The past is the past, the future’s uncertain, and today is a gift. That’s why they call it the present.
I now spotted Julie walking across the parking lot and decided to seize the day in a different way.
“Psst,” I whispered at her.
She turned and walked over. “Yes? Can I help you?” she responded playfully.
“Why don’t the two of us quietly slip into the bus and explore the limits of human endurance?” I said.
“Here, in the parking lot, with all these people around?”
“Listen,” I went on, “the boys have been romping around the countryside collecting phone numbers for forty-six days. When’s your hubby gonna get a little lovin’?” I smiled my most winning smile.
She looked totally unconvinced.
“Carpe diem!” I shouted, thinking this proclamation would be the decisive battle cry.
“Nice try,” she said. “That’s Latin, and you’re Greek. You just keep running, ultramarathon man. I’m heading out with your mom and Alexandria. Veni, vidi, Visa.” She walked off with a wink.
I thought about what she said: I came, I saw, I . . .
shopped
? Yes, that was precisely it! I was left standing empty-handed while she headed off to the mall with my credit card. If that’s not tough love, I don’t know what is.
Day 47
November 2, 2006
Delaware Marathon
Wilmington, Delaware
Elevation: 73'
Weather: 59 degrees; partly cloudy
Time: 4:02:58
Net calories burned: 149,789
Number of runners: 50
Everyone is busy these days. Feeling constantly rushed and pressed for time is one of the hallmarks of our modern lifestyle. A steady increase in the amount of time we spend at work and in cars has put a major squeeze on the rest of the day. In fact, a recent national survey found that many workers are starting their morning commute earlier than they used to because of the terrible traffic congestion problems affecting almost every major city. Of course, waking up earlier means sleeping less, and the average American adult is sleeping less than ever. It’s the only way to make time for all the things we need to accomplish in a day outside of working and sitting in cars: helping the kids with homework, doing laundry, preparing meals, paying bills, cleaning the house—and, oh yeah, running.
I suppose you could say that non-exercisers have an advantage over runners in the sense that workouts are just one more thing runners have to squeeze into their day—one more thing that non-exercisers, by definition, don’t have to worry about. Finding time to run each day is a major challenge for many runners—especially those who, like me, have demanding careers and children at home. Meeting this challenge requires a great passion for running, plus discipline, sacrifice, and sometimes a little creativity as well.
Lack of time is the most often cited excuse for not exercising. Yet it is just that: an excuse. In reality, regular exercisers have no more free time than non-exercisers. Non-exercisers are simply more likely to devote their free time to other activities, such as watching television, playing video games, and surfing the Internet, instead of exercising. None of us has time to do everything we would like to do, so we conscientiously choose our priorities. When a person says, “I just don’t have time to exercise,” what that person essentially means is,
Exercise is not a high priority for me
. Though I think exercisers and non-exercisers both know this.
I used to think I managed time efficiently, until I met Martin Franklin. Martin is CEO of Jarden Corporation, a multibillion-dollar company that owns such familiar brands as Coleman and Mr. Coffee. Needless to say, that’s a busy job. Martin is also an attentive husband, devoted father, and committed philanthropist. On top of that, he is an accomplished marathoner, ultramarathoner, and Ironman triathlete. Martin manages to do it all, and is living proof that a person
can
do it all.
Better Than Nothing
Many runners operate with a tacit belief that if they don’t have at least twenty-five or thirty minutes available to run, it’s not even worth bothering to lace up their shoes. That’s not true. An aggressive ten-minute run is worth the effort. You can burn more than 150 calories in a hard ten-minute run, which is also long enough to make a noticeable difference in terms of how you feel for the rest of the day. Plus, ten-minute blocks add up quickly. If you do a ten-minute run instead of saying “Aw, forget it” once every week, you will complete thirteen more hours of running over the course of a year—enough to prevent roughly four pounds of weight gain and to produce a measurable increase in your cardiovascular health and fitness.
How, exactly, do folks like Martin make it work? First, they prioritize what’s important to them, realizing that nobody can have it all. As a former boss once said to me, “You can have anything you want, you just can’t have
everything
you want.” Second, they make sacrifices. I, personally, have absolutely zero social life. None. I don’t go to bars or restaurants, or even to the movies anymore. My life consists of family and training, in that order. Until someone figures out how to put twenty-eight hours in the day, something’s got to give. Sacrifices must be made. Lastly, high achievers don’t make excuses. There is
always
time to exercise, and they take it upon themselves to make the time. No excuses.
Of course, discipline also helps. If you plan ahead, budget your time, and avoid distractions, you will have a much better chance of accomplishing everything you wish to accomplish in a day—including your run. Our team relied heavily on disciplined time management throughout the Endurance 50. Each day’s marathon was scheduled to begin at 8:00
AM
. It was important that the events begin on time, not only because the participants expected them to, but also because we promised the local officials at each venue that we would not tie up their roads, police support, and other resources after a certain hour, and because we had to allow time to pack up the Finish Festival in the afternoon and drive to the next marathon location in the evening. So we had our morning routine worked out with military precision.
Running at Home
Treadmills offer a great solution for busy runners who struggle to squeeze workouts into their day. If the only free time you have is before the sun comes up or after it goes down, a home treadmill allows you to train without having to run in the dark. If you have small children at home, making it difficult or impossible to leave home to run sometimes, you can watch your kids and run at the same time with a home treadmill. A well-built treadmill for home use costs fifteen hundred to three thousand dollars. They’re not cheap, but if it keeps you going, it’s well worth the price.
My alarm went off at six o’clock on mornings when I did not have a blood draw, five o’clock on mornings when I had to get poked. My running clothes, foot lube, and other necessary items had been laid out the night prior for easy access. By seven o’clock I was on the bus, eating my breakfast, and perhaps doing interviews over the phone. If there were any interviews scheduled to take place at the starting area, we made sure to budget time for them.
As the poet Robert Burns said, however, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. Believe me, the best-laid plans of the Endurance 50 went awry more than once. Still, the show always went on. In Minnesota, there had been an electrical fire in the hotel we were staying at, and the building was evacuated in the middle of the night. The fuse box that caught fire happened to be right next to my room. Just this morning, we were delayed leaving for the start by a bomb scare. It was unnerving, to say the least. All we could do was try to remain calm and hope that we were not to be blown to smithereens. We weren’t, so we kept going.
Never Too Busy
Here are some other tips to maintain a consistent running regimen despite a busy schedule:
•
Plan ahead.
Make a habit of knowing when and where you will run tomorrow before you go to bed each night. Set your alarm clock, and stick with the plan.
•
Stay on schedule.
In addition to planning your running opportunities, you might find it useful to create a schedule for your entire day. This will help ensure that your other daily activities don’t spill over into the time slot you had reserved for your running.
•
Do what works for you.
Consider all options when trying to determine your best running opportunities. Late-night and predawn runs can be invigorating.
•
Don’t be afraid.
Many runners fear that running will sabotage their careers or lead to social ostracization at work or elsewhere. In my experience, however, people actually respect the discipline and commitment required to make these sacrifices.
•
Use teamwork.
Building relationships with other runners is another great way to reduce the frequency with which you find yourself “too busy to run.”
•
Multitask.
One great way to save time is to try to accomplish something else while you run. For example, you can literally
run
short errands—to the post office, to the bank, to the market, or wherever.
•
Be flexible and opportunistic.
Creating plans and schedules will certainly reduce the number of running opportunities you miss, though it will not eliminate them. Try to be flexible and adaptable, and seize on gaps in your schedule to get a quick run in. That way, if something unexpected disrupts your normally scheduled run, you don’t feel stressed about missing a workout. (And if something unexpected doesn’t disrupt your normally scheduled run, you can get in
two
workouts that day!)
Don’t get discouraged if you get waylaid by unforeseen events, whether it’s a meeting running late, a fire in your hotel room, or a bomb scare. Never write off the run! Deal with the setback and remain steadfast. Despite the obstacles you face daily, apply the universal logic that’s gotten me through a midlife crisis and through other, more imminent, stressors (like an explosive device about to detonate within close proximity):
When all else fails, start running
.
Adapt and Thrive
Day 48
November 3, 2006
Philadelphia Marathon
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Elevation: 45'
Weather: 57 degrees; partly cloudy
Time: 3:57:17
Net calories burned: 152,976
Number of runners: 50
I
began to entertain some
wistfully retrospective thoughts about the Endurance 50 before it even ended. When we rolled into Philadelphia for marathon forty-eight, I suddenly realized that the crew and I would awaken from this crazy dream in fewer than seventy-two hours. While I was looking forward to completing the mission and moving on with my life, I also knew that I would face a post-event comedown in relinquishing our amazing voyage to the past. Anticipating the perspective that my mind would soon have on the whole Endurance 50—that of fond memories and affectionate recollections of adventure— I naturally found myself reminiscing on the many highs and lows of the preceding forty-seven days.
In remembering the first few marathons, I was struck by how differently we had operated then compared with now. We fumbled and bumbled like the Keystone Cops during the first week, whereas lately the Endurance 50 crew had functioned with the efficiency and precision of a highly trained production unit. Our early Finish Festivals had been especially chaotic. Their physical layout was completely non-intuitive and confusing to everyone, including our own staff. Nobody was in charge—the events seemed to drift along rudderless in no particular direction.
The problem was that the Finish Festivals had been designed before the Endurance 50 began, when we didn’t have a clear understanding of what things would
really
be like. When our great expedition got rolling, those of us charged with executing the plan quickly discovered that it needed modification. Knowing we would never survive fifty days unless changes were made, we created a new Finish Festival layout with a more natural flow, which helped everybody in the end. Things improved even further when Hopps stepped forward to create a more formal post-race ceremony that brought a satisfying closure to each event, whereas previously it had just sort of dissolved. This is but one example of the many ways in which the Endurance 50 evolved in response to specific problems and challenges that threatened our mission.
Adaptability is also critical to success in running. Each runner is unique. There is no single formula for running success that works equally well for everyone. Some runners are naturally speedy and struggle to build endurance; others are the opposite. Some runners are injury-resistant, others are injury-prone. Some runners recover quickly from hard workouts while others take longer.
To continually improve as a runner, try to really tune in to how your body responds to training and continuously evolve your training methods accordingly. When you’re a beginner, the best you can do is follow one-size-fits-all training guidelines obtained from a coach, a book, or a more experienced runner. As you do so, however, you are sure to discover that they don’t always meet all your individual needs. Eventually, these general methods will need to be modified and tweaked to better fit your personal goals and approach. As Charles Darwin has written, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.”
As your running progresses and evolves, try to never lose sight of running for the sheer enjoyment of running. When I watch the elite African runners, one thing that strikes me—beyond their incredible athletic talent—is that they always seem to be smiling and laughing. Could there be a connection between their smiles and their speed? Perhaps so. Kids sometimes ask me who the best runner is. “The best runner,” I tell them, “is the one who’s having the most fun.”