Infectious Community

It just so happens that the Women’s Half-Marathon Series falls each year on my birthday.  I’ve been running this event since they first came to St. Petersburg over 4 years ago. It is a great race with lots of perks and amenities specific for women.  Running along the waterfront in St. Petersburg and enjoying the typical 70 degree weather makes it an almost perfect event.

But with each race event, I found myself in the midst of thousands of women, yet without the connection, camaraderie, or excitement that comes with having a buddy to run it with you.  Sure my family was there to cheer me on and support me, but I had yet to find a friend who was willing to run 13.1 miles for the fun of it.  Most folks would laugh in my face at the mere suggestion.

It was my 49^th birthday, and once again I was running another race alone.  But this time I was reeling from a year of depression as a result of a shattered dream that literally altered my destiny.  The race was tough and my run was slow. I didn’t enjoy it, and I knew I didn’t want my 50^th birthday to be a repeat of year 49. At about mile 7, my mind started turning over ideas on how I could pull out of the slump I was in and make my 50^th birthday a time of celebration.  I crossed the finish line that day with a new vision and a new attitude.

Six months later, I was training 24 women for the Women’s Half-Marathon event. How did this happen? I simply extended the invitation to anyone I knew (or didn’t know) to let me train them for six months as my gift to them in celebration of my 50^th birthday.  In turn, it was a gift to me because I found some running buddies to cross the finish line with.  What I didn’t anticipate, however, was the infectious community that would be birthed in the process.

The training was invigorating. Not because of the distance we were achieving in mileage each week, but because of the friendships that were formed.  While in the midst of 90 degree heat, humidity, and a lot of sweat and sometimes tears, we found strength, support, encouragement, compassion, kindness, and a deep resolve and commitment to see each other through.  Women and girls from all walks of life, all shapes, sizes, and ages, coming together in authentic community with one goal in mind – to cross the finish line of 13.1 miles.  It didn’t matter what we looked like or what we wore. We presented ourselves vulnerable as we made the commitment to reach for a goal that seemed preposterous to many and outlandish to some.  We made ourselves accountable to each other and came together each week to get our run on.  Along the way, amidst our fears and doubts, we overcame, and we left our training sessions feeling strong, empowered, confident, capable, and courageous.  On the following week, we came back for more….because we had stumbled upon something that was life changing for many of us, and it was infectious.

It is a profound dynamic that continues to amaze me to this day.  Even as our team gets larger, with over 100 women having now crossed multiple finish lines of 13.1 miles, the dynamic doesn’t change. These ladies are positive, supportive, encouraging, and fun.  We are “sole” sisters who have discovered that we are stronger together. We are the FAB 50 team, and we invite YOU to be a part.

From the ashes of a shattered dream, a new vision was birthed, hope was restored, friendships were made, and an infectious community was formed. My life will never be the same. – Coach Pamela

Make the Commitment

The novelty of the training has worn off. The alarm rings early on a Saturday morning and you’d much rather sleep in. As you attempt to arouse yourself from your sleepy slumber, you ask, “What have I gotten myself into?”  It’s cold outside and your bed is warm.  The training runs are getting harder and the distances longer.  You entertain thoughts of bailing out.  “Maybe I’ll just skip today and catch up on my run tomorrow.” You toss these thoughts back and forth in your mind as you search to find the right ones that will get you out of bed.

“Coach Pamela says I have to know my WHY.” 

“As a team member, I am called to be ACCOUNTABLE and make my training count.”

“Yeah, but, I can still can do this some other time when it’s warm and convenient.”

To Run or Not to Run

Tired of the battle in your mind each week as you struggle to get up and going for our scheduled training runs?  Sometimes the vacillating thoughts in our heads can be exhausting.  What we once felt enthusiastic towards has now become a challenge, requiring a real effort to stay the course and not quit.  We need ample strategies that will help us go the distance of a half-marathon training  program.

Look No Further, FAB 50 Delivers!

So what will get you out of bed when you stayed out late the night before, the weather outside is cold, and you’d rather be sleeping? What will help you to overcome the battle that wages in your mind each Saturday? How will you get yourself to your FAB 50 Squad for another training run?  Plain and simple, it’s your COMMITMENT.

• Your COMMITMENT It is a deliberate effort to put into action the behaviors necessary to reach your goal.
• Your COMMITMENT is an unwavering determination to do what it takes to see yourself through to the end.
• Your COMMITMENT is a pledge to yourself,  your family, and your team as that you will finish what you have begun.

With COMMITMENT, there is no need to entertain suggestive thoughts that lead you away from reaching your goals. You just do it. No questions asked.  You don’t waver.  You signed up for it; you’re going to see it through.

Strengthen Your Commitment

With your COMMITMENT, you may want to examine areas of your life that may hinder your training success so you can make some adjustments. You may save your late night outings until Saturday nights when you don’t have to be concerned with waking up early.  You may go to bed early on Friday nights, taking care to give your body the rest it needs for the next day’s run.  You may opt out of drinking alcohol the night before your training, or you may eliminate it all together.  Likewise, you choose to hydrate your body with plenty of water; and you eat nutritious meals.

Now when the alarm rings, you simply get up and get yourself prepared for your morning training session, no questions asked.   You’ve made the COMMITMENT.

Why the Run-Walk-Run Method to Half-Marathon Training?

The ladies of our FAB 50 team have two goals for our half-marathon training program: 1) Cross the finish line, and 2) Complete each mile in 18 minutes or less.  But how?

We Follow Expert Advice

Our strategy for training is based on the expert advice of Jeff Galloway, Olympian, Runner’s World columnist, and trainer,[1] and physicians of the Sport Medicine Centre at the University of British Columbia.[2]  We utilize the run-walk-run method to achieve our goals.  This approach offers many advantages, the first of which is that it allows the novice runner to gradually build endurance and strength to go the distance of 13.1 miles.  Also, by breaking up the runs into shorter segments with walk breaks, the process of training becomes less daunting.

Stress and Rest

Our training method is also a process of “stress and rest.”  Distance running is a physically demanding sport and we need time to recover.  With continuous running, we are more prone to experience muscle fatigue, body aches, and pains. By maintaining the same pace and adding in walk breaks, we alleviate some of the stress on our muscles and thereby reduce the amount of fatigue that we may experience.  Walking in between runs also gives our muscles a chance to recover instantly, reducing the amount of soreness and fatigue the following day.

Best Approach for Older and Heavier Runners

The run-walk-run strategy is also ideal for older or heavier runners. Recovery from a training session comes quicker, and the amount of muscle soreness that is inevitable with new activity is minimized.  Additionally, this approach is the best for preventing injury.

Additional Benefits

Other benefits of the run-walk-run training method helps to increase speed over the long run, allowing you to get to the finish line faster than you would if you ran it without stopping.  It also breaks up the distance into manageable units of time.  Taking walk breaks also provides a window of time for endorphins to be released, giving you that positive sense of well-being while you are still training.  Furthermore, with a speedier recovery after a distance run, you can go about your day without experiencing debilitating fatigue.

Recovery Days

Equally important to the run-walk-run method of training is the recovery days in-between training runs.  While we may take the opportunity to cross train by focusing on a different sport such as bike-riding, elliptical, rollerblading, or strength training, we do not run.  This gives our muscle groups used for half-marathon training time to recover. This helps you to feel rested and ready for your next training run.

FAB 50 Finishes Strong

The FAB 50 team prepares for a half-marathon by training just three days a week. We complete our long runs together on our scheduled Saturday group training sessions. Our program is doable and can be easily integrated into a busy lifestyle.  Our primary goal is to cross the finish line of 13.1 miles, that magical place of achievement that brings so much more than a coveted medal that we proudly wear around our necks.  The run-walk-run approach is the method we use to get us there, and with this training strategy, we not only finish, but we finish strong! 

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[1] Galloway, J., & Galloway, B. (2012). Half-Marathon: A Complete Guide for Women: Meyer & Meyer Sport.

[2] Caron, M., & The Sport Medicine Council of British Columbia. (2006). Marathon and Half Marathon: The Beginner’s Guide. Vancouver: Greystone.

Make Your Resolutions & Join the REVOLUTION!

There are plenty of naysayers around who want to discourage us from making resolutions this year.  All report statistics of the large numbers of people who make, and then break, their new year’s resolutions.  Medical writer for Web MD, Neil Osterweil advises that we should give our resolutions a rest. In other words, don’t make them. Ouch!

The focus seems to lie on the reported 92% of folks who fail at keeping their resolutions.  But what about the 8% who succeed?  If others have been successful in keeping their resolutions, why not us? This suggests hope that we CAN indeed achieve our new year’s goals.

If we’re like most Americans, at the top of our list is the desire to lose weight and get fit. While we recognize this is easier said than done, it CAN be done!  And what better way to do it than with others who want the same thing?  Studies show that people who have good support systems are the most successful at reaching their goals.  Support from others offers accountability and helps us stay committed and finish what we started. Plus it makes the journey of achieving our goals a whole lot more fun!

The women of the FAB 50 team have experienced this first hand.  Together they have embraced a goal to train for and run a half-marathon.  Sure, they questioned their ability to do so, but with the support of their team mates and a commitment to the training, they crossed the finish line of 13.1 miles.  Their take away?  A sense of personal empowerment that carries the belief of being unstoppable in anything else they want to achieve.

Hence, the REVOLUTION.

• It’s about a group of women who determined to get off the couch and reclaim their lives, their health, and their dreams.
• It’s about wives and mothers who have sacrificed so much for their families and careers and found themselves on the sidelines of life, with little time or energy to care for themselves and have decided to take back what was lost.
• It’s about mothers who want more for their daughters and have determined to set the example, no matter how challenging or difficult.
• It’s about daughters who have seen their mothers achieve an extraordinary feat and are inspired to follow suit.
• It’s about mature women who want more out of life in their latter years and have boldly embraced a challenge that they never before dreamed possible.
• It’s about young college women who have the whole world in front of them and want to take it by force, training their bodies to go the distance of 13.1 miles, blazing the trail for much success in their lives.
• It’s about women who collectively are stronger together than alone and find friendship, community and support from one another.

And finally, it’s about women, like you and me who have decided to put ourselves in the category of the 8% of those who DO succeed, believing that we CAN and determining that we WILL achieve whatever we put our mind to.  A half-marathon is just the starting point.

Go ahead. Make your resolutions this year, and join the REVOLUTION for change.

Faith Unabandoned

 

If we look at her story from the perspective of our modern world, she was still a baby.  Just shy of puberty, scholars gauge she may have been around 14 years old.  Hardly old enough to take on the responsibilities of marriage, yet she was engaged.  This was perfectly normal and acceptable during that era of time.

We can only imagine how shaken up we would be if visited by an angel and given a message that seemed preposterous.  Conception without sexual intercourse?  Give birth to a Savior, the Son of the Most High God?

Yet Mary handled the news with poise and grace.  Sure, she was disturbed by the visitation and could not quite grasp the angel’s reference to her as “highly favored.” Likewise, she was most perplexed about how she was to become pregnant.  Putting her fears aside however, she boldly inquired of the angel with a simple question of reasonable doubt, “How shall this be?”  Although the answer provided seemed most outlandish, Mary accepted it with childlike faith.  Her response?  “Be it unto me according to thy word.” *

Perhaps it was her youth that allowed her to so readily embrace the message she was given.  She had not yet undergone the arduous journey of traveling across the country to Bethlehem on a donkey, just days before giving birth.  Nor had she experienced the deplorable conditions of having to go through labor in an animal stable.  And who would consider using a feeding trough stuffed with hay as a baby bassinet?  Mary did.

Imagine if you were to experience what Mary went through.  It’s enough to warrant an emotional meltdown, pausing long enough to question, “God, are you there?!?”  As adults who have weathered many challenges in our lives, it does not take much to cause us to doubt and reconsider our faith.

But Mary determined to believe what seemed incomprehensible.  She chose to trust in the words that the angel spoke to her: “With God nothing shall be impossible.”  Mary simply chose to believe, with unabandoned childlike faith.

It is no wonder that so many years later Jesus tells us that unless we “come as a child” we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. We can learn this lesson from Mary.  In order to walk in faith and embrace God’s word as truth for our lives, we simply have to choose to believe it.   This is the crux of our faith, and the Bible teaches that “without faith, it is impossible to please God.”

God saw Mary’s heart before he sent his angel Gabriel to let her know she was chosen to be the mother of his Son.  God saw her willingness to believe.  Could this be why she was so highly favored?  Scripture teaches that the righteous are blessed and are surrounded with favor.

Like Mary, we too can choose to take God at his word and simply believe it.  And in the same manner, we too can experience God’s blessings and favor on our lives. Like Mary, we too can choose to live by faith unabandoned.

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* Scripture notations taken from the Holy Bible, KJV. Luke 1:26-38;  Matthew 18:3, Hebrews 11:6, Psalms 5:12.