If you set a goal, make sure to write it down. Even though you think you have your goal in mind, you just might forget.
When I started running again back in April, my goal was to get back in shape and possibly run a half marathon sometime before the end of the year. As I progressed, the idea of a full marathon started to cross my mind. My running endurance was getting better by leaps and bounds, and all of a sudden a half marathon didn’t seem like it would be a big enough test for me.
There is a marathon coming up in five weeks, and it looks like I may not be ready. Maxed out at 15 miles so far, the idea of tacking on another 11 miles within 5 weeks now seems like a very tall order. I haven’t counted out the possibility, but reality is starting to sink in. Would this be a failure? Was my goal setting plan just a waste of time?
Not at all. My original goal was to get in shape and possibly run a half marathon. Well, I’m in much better shape than I was in April, and in fact, I have already exceeded the 13.1 mile half marathon distance. All I need to do is run in the actual race and my goal will have been achieved. The full marathon idea came along while training for the half marathon. I just got ahead of myself. Not to say that I won’t be ready in five weeks, but that was not my original goal. My original goal is a race away. The training has been done. I have the endurance.
There is another aspect to this aside from the goal setting. If I should happen to run the full marathon coming up, it would be an insult to every athlete that knocked themselves out getting ready for such a monumental physical event. Here I am stumbling along in April, barely able to run a 5k, and a few months later I’m running a marathon.
No, it takes time and commitment. The smart thing for me is to run the half marathon as I originally planned and try for a full marathon next year. I know I can do a half. I can’t be sure about a full marathon. The last thing I want to start the race and have to quit somewhere along the route. I know I can do a full marathon ultimately, just not yet. Sure, maybe I can grind it out and do permanent damage in the process, but that would make the whole idea of getting back in shape pointless.
Write down your goals. I had my goals, but I forgot what they were when I started seeing results, because I didn’t write it down. It’s exciting to plan something and then start seeing results. Stay with the plan though. The marathon is coming for me. I will continue training, and if I’m not ready, then I’m not ready. That wasn’t the plan anyway. Those half marathons are coming up though. I am ready for those…
