Comments on: Training

By: Jeffrey Tang

Jeffrey Tang — Tue, 25 May 2010 17:57:42 +0000

Helen Keller once said, “I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble.”

Your excellent post reminds me of the truth in this statement. All of us, I think, need some sort of “heroic enterprise” to aspire to, work on, and practice for, whether it’s a running a marathon, starting a company, or writing a book.

I’ve been thinking about this concept – the idea of a quest – for a while now. Funny how you start thinking about something and then you see it everywhere.

By: TMatte

TMatte — Sun, 23 May 2010 09:02:18 +0000

I can relate to these posts for many reasons. I started training for triathlons over 5 years ago and have made the entire process both mundane and heroic. It took me two years to go from finishing in the bottom third to actually winning my age group. With the occasional top 10 overall finish. Race days feel like Christmas morning to me!

My new training is directed at learning how to write a blog(or is the new term lifestream?) that has a point of view, is relevant to my audience and true to who I am. This will be a true heroic journey for me.

By: Beth

Beth — Sun, 23 May 2010 03:30:01 +0000

Gosh, Steve, I wish I had read this before my pathetic attempt at a short “run” today. I woke up this morning and googled “running motivation” for help gearing up for the three measly miles I planned to run with my little girl as she rode her bike ahead of me. I finished my first half-marathon two weeks ago (squinting to make out the back of the pack). So how is it that I struggle so with three? *sigh* But somehow I managed to complete 13.1 miles, and in cold and windy conditions. Did you have miserable training moments???

By: Jeff

Jeff — Fri, 21 May 2010 12:37:11 +0000

Like the new page!

By: RS Weir

RS Weir — Thu, 20 May 2010 18:40:45 +0000

Oh Yes, training, the process of conditioning only possible under the power of habit!

By: Steve D.

Steve D. — Thu, 20 May 2010 04:03:28 +0000

Another Festivus miracle! It’s great to learn, even well after the fact, that the “marathon” response is more natural than crazy. In 1999 my wife of fifteen years left me with an empty box for a home and a claim on most of my disposable income. I responded by entering the “Body for Life” challenge, finishing strongly and, while not copping the big prizes, picking up several (cherished) honorable mentions. I also rebuilt my home, traded up, furnished it to the point where I could flip through “Architectural Digest” and sneer (sort of), and met/married the Love of my Life. And, yes, we’re living happily ever after. (I insist on it!) Ya do one impossible thing because you must, and nothing is impossible thereafter.

Thanks, Steve. Great notion. (Great site.)

By: Ines

Ines — Wed, 19 May 2010 22:05:13 +0000

Dang! I needed this. The first time I decided to run, I signed up for a 5K on the day of the race. Before you judge me, just know that the sponsored charity seemed worth inflicting myself with pain (Free Wheelchair Mission). It took me forty-five minutes to run the 3.1 miles on a flat “easy” course. I think I was last, unless the man walking the dog counts. After, I could not walk for days. I learned that training is important.

I signed up for run/walk training sessions. I ran dozens of races, numerous half-marathons and even trained for a marathon. Unfortunately, a labrial tear in the left hip during the 20-mile run took marathons, actually, any type of running, off my to-do-list. However, I am convinced that I would have done well, I would have finished, I would have raised my hands up high across the rubber mat and then collapsed.

You have encouraged me to apply this experience to my writing. I have been struggling to get started, but no more. Watch out Resistance, I know how to train and I have the perseverance of a runner. Even if my fingers crack, I can always dictate. Thanks again!

By: Simon

Simon — Wed, 19 May 2010 18:33:14 +0000

Profound and inspirational as always Steven.

What we most want and what we most need often costs us greatly to achieve.

In pushing ourselves when it matters most we are grasping at the question that lives deep inside: how to live. When we choose to live with the acceptance of failure and the struggle against it we are truly living.

By: Jen Young

Jen Young — Wed, 19 May 2010 17:46:52 +0000

Thank you for this post! A while back you asked for suggestions for a War of Art follow-up. Training is exactly the subject I would be looking for. As a dancer, martial artist and personal trainer, I figure there has to be a way to train for our encounters with Resistance. Marathon training is a terrific reference.

By: tobias tinker

tobias tinker — Wed, 19 May 2010 15:46:18 +0000

This is spot on – a fact I can attest to as both a fellow runner (4 marathons, I’ll likely do a 5th this year) and fellow artist-in-it-for-the-long-haul, as it were.

Training is a journey, not a means to an end. Race day is a different thing, a specific and valuable accomplishment, but the real value is in the training and the commitment to it and the changes you undergo as you go through it – and which cannot happen any other way. This applies to both running and every creative modularity I know of.

I actually wrote a little post along these lines last fall… in case anyone’s interested: http://cliffjump.net/look-before-you-leap/