Power is in Numbers

Tonight’s couch night at the CRC Westerville store was a success! I feel much more confident and optimistic about the race. The meeting’s uplifting spirit and attendees’ energy left me slightly less intimidated about the training plan.

Mike (in red) at the Couch Night meeting at CRC Westerville

Eric, who I think co-founded the chain store, started off the meeting talking about the plan, the runs, and what CRC offers for participants. Mike, the other couch, will be leading those group runs. He talked extensively about the logistics and purpose. Every Saturday morning (and Tuesday evening?) there’s a group run where people run distances between 5-20 miles. It is designed in a way so that people get to know each other, hold themselves accountable, and simply have fun!! I really like this idea for I would probably be bored out of my mind just running by myself. Even though I usually run with headphones on, I enjoy having a running buddy. It helps me maintain a conversational pace, conserve energy, and run longer. With running long distances, I feel like after sometime you just forget about running and cruise along. It could be psychological. But hey whatever, it works for me.

In addition, it looks like there will be a theme every other week of the plan. Meaning we will be couched on say form, pace, and running techniques. CRC also offers a nutritionist on staff to help us eat healthy and prepare for the race. Due to my heavy lifting regimen my diet is comprised of mainly protein and some carbs. I’d assume that with running you might want to use carbs than protein- otherwise, your body might eat away from muscle. So it’s cool that they have that. Even cooler, CRC is partnering with OSU Sports Medicine department to work with us. We will spend an hour or so with physical therapists talking about injury prevention and treatment. With every moving part of the plan, we can meet one on one to say devise a customized plan or talk about specific concerns. Next time we’re meeting with the doctors, I will talk to them about my runner’s knee and propensity to have shin splints.

I can’t wait to start training. It will be challenging to get those weekday runs after work especially after being up since 5:30am. I also need to adjust my lifting program to accommodate running and cross training like spin class or yoga. That is fine for my goal up until race day is to focus on running. Lifting is second.

What made me feel good about myself also was the diversity of participants; they were people of different ages, colors, and running backgrounds. There were absolute beginners who never ran outside of gym treadmill and those who had marathon medals.

In the end, Eric said something about group runs that really stuck with me: “Power is in numbers; we will carry each other through the training.” Establishing new friendships is in and of itself a motivation for me, besides the marathon, to go out for those runs. I’m pumped.

Stay tuned for Saturday vibe! I hope I make some friends 🙂