Another team member and another week of training

My good friend, Danielle has taken up the challenge and signed up for the Marathon an the Road Runners. She ran in her first training session on Tuesday and seemed to take it all in her stride. She is such an amazing person who was so eager to sign up and support our team. We only met two months ago and I was really touched when she agreed to sign up without even meeting Michelle. She's a great runner too.

Me on the other-hand...well, I was ok but pulled up pretty sore on Sunday and Monday, got myself a head-cold and have been feeling pretty crappy all week. I had such a busy weekend and could tell that I was tired and needed to rest but didn't listen to my body. Hence sickness.

Nothing serious though and I am determined to run on Saturday as we are running 5 miles and I don't want to get behind. I have also made friends with a cool chick in my Roadrunners group and have agreed to run together so I don't want to let her down.

I have two events for work this week - Thursday I have a wine tasting for 250 at the NZ Consul-General's residence and on Friday we are doing ANOTHER AFL Grand Final party since they drew last week and were not smart enough to play extra time and get it all done in one night. knuckles.

Packet goes to St Cloud Minnesota on Sunday for two weeks so I am trying to stay away from her so that she doesn't catch my cold. I am not looking forward to her being away for two weeks but am very excited by what the treatment will bring. Her back is looking better every day and she is strong and healthy.

i will have more personality next time I promise x x

Three miles and three powerful words

I went to my first training session today with the LA Roadrunners. We ran three miles in 20 different pace groups and there were three words that stuck in my head all morning and every time I felt an impulse to not go or to stop running.

Those three words were - Just Do It

Nike is really on to something with their slogan.

Just Do It.

I remember hearing once in a Landmark course that in life:

You either have the results that you're after

or

you have the reasons why you didn't get what you wanted

Results OR reasons - you choose. Very simple and I think pretty true.

There were hundreds of people training this morning that could have chosen any number of reasons why they couldn't join the group. Too old, Too fat, Too old and too fat, mother, too busy, etc but every one of us made a choice to Just Do It, to put the reasons aside and take action.

Now, on Saturday afternoon, we are left with the results. We ran. We started training and we left the all the reasons why it could not happen behind us.

Action definitely feels better than all of those times in the past when I have reasoned and rationalized my way out of doing something that I kinda wanted to do.

Thoughts on consciousness and commitment

Tomorrow is my first training session with the LA Roadrunners and I am both excited and nervous. I remember at a Landmark event, Richard Condon once saying that you are never more alive than when you register for something. Never more alive than when you consciously commit to something. At that moment, you are most engaged and most present.

I think I agree with Richard. If aliveness is a combination of excitement and fear and determination and possibility that is definitely how I felt when I made this commitment.

It is easy to understand his point when you think of big things that you have signed up for like a Marathon, or taking a new job or starting University. For me, the trick is replicating that feeling of 'registration' with smaller day-to-day actions.

Can I conjure up that same feeling when I get up early tomorrow? After all, the act of getting up and training is the fulfillment of the commitment I made. Or is the trick to re-register and re-commit every time I take action?

I have gotten a lot over the last few years by simply trying to be more conscious of my life and my actions. I now (mostly) eat food that I can feel good about eating and I know does good things for my body. I am much better at keeping my word and sticking to plans, I am more disciplined - all this feels great and I can see the results. Is this 'consciousness' and stronger commitment to follow through what I say I will do similar to what Richard was talking about?

It feels like it is. I definitely feel more alive.

Hot stud joins The Running Backs

Confirmation has just come in from Adelaide that Luke is joining the team and will run the Marathon with us!

Thank you sooo much Luke. You are such an awesome friend to the packet and a total spunk in those running shorts.

Patty running Marathon too

Last night at dinner, Patty casually mentions that she had already signed up for the LA Marathon and is training with The LA Roadrunners. Awesome. Another fantastic training partner and post-run Acai bowl eater.

Pickle supports the Packet

Cristin (aka Pickle) is joining The Running Backs. Yay! Thanks Pickle! Training begins this weekend.

The Marathon begins....

Today is Thursday. Almost 48 hours since I decided I was going to do this - since I decided to take on the challenge of running the LA Marathon. To be honest, I have been toying with the idea for the last couple of weeks and every time I seriously considered it, I got so terrified that I put it on the back-burner again.

You see my packet, Michelle has scoliosis. She has a big curve in her back and was lucky to escape having her spine fused when she was younger. Recently, at the age of 32 she has undertaken a very onerous course of non-surgical treatment with the aim of reducing the curve in her spine.

She goes to the chiro three times per week, each time for three hours where she is whacked and cracked and put in to traction devices and bashed around. It takes her about an hour's drive to get to the clinic. On top of that she does one hour of exercises at home both morning and night. Every morning and every night, no matter what. Next month, she is going to The Clear Institute in Minnesota for two weeks of intensive treatment and when she returns, she will bring home a traction chair that she will sit in for a additional 30 minutes every morning and every night.

It's a massive commitment.

And she is totally committed.

If everything goes as planned, she will reduce the curve in her spine by 30-50% and add ten years to her life expectancy.

As an obvious beneficiary of her living a longer and healthier life, I am so excited by the treatment and what it offers.

I am so proud of her not only for taking this on but also for the way she has taken it on. She is so graceful and diligent and fiercely determined. As usual, she is a soul on fire who inspires me every day.

As I have watched her over the last few months, get up early, make up extra work hours, come home exhausted and often bruised from her treatment, I have tried to support her but have felt unable to really make a difference over and above cooking dinner and the usual things you could think of.

The physical adjustment to the treatment has been manageable, we have been working through the logistics of incorporating the treatment in to our lives with a shared car and work but three weeks ago when she got a notice that her health insurance will not cover any more of her treatments and we did our budgets, we both realized that a big challenge is going to be the expense of the treatment.

It looks like the first year is going to cost us $20,000 - $30,000 USD.

holy crap.

but you can't put a price on your health, can you?

so hence my cunning plan was borne: run a marathon, support my packet by going on a similar physical journey to her, ask our friends to join us and raise money to go towards her medical expenses.

easy.

easy?

I have never been a runner. I never ran track in school, I never ran for the train. I couldn't. My knees hurt and I would get out of breath too quickly so I never gave it a shot. Then over the last few years as I have taken control of my fitness I have slowly been able to cobble together the occasional jog, which has made me feel like a rock star. I love the idea of being "a runner;" it sounds so romantic and so quietly powerful.

The most I have managed to run in all of my attempts is maybe 2-3 miles with lots of breaks due to my faithful companion, Clancy, stopping to pee on every second tree. 26 miles will be a challenge but if Oprah can do it, then so can I, right?

So for the next 26 weeks, I am going to train four times a week, I am going to run every Saturday morning with the LA Roadrunners and I am asking my friends to support us by sponsoring me to complete the LA Marathon in March 2011.

Thanks for coming along for the ride