Why I Sucked in College

If you are reading this blog, I assume you are, like me, somewhat of a running nerd and spend at least 15 minutes a day (or your entire lunch break) perusing LetsRun, the self-purported home of distance running and track and field.  One of the best articles ever posted on the site was written by one of the founders himself, Weldon Johnson, aka WeJo.  The title of the post, Why I Sucked in College.  In it, Wejo, who would ultimately go on to run 28:06 for 10k and finish fourth in the Olympic Trials, bluntly breaks down why he never ran as well as he could have in college.

While I have yet to accomplish anything close to what WeJo did as a post collegiate runner, I also sucked in college.  I left college with 14:47 and 30:48 PR's for 5k and 10k, and was solidly mediocre in the grand scheme of things, never once scoring in a Patriot League championship meet.  How then, did I reach the point where I can think of myself as a sub 2:20 marathoner and say with a straight face that my goal is to qualify for the Olympic Trials?

The answer is simple really.

In college it was way too easy for me to become completely engrossed in my training and races.  If you have been around me long enough, you know that I can have an obsessive personality and a perfectionist streak.  Those two traits were my downfall when it came to running.  When you obsess over running, you refuse to let yourself take days off or easy days, constantly seeking to hammer yourself into shape.  You try to lose weight you don't need to lose, and you become a generally miserable person whose last bad race or workout must certainly be a sight that the end of the world is near. 

Of course, you need to be somewhat obsessive and hard on yourself to succeed in anything in life, but when running takes too prominent a place in your life, it actually becomes harder to succeed as your mental clutter blocks you from performing at the level you expect to.  Yes, after all these years, I realize sports psychologists aren't all kooks.

I love to run.  I love the sport and the competition, but in college there were times when I was not having fun with it and more than once, I thought about quitting the sport entirely.  I was pouring my heart and soul into the sport without any noticeable improvement.  That is a hard thing to keep doing day in and day out with no results, but in the end, I never could end this crazy love affair I have with the sport.

One of my biggest problems was confidence.  Although I trained at a high level, I never was able to think of myself as a very good runner.  Not until I ran 8:32 for 3k indoors my senior year did I really consider any of my times very good.  That race gave me a little swagger the rest of the season and I finally started going into races expecting to win, or at least to contend.  Running became fun again, because winning is fun.

Having fun is the key to all of my success this spring.  Running has to be fun or enjoyable.  So, how did I finally come back to enjoying running for what it really is?  Entering the real world certainly has helped.  Now, there is no coach holding a clipboard, waiting for you to trudge down to practice at 4:20 every day.  You must find motivation within yourself if you are going to lace up your shoes and strip down to your running shorts at 6:30 and run in the pitch black, 30 degree February nights.  I realized this winter, that if I didn't find a way to make running fun, I simply wouldn't do it.

Running is still a big part of who I am, and I do take it very seriously, but it is no longer the biggest part.  Running has become what I do for fun to unwind after a day at the office.  The balance brought on by having an adult job has also forced me to think less about my daily run or workout (for the first 7.5 hours of the workday anyway).  I take it one day at a time and try not to think about the next day's workout.  I take a day off every once in a while and only feel slightly guilty.  I eat what I feel like and don't worry about reaching the magical 2 lbs. per inch and I no longer see it as a mortal sin to have a dozen wings and a few beers the night before a long run.

So, if you were like me in college, and have similar PR's, my biggest advice to you is to lighten up, have a few beers every once in a while, and enjoy running for what it is - a daily 1-2 hour reprieve from the stresses and schedule of work and the world we live in, and see where the sport can take you.  You might even pick up some prize money in the process.

Week of 6/3 Training Summary

Monday - 8 miles, moderate effort @ 6:06 pace.  I was up early and out the door for a longer run as it was my fiancee's birthday and we had dinner plans at night.

Tuesday - AM run - 9.5 miles, easy effort @ 6:25 pace.  I woke up early and decided to get in my longer run in the morning since the USA Half is an early start.
Tuesday - PM run - 4 miles, shakeout and strides

Wednesday - AM run - 4 miles, shakeout
Wednesday - PM run- 7 miles, interval workout, 3 x mile (4:53, 4:54, 4:51) w/ 2 min recovery.  Ran the first three laps of each interval @ 5:00 pace and kicked in 67-68 the last lap of each interval.  Would have liked to do a fourth, but still felt a little tired and did not sleep well the night before.  Decided not to push too hard today as any fitness gains would be outweighed by the fatigue.

Thursday - 10 miles, easy on the railbed from Colebrook.  6:30-6:45 pace.  Ran with Ed Schrom (4:07 miler from UVA) and Sean Manning (one of the better HS runners in the area).  Two good guys to run with.  Really pumped Ed is back in the area for the summer and healthy.  We work well together and had some excellent workouts last summer.  The kid is a big time talent.

Friday - 10 miles, moderate effort on the riverfront and did some strides.  Ran for the last time in those FAAS 900's that Henry gave me.  Those things are like bricks and I always feel like I can't lift my feet wearing these.

Saturday - 9 miles, interval workout with Ed, 3 mile tempo in 15:32 (5:14, 5:12, 5:06) followed by 5 x 400 in 64.3, 64.6, 62.8, 63.1 and 59.4.  5 min rest after the tempo and 1 min rest between the quarters.  Great workout!  Accomplished exactly what I wanted to - get in a relaxed tempo for two miles, squeeze it a little in the last mile to put some extra crap in my legs and then blast some 400's to sharpen up.  First time running under 60 for a quarter since high school haha.  Strength = speed.

Sunday - 12 miles, longish run at Stony Valley in Dauphin.  Great run on the dirt roads.

Total - 74

Overall a very good week of training.  Ramped it back up slightly as I get ready for the USA Half.