Finish Strong

After a few weeks of travel, there's nothing I crave more than getting back home and getting back into a routine. After weeks of airplanes, taxicabs, political conventions and dinners out, I've got a little catching up to do in my Marathon training.

Okay, a lot of catching up to do.

So, last week I laid down the gauntlet. If I am going to succeed in running the Marine Corps Marathon on October 30th, I have to step it up a notch. Rather than running my already-respectable 5K a day, I have no choice but to up the ante: 5 miles per day, minimum. And this isn't even counting the longer weekend runs. After all, I have a Marathon to run, people! The MCM is just a short (gulp!) five weeks away.

But I'll be ready.

I've succeeded at getting a couple of 5+-mile runs under my belt last week, and tomorrow will run my first 8-miler in nearly four years. Even though this means earlier ups in the mornings, or later evening runs after work, it's worth it. And even though I'm undoubtedly lining the pockets of my future orthopedic surgeon with my occasional knee pain, it feels really, really good just to be back out there. Any runner out there who's ever been sidelined will know what I mean.

I am looking forward to these final weeks of training. I'm excited for the further changes I will see in my body, and my level of personal fitness. Furthermore, I can't wait for the regalia of Marathon Day itself. All great reasons to Finish Strong!

Willpower

It has been said that the friends you have today, and the books you are reading right now, will tell you more about where your life will be in 5 years than any other indicator.

Well, I love my books. And I am proud to know some of the coolest people in the world who allow me to call them "friends."

The newest book I cannot put down is Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength by renowned psychologist Roy Baumeister and New York Times writer John Tierney.

Now, I realize that no fewer than a million books have been written on this subject which is as old as time itself. But this new gem explains the science deep inside the brain which drives Willpower. And I love that.

It turns out that “Willpower is like a muscle: it can be strengthened with practice and fatigued with overuse" – which I think is very interesting in this multi-tasking world. For instance, did you know that your brain (and thereby your Willpower) can actually get fatigued by contemplating too many decisions in a single day? But by automating mundane daily decisions and taking the guesswork out of it (i.e., whether or not you’ll actually go to the gym), you can conserve brainpower and build up even stronger willpower for more critical moments (i.e., major life decisions that really count). Once again, I cannot help but think how brilliant Nike was with their “Just Do It” slogan. It's as if they've known this brainy little secret all along.

If you think this is kabuki science that doesn't apply to life and death decisions, check this out. In the areas of eating habits, right down to the consumption of glucose (sugar) they cite a study: "Researchers found that Israeli judges making parole decisions were likely to grant parole roughly 65 percent of the time after a meal break, but approved parole almost never right before one." Kind of makes you re-think when to set appointments to pitch business proposals, doesn't it?

The authors also report that the average human faces up to 4 hours of temptation per day. I haven’t gotten to that chapter yet, but I can only imagine that with the temptations stemming from food and drink, social networking, texting, and the glow of online sex, it stands to reason we are a nation going out of our minds. Literally.

This book will change your way of thinking. Whether you're looking to eat healthy, run a Marathon, or just become a better human being. I know it has changed my perspective already. Check it out on Amazon.com when you can. Just don't overthink it.

9/11 "United We Run" Series: Todd Beamer: Father, Husband, Hero, Athlete

There’s something different about athletes.

Something that sets us apart from the rest of the population.

I don’t know if it’s the discipline it takes to rise at some unearthly hour, or the fact that we push ourselves to break new records – but there’s just a little something extra that makes us stand a bit taller in a crowd.

I believe it’s no different in moments of crisis.

Todd Beamer, the man who uttered the inspirational “Let’s Roll” call to action on 9/11, was a lifelong athlete. Although I couldn’t find specific proof in my research that Todd Beamer was a runner, newspaper accounts suggest he was an avid sports fan and a lifelong team player.

One newspaper reports that throughout his life, Beamer “defined himself by athletics. He excelled at a Christian High School in baseball, basketball and soccer. And when his family moved to California before his senior year, Beamer used sports to make new friends… He attended Fresno State University to play baseball, with an eye toward a professional career, but he soon realized that was not in his future…” Then he met his wife on November 2, 1991. After they got married, Todd decorated their game room in festive Chicago Cubs sports memorabilia. They both joined the softball team at church, where Todd continued to be exceptionally competitive and “did not shy away from bowling over another player if it meant winning.”

All too often in today’s society, being competitive is frowned upon. We want every child to have a trophy, just for showing up. Well, imagine for one moment if the passengers of Flight 93 that day had only  “shown up.” Stayed in their seats, just as the terrorists told them to. The outcome would have been very different.

I believe it was a fiercely competitive spirit that led Todd to act that day and bring together a small team of brave Americans to break into the cockpit, fight hand-to-hand with terrorists, and take down an airliner that was screaming toward our nation's Capitol building – saving hundreds if not thousands of lives, according to aall government counts.
There is a quote from Gene Hackman’s character in the legendary sports film, The Replacements, that happens to be one of my favourite quotes: “Winners always want the ball when the game is on the line.” I think it perfectly represents the heroic actions of our fellow Americans – and fellow athletes – that day. As fierce competitors in the game of good vs. evil and like star players who scored just as the buzzer was running out, Todd Beamer and his fellow passengers saved their nation from further death and heartbreak.

9/11.  Never Forget.

9/11 "United We Run" Series: Ronald Buca: Fire Marshal, Special Forces, Father, Hero, Runner

NYFD Fire Marshal Ronald Buca was cat-like. In his agility. His speed. The ability to always land on his feet. And the fact that he seemed to have lived nine lives.

Firefighters Quarterly describes Buca as a firefighter who once survived after he fell five stories inside a burning building. He made a full recovery after plotting out his own physical therapy routine when he was convinced he could do it better. (This makes me laugh for my own personal reasons.) Prior to his 23 years as a firefighter, Buca served as an elite Special Forces operator, a medical professional and an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Military. As the former, he became so convinced terrorists would strike again after their 1993 attack on the World Trade Center, he became an expert on emergency evacuation plans and even kept a set of blueprints of the World Trade Center in his locker at work.

Like many firefighters that day, Buca did not have to report for duty. But he did anyway.

Buca, an avid Marathon runner, was believed to be just the second person to arrive at the point of impact where the first plane went into the 78th floor. The other was NYFD Battalion Chief Orio Palmer (featured in a previous post). Whereas his colleague Palmer was able to ride the elevator first to the 41st Floor, before taking the stairs the rest of the way to the 78th floor – Buca actually climbed the entire distance, starting from the ground floor and going all the way to the 78th floor. Seventy-eight stories takes some serious endurance. Endurance that, in my opinion, only a Marathoner or Triathlete or professional athlete could marshal.

Once he arrived, Buca joined Palmer in evacuating survivors and battling the fire with equipment they had available to them. Like Palmer and other first responders who were busy battling the blaze when the floor underneath them collapsed with the rest of the Tower, Buca died a hero.

The number of lives that both men touched leaves me stunned. And it makes me take a hard look at my own daily life. Am I helping enough people? Am I making a big enough impact in the world? I could be philosophical and say I don’t yet know the answer to this, but I’m pretty sure when compared to these brave men, the answer is “no.” Their heroics make me want to refine myself further – as both a runner and a human being – so that I can be a greater blessing to those around me. I hope that this small action is tribute enough to my fellow runners and the heroes who did so much, for so little, and to their families, who lost everything that day.

9/11. Never Forget.