster. Fast forward to now and the same 24 hours seem like 24 minutes and fitness goals get layered under the basic human need to pay the bills.
I see a drastic spike in personal training and online coaching requests in the early stages of each year from people that are rested and getting itchy feet. Most people I know, love to add stuff to their schedule, and holiday time is rife with bold plans for the coming year. Which I really do love but I can all get chewy further down the track, like my potential marathon runner below.
I'm glad David is giving his training program the thought that it deserves. Marathon (or any) training is hard enough, let alone not being able to commit the proper amount of time to it. Also, you don't have to race a particular event. There must be hundreds of athletic events every month in Australia for whatever you're in to, so there's no need to rush.
I can tell you from my own experience, in both 2015 and 2017 I put myself under the pump by coming back from the previous year out-of-shape. Attempting to train, work, sleep and be ready for a particular race day. I was on track and flying, for a while, but eventually injury got the better of me and I was relegated to cheering my charges - from the bike - in the Canberra Marathon instead of competing. That hurts.
Moreover, it's common for people to go full throttle and enter some race in far off lands, go through all the hassle and expense of organising and paying for the thing only to find that physically they're not capable. That hurts too.
Putting yourself under pressure can work however. Some people like the deadline because it means the thing will get done. Imagine if there was no due dates for university assessments, no one would ever graduate. So there's value in locking yourself in - come hell or high water - and getting your race run. Like the gentleman below.
If the difference is between talking about it and actually doing it, I would say then it's time to pull the trigger. The latter example also has the the benefit of some half marathon racing experience so I'm inclined to believe that he knows what he's in for.
My advice:
If you think it's going to be too much now - before the training has started - then I'm confident to say it will be too much when the whips start cracking. Personally, I like to set the platform for good training to occur, get my house in order, so I can focus and knuckle down. It's hard to do this if you've got 15 other things tearing you and draining your physical energy.
On the contrary, if you know you're ready but you're just sitting around talking about it, then it's time to get involved. Very rarely will you regret a timely commitment to a great cause. Competing in arguably the most famous distance race in history is worth all the chat in the world.
My solution:
If you're not certain, have a go at my FREE '30 Days to 10k' training program. And stick to it. Keep yourself accountable by recording your efforts on social media and tagging me. If you can put together a solid month of work, then you're well on your way. Conversely, if a month of training blows you apart then at least you know not to enter the New York Marathon, pay for entry, flights, accommodation, etc. Less hurt on all fronts.
If you're interested in getting the FREE - the updated - 30 Days to 10k Training Programs, click this link.
If you think you can, told yourself - and anyone who would listen - you can, then my best advice would be get yourself sorted and pull the trigger. I can sort you out a training program that is nicely structured so you are healthy on race day, and ready to swing for the fences. Hit my Marathon and Half Marathon sales page to have a look at the coaching options.