Marathon Running Success - Goal Setting Your Way to Finish Line
On Sunday, I watched a marathon on TV. A friend leant me her DVD of the Flora London Marathon 2008 TV coverage. Thirty four thousand people crossed the finish line. Sadly I was not one of them, having failed to secure a place in the race. When I lived in London, I was able to cheer the runners on from my garden, and have dreamed of running the race ever since.
So, on Sunday, I actually applied for, and got, a place on a local Marathon. I dusted off my trainers and went for a run, and as I ran, I asked myself how I was going to achieve this goal and make it to the finish line? How do Powerfully Positive People, go from the sofa to the marathon finish line?
If you wanted to successfully compete in the London Marathon, or any other marathon, what are some of the planning issues you will have to face before you get across the finish line?
The first thing to realise is that time is on your side, providing you star early enough. Most marathon training plans last 16 weeks, and this is ample time to train. However having too much time can be almost as bad as having too little. It could be easy for you to lose focus.
Whenever you set a goal, your mind immediately begins to start listing all the obstacles that stand in your way. This is good! Write them down quickly and you already have a list of steps you need to take and you have already started a written plan!
A 16 week marathon training plan will have you covering about 600 miles. At a nine minute per mile pace, this is 5, 600 minutes, or 90 hours of running. Split this between the 16 weeks and it works out at 50 minutes a day, every day for 16 weeks.
Doing a long run each weekend of between 15-20 miles at that pace will take you between 2 ½ to 3 hours. You need to get real, and realise that running a marathon will require you to commit large chunks of time over a long period of time. You will need to find the time from somewhere.
How can you do it?
My fist suggestion would be to do what Powerfully Positive People do when contemplating any big challenge. This is they get out their diary, get a pen and a pad of paper and come up with a written plan. You need to do the same, and brainstorm all the steps involved and get them into some sort of order. Having it written down means that you won't have to worry about forgetting anything important. Also the very act of writing it down has the effect of saying to yourself - this is important to me.
Go on-line and print off a marathon training plan. There are loads out there. Find one that starts at your level and is geared to the sort of finishing time you are aiming for.
Enter your plan into your diary. Put each training run you need into your diary as if it is an important appointment - and keep that appointment.
Tell all your friends and family. This will help you in two ways. Firstly it'll create peer pressure, making it less likely that you'll fail. Secondly, it'll enable your friends and family to give you the space and time to train. They'll understand why you are not as available as you once were.
Run for a charity. Collecting money for a charity will add to the effort you need to put in. Not only do you have to train but you have to collect sponsorships as well! On the plus side you'll be more motivated, especially if you are running for a charity that has helped you or someone you know.
Finally have fun and enjoy! You are getting fit and achieving one of your goals as well. Enjoy the process and run with a smile.
Will you be making running a marathon one of your goals?
Damian Miles is a life coach and NLP Practitioner and an expert in helping people to live the life of their dreams, and helping people become Powerfully Positive People. For more information on how you can start living your dream life, or on how to become a Powerfully Positive Person and start doing so TODAY check out Damian's website at http://www.liveyourdreamlifetoday.co.uk
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com
