Tag: marathon

One Foot in Front of the Other

by Kimberly Frey, posted in Motivational, Running, fitness, Uncategorized, Women

We are a little over five weeks away from the Chicago Marathon, and I have made it through most of my training. When I last wrote, I was preparing for my first ten mile run. Since then, I’ve completed the majority of my long runs: 10, 13, 14, and 16. I only have an 18 mile and 20 mile run left. Some runs have been better than others, but overall I am making progress, getting stronger, and (hopefully) faster. These changes aren’t just random; they are occurring because I keep running.

In order to be successful in marathon training, I have to keep getting out there and doing the training part. It’s not going to just happen. I have to make the choice to get up, put my running clothes on, head out the door….. and then RUN. If I completed all of the preparation steps but never actually ran, then I would never actually be ready for my race. The running is the hardest part, but it’s the part that is the most necessary. (This is also a very useful life analogy!)

I previously shared that I am working towards a goal of running a new personal best this year. To do so would mean that I would have to run the marathon in less than 4 hours and 57 minutes, my fastest marathon time from sixteen years ago. My last few long runs have been a struggle, and I haven’t been running at the pace needed to hit that goal. With that in mind, I have created a secondary goal of simply being able to finish as close as I can get to, or maybe even slightly under, five hours. While this might not seem like much of an adjustment, it’s just enough to keep me motivated during these last weeks of training and also keeps me close enough to my primary goal that I can keep pushing to maybe still accomplish it.

Throughout this training season, I have been encouraged by the support that has been shown to me. People who know that I am training for the marathon check in on my progress and ask me how things are going. Since I am running this race as a charity fundraiser for Girls in the Game, even more people have also supported those efforts by donating to my fundraising page – many of them complete strangers. Some of you reading this post even received it as part of my thank you email for your support. The kindness is not lost on me, and I have been taking all the positive energy in as marathon day gets closer. Knowing others believe in me makes it easier for me to keep putting one foot in front of the other. If you would like to donate to my efforts and continue with sending the love, you can use this link here. Even if you cannot donate anything, sharing this blog and the link with others and following my journey is a tangible way of showing your support. As a life coach and consultant, my motto is You Can Do It. I Can Help. As a charity runner trying to meet her marathon and fundraising goals, my personal motto is currently…

I Can Do It. You Can Help.

Thank you for all of your support!

Will I or Won’t I?

by Kimberly Frey, posted in Girls, Motivational, Running, fitness, Women

The last time I wrote, I shared that I was training for my 3rd Chicago marathon. Well, marathon training is ramping up with my first double digits run happening this weekend. I’ve been pushing myself to be consistent in my training in hopes of being able to – if not get a new personal best time – then to at least finish in under five hours. Seeing as the last time I ran a marathon in under five hours was over a decade ago, I know it’s a lofty goal. But, it’s one I’m still willing to work for.

I’ve shared here before that I love how running is truly an excellent analogy for life. We are all running this marathon called life together, and while there are always other factors at play, how well we do primarily depends on how much work we are willing to put in. We all have the same start and will all end up at the same finish. I’m not trying to be metaphorical here. We are all born, and we will all die. What we do with the time we have between those two points will determine how successful we are, just as the training I choose to do (or not do) determines how successful my marathon attempt will be.

As a former varsity cross country and track coach, I used to remind my athletes that they needed to focus on running “their” race. There were always going to be runners who were faster than them, and for some of them having a 1st, 2nd, or even 3rd place finish was not realistic. They needed to keep their own goals in mind as those were the ones that were realistic for them. Now, as a life coach for adults, I use a goal format where one of the tenants are for the goal to be “realistic.” It’s the non-running version of running your own race. While it’s important and necessary for us to aim high, if we consistently create unattainable goals for ourselves we will end up feeling defeated. I have always set high expectations for myself, my former students and athletes, and now my clients, but they have been designed around realistic outcomes. I never set a goal for a brand new runner who could barely run 10 minute miles to cut that time to 4 minute miles by the end of the season, but I would set the goal that they shave it down to 7 or 8 because while it would take hard work on their part, it was still something I knew they could accomplish.

So, I guess I said all that to say this – is running a marathon in under 5 hours a realistic goal for me? At this point and time, I’m saying yes. Now…ask me again a month from now, and we’ll see if my answer has changed. Follow along on my training journey to find out!

Also, I’m running the marathon in support of Girls in the Game, a fantastic organization providing sports programming and more for girls all throughout Chicago. If you’d like to make a donation, please click here for my fundraising page. Every dollar counts, and is fully tax-deductible.

Thank you for your support as both a reader and a donor!