Big decision time: I’ve decided to run a marathon later in 2012. I will run the Spinx Marathon in Greenville in October rather than the Columbia, SC Marathon in March. On March 10, I will do a half marathon rather than a full one.
A number of factors went in to this decision. If you’ve read the entries that I’ve posted in November, you might have seen it coming as well.
Last week was my firm’s annual meeting. It is the one time during the year that I see a number of friends face to face. It is a rare chance to catch up with each other and to share what’s new in our lives and our families. In telling people about my plans to run a marathon in March, it just kept sounding more and more selfish to me. Friends would ask about how things were going with a toddler and an infant in the house. I would describe sleepless nights. But really, the one losing sleep is, by and large, not me. I don’t think I’m slacking off as a father and a husband, but I do think that I can offer more of myself. I’d hear myself describing my allocation of time and energy, hear myself explain, indeed accurately, a disproportionate amount of myself being dedicated to running.
I was lamenting along these lines with my boss a couple of weeks ago. His own father took up running in his thirties, I believe. As I was telling him how I felt that the time I was spending on my long runs on the weekends was directly at the expense of family time, he said, basically, that I was experiencing exactly the same thing that every runner who has ever dedicated the time to running a marathon has experienced before me -- or at least, every runner with a family. No doubt, the time that it takes to prepare has to come from somewhere, and one can only reasonably short change oneself just so much on sleep.
That said: I’m still going through with the marathon training and run. I’m just deferring the 26.2 goal by two-thirds of a year. So what’s the big deal? What kind of difference do I expect there to be in training for an October marathon rather than a March one?
There are two big differences between March and seven-and-a-half months later. First, the big difference is in my work schedule. From the beginning of February until mid-April, I will be working around 55 hours a week. In the March marathon scenario, many of my heaviest weeks of training fall during the first six weeks of busy season. So, while I’ll still need to find long spells of time on weekends to dedicate to my long runs, they won’t have to be during weeks when I’m working six day weeks -- and long days at that. Yes, training for the half will still take entail long-ish runs on the weekends -- but they won’t be nearly as long. Also, this will leave the last five weeks of busy season free of any training schedule. I’m sure I’ll want to keep up regular running in late March and April, but I can do it on my time rather than following the strictures of a training schedule.
The other big difference is that my kids will be just that much older. Right now, my kids are likely at the neediest times of their lives. Josiah is two-and-a-half, and so can get into anything he wants to, lacking the self-control to keep himself from trouble. Chloe is seven months and still does not sleep through the night. What that means, among other things, is that Julie needs a little extra sleep whenever she can get it. If I drop both kids on her for a day, that guarantees that no sleep shall be had by the mama. However, next summer, Josiah will be three and Chloe one. Hopefully Josiah will be past some watershed in behavior, which will translate to greater independence. Chloe, presumably, will be sleeping through the night (hopefully well before summer) and will get, at least for a while, progressively easier to care for.
Other little things also favor the October marathon. Much of my more intense training will now fall in the summer. I love running in the summer. I love running on roads, and it’s better to run while it’s light. I look forward to long, hard runs under the summer sun.
Also, it’ll give me a little extra time to shed a few pounds that would be hard to carry 26.2 miles. Weight loss has never been much of a goal of mine, but in running, it becomes a little clearer the cost of carrying extra weight. And I’m not looking to go on any great diet -- just to maybe cut out a few extra calories, with a goal of maybe losing a couple of pounds a month.
All that having been said, I am now very excited about my dual goals of running a marathon in October as well as the half marathon in March. I’ve never given the half much consideration before, but I think it’ll be exciting. It will give me extra confidence in the larger goal of running a marathon as well.
I made this decision on Saturday and had a good long run yesterday (Sunday). It was filled with prayer and joy, even as I ran down an unlit trail well after sunset. Even in the dark, the world is a brighter place for this change of mind. I’m excited about busy season coming at work, which is my favorite time of the work year. The anticipation was marred with a tone of dread. Now my verve is up.
Bring it on!
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