I must tell you that I do not like running long distances. I am a former Marine and have played many sports all throughout my youth. I feel like I have already run enough for 2 life times, and I’m not sure how much further my knees will carry me. Yet I still say to you,“running a Marathon is GREAT”!!
In 2011 I had the pleasure of training a friend, Stan Fisher to run the Marine Corps Marathon. After helping him slim down and seeing his excitement upon completing that marathon, I was too was excited. When he invited me to join his team for the 2012 MCM,I was a bit apprehensive. Besides 26.2 miles is a long way. Your body does strange things during that distance, but if lots of others could do it, I knew I could too. Besides I had gone through all the training with Stan the year before. I am a former Marine, and we were running this Marathon with Team Fisher House. A foundation set up to support injured troops and there families. I’m in!
I didn’t think I was going to have as much fun as I did. I kept telling people this was going to be my one and only marathon. Now I’m singing a different tune. The Fisher House Foundation gave me a sense of being on a team like I have not felt since high school sports. We had an awards banquet the night before the race with some great pre-race fuel, and a lot of motivation. The next morning we found streamers and a motivational poster on our door. We gathered as a team to travel to the team tent, and to the start of the race together. During the race we had our own cheering squad wearing cow hats and ringing cowbells throughout the race. This was all on top of all the great things the Marines had provided for the race as well as running around the sites of Arlington VA, and Washington D.C. The best thing about the whole thing is we were having a lot of fun while raising awareness and funds for injured troops. SO COOL! I hope to get the opportunity to do it over and over again.
When I tell this story to others they ask a couple questions, 1) How did I train to complete something like this, and 2) Do I think they could do it too?
YES, I think you can accomplish something like this. You can do anything you put your mind and efforts toward. Sometimes it’s not easy, but every year there is a very VERY diverse crowd that completes the MCM. Also known as “The Peoples Race”.
I have put together a running schedule to get you to a comfortable position to accomplish a marathon. If you are in the Atlanta area, I have included a couple races to get you warmed up. These races will be fun, but only a drop in the bucket to the experience you will have running the 2013 MCM with Team Fisher House. Team Fisher House and I will both give training tips along the way.
For more tips and support go to TrainerNick.com You can email me at Nick@TrainerNick.com , message TrainerNick on FB, TrainerNickLLC on Twitter, or Tune into TrainerNick on iTunes, YouTube, & SoundCloud.
