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There was only one answer: Get up and run. Whatever the problem in my life, the solution had always been the same: Keep going!
“Do you wanna be somebody, Jurker? Do you wanna be somebody?”
He tempered his discipline with compassion and a sense of fun. He would challenge me to see how much wood I could haul into our “wood room” in 10 minutes or how many rocks I could pick out of the garden in the same time. I don’t think I realized it at the time, but he was teaching me that competition could turn the most mundane task into a thrill, and that successfully completing a job—no matter how onerous—made me feel unaccountably happy.
I learned patience while doing the tedious tasks, but more important, I learned to find joy in repetitive and physically demanding work. I didn’t always feel happy or patient, of course. I was a kid. But those were the times I kept going. Why? Sometimes you just do things!
You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.
Coach had only three commandments: Be in shape. Work hard. Have fun. They were the perfect fundamentals for a bunch of poor redneck Minnesotans. His motto was, “Pain only hurts.”
if sometimes you just do things, well, sometimes things worked out.
In my valedictory speech I said, “I would like to leave you with four messages to help you and others benefit from life.” (I still have the speech.) “First of all, I ask you to be different. “Second, find a way to help others rather than thinking solely of yourself. “Third, everyone is capable of achieving. Never let anyone discourage you when trying to pursue a goal or a dream. “And finally, do things while you’re young. Be sure to pursue your dreams and goals even if they seem impossible.”
Coming from the flatlands, I had to learn to run uphill. Sharpening that skill, I improved all my running. You can, too, with or without hills. Next time you’re running, count the times your right foot strikes the ground in 20 seconds. Multiply by three and you’ll have your stride rate per minute. (One stride equals two steps, so your steps per minute will be twice your stride rate.) Now comes the good part: Speed up until you’re running at 85 to 90 strides per minute. The most common mistake runners make is overstriding: taking slow, big steps, reaching far forward with the lead foot and
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He kept saying the same thing, over and over: “Let the pain go out your ears, Jurker, let the pain out your ears.” I didn’t, though. I held on to the pain. In my second Minnesota Voyageur, I made the pain mine. I used it. All through the 50 miles of the race, I listened to it. You could have done more. You can do more. Sometimes you just do things!
What we eat is a matter of life and death. Food is who we are.
In an ideal world, all runners would land on their forefoot or midfoot when they run.
Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will. —MAHATMA GANDHI
I decided if I didn't win, it wasn't going to be because I didn't give everything I had.
“You only ever grow as a human being if you’re outside your comfort zone.”
what I discovered was bushido, the culture of ancient Japanese warriors, who espoused courage, simplicity, honor, and self-sacrifice.
According to bushido, the best mind for the battlefield—or the race—is that of emptiness, or an empty mind. This doesn’t mean sleepiness or inattention; the bushido concept of emptiness is more like that rush of surprise and
expansiveness you get under an ice-cold waterfall. The empty mind is a dominant mind. It can draw other minds into its rhythm, the way a vacuum sucks up dirt or the way the person on the...
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Bushido is letting go of the past and the future and focusing on the moment.
After you’ve been running for 30 to 45 minutes at least three times a week for six to eight weeks, you’re ready to start running occasionally at 85 to 90 percent of your physical capacity, or the point where lactate is building up in your muscles but your body is still able to clear and process it. Build to where you can maintain that lactate threshold level for 5 minutes. Then take 1 minute of easy running to give the body time to recover, then repeat. As you progress, increase the number of the intervals and their length while maintaining a 5:1 ratio between work and rest. So you would do
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If you are not on the edge, you are taking up too much room. —RANDY “MACHO MAN” SAVAGE
You could carry your burdens lightly or with great effort. You could worry about tomorrow or not. You could imagine horrible fates or garland-filled tomorrows. None of it mattered as long as you moved, as long as you did something. Asking why was fine, but it wasn’t action.
I’m not superstitious, but I do believe in developing good habits and the power of repetition.
Bone Games by Rob Schultheis.
Running Wild: An Extraordinary Adventure of the Human Spirit, by John Annerino; Running and Being: The Total Experience, by George Sheehan; and The Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei, by John Stevens.
Don’t work towards freedom, but allow the work itself to be freedom. —DOGEN ROSHI
No matter what you do, there are going to be haters out there. My Zen self tells me they’re no worse than people who idolize you for the wrong reasons. What people think about you doesn’t really matter. The trick is to be true to yourself.
We focus on something external to motivate us, but we need to remember that it’s the process of reaching for that prize—not the prize itself—that can bring us peace and joy.
Life, as countless posters and bumper stickers rightly attest, is a journey, not a destination.
I tried to not think too much; in a race this long, at a moment this hot, with lips this parched, thinking could be dangerous. It too easily led to a calm, rational assessment of where I was, how far I had to go. Rational assessments too often led to rational surrenders.
It was that time when everything seems hopeless, when to go on seems futile, and when a small act of kindness, another step, a sip of water, can make you realize that nothing is futile, that going on—especially when going on seems so foolish—is the most meaningful thing in the world.
When I got to the 50-mile mark I couldn’t think that I had 100 miles to go. I had to remember and forget. We move forward, but we must stay in the present. I tried to do so by breaking races into small, digestible parts. Sometimes I focused on the next aid station, three miles ahead. Sometimes I pictured the next shady spot down the road, or the next step. Did “Sometimes you just do things” really mean “Try not to think about consequences, just trust in your body and yourself and the universe”?
Sometimes you just do things.
It was time to pull out the four-step checklist. Number one: I was
exhausted. I let myself feel that and I acknowledged it. Number two: I took stock. I was slightly pissed off that I had just expended so much energy, all to put distance between myself and someone I needn’t have worried about. And I was still exhausted and upset. But it wasn’t life-threatening. Three: I asked myself what I could do to remedy the situation. I could stop, but that wasn’t an option. The answer: Keep moving. And four: Separate negative thoughts from reality. Don’t dwell on feelings that aren’t going to help. I kept moving.
WHEN YOU’RE IN A FUNK Almost every competitive runner I know goes through a period when he or she feels like quitting. I certainly include myself in that category. What’s ironic is that the tools that help make an elite athlete—focus, effort, attention to the latest technology—definitely do not provide the answer to getting out of a funk. I find the best way to get your running mojo back is to lose the technology, forget results, and run free. And forget that running needs to be painful or that it’s punishment. (Definitely get rid of those echoes of countless coaches ordering you to “take a
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“I’m tough,” she said. “Don’t worry about me.”
Pursuing goals with single-mindedness had ultimately bestowed on me the greatest gift of all: the capacity to forget myself, to be absolutely present in the moment, and to appreciate the perfection of every moment.
“sometimes we have to go to dark places. Things will be better off and you’ll grow. You just don’t know it now.”
Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. —BRUCE LEE
PERFECTION IS NOT AN ACCIDENT.
Wise Buddhist teachers advise pilgrims to chop wood and carry water until they encounter blinding, transformational epiphany. After that moment of electric bliss, the teachers say, chop more wood and carry more water.
But you can be transformed. Not overnight, but over time. Life is not a race. Neither is an ultramarathon, not really, even though it looks like one. There is no finish line. We strive toward a goal, and whether we achieve it or not is important, but it’s not what’s most important. What matters is how we move toward that goal. What’s crucial is the step we’re taking now, the step you’re taking now.
