websites anyone?

There are some great websites out there for anyone wanting to do a little more reading...

www.runnersworld.com  

This is a GREAT site for all kind of running related topics...from what kind of shoes to wear, food to eat, pace to try, gu to use, and anything in between! Check it out!

www.fh.org  

This is the website for Food for the Hungry, the ministry we are partnering with to build our school in Mozambique.  Many of our OHC families sponsor a child through them already. To learn more about FH's goals and how they work take a bit to search around on their page!

http://www.desmoinesmarathon.com/

This is the website for the DesMoines Marathon. Lots of your race day questions can be answered here!

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/

This link takes you to google pedometer site.  You can pull up anywhere in the world and log in your site, track your running route, and it will give you the distance in miles. It is great for pre-routing a run and knowing where and how far to go.  I use it for my neighborhood streets all the time!

Anyone else have some great websites to share???

A tip from chapter 7 of the Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer, Part 1 talks about learning to focus or concentrating on what you are doing. This is the opposite of "spacing off" the book says. Later in the book they talk about associative and dissociative mental techniques, that is something different that we will get to know more about later. But staying focused does not mean that you are so intent on what you are doing that you can not talk or enjoy the scenery along the way. What it does mean is that when you start to get fatigued the first thing that happens is you lose your form. What happens then? When your form falls apart, you begin expending more energy to go slower. You start leaning forward from the hips shortening your normal stride, you begin carrying your arms too high, fatiguing the shoulder muscles even more, you begin over rotating the upper body, spending energy going from side to side and less straight forward. Concentrating is not easy when we are tired, it takes practice. I have a T-shirt we gave out to Hilltoppers years ago that said simply, "body check - attitude check". To our team that meant that as soon as you realize you have lost your focus, check your body to make sure your form is good, then check your mind to make sure you are using positive self talk. Like physical training, mental training does not come easy, put practice it and you will have a valuable tool to help you on those long runs! Let us know if you have success with this.

good words

"In running, it doesn't matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, 'I have finished.' There is a lot of satisfaction in that." 

-Fred Lebow, New York City Marathon co-founder

Any good runs yet?

Ahhhh, the last few mornings have been perfect for running!  Sun shining and cool enough to feel comfortable once you get going along in your run!  Have any of you had that "good run" experience yet???  The one where you feel like you could keep going, you are in the zone, and feeling...good!?!? What an awesome feeling!  The first mile is always the hardest of every run I do...whether it is a 3 miler or 10 miler or 20 miler. That darn 1st mile always gets me!  I have to say last week I was feeling sluggish, tired, and to be honest I had to really work to finish 2 miles a couple days!  Saturday's 6 miler felt great!  It was my first really good and natural feeling run for quiet some time.  Man, what a difference that makes for me mentally!  I suppose all that hard stuff the week before was worth it :)  What do they say "no pain, no gain". Okay, okay... it is worth the pain because the gain feels amazing! How about you?  Had a good run yet the last couple weeks?

Meet some teammates!

Starting with COACH DON! Whoo-hoo! (sorry, I am a big Coach Don fan... I mean, he got my non-running hiney across the Chicago Marathon finish line!! :)  Coach Don leads our team of marathoner's and soon to be marathoners!!  Not only does he coach us, but he also coaches Cedar Falls girls cross country and girls track. Don is an instrumental piece of this amazing journey and we are blessed to share the running experience with him!  Don has been running for about 25 years. He is married to Teri (a humble woman who always has a smile for us!) and they have 3 children, and 5 grand babies! A 6th one is on the way! Don works at Orchard Hill Church. If you haven't yet....make sure you get to know Coach Don!

 Danielle Garvin is a nurse here in town and from Cedar Falls.  Her family is hubby Matt and almost 4 year old Ella.  This is Danielle's second marathon, her first being last year's with this same team.  Why is she back?  She says she had such a great experience running last year with this group, how could she say no? :)  Not only that but running became something she never knew she enjoyed and it is a new hobby. 

 Hannah Shirey is a Waterloo native gal who is attending college at Colgate in New York!  She is a senior there and just returned from a semester in Morocco. She is actually training for the New York Marathon on November 7th for a great cause through Camfed.  To read more about her cause check this link out: http://us.camfed.org/

She will be joining us through the summer while she is home and will finish her training in New York when fall semester starts up.  We are happy to have you join us, Hannah!

Kris Plagge on the left and Susie Sorenson on the right... meet 2 of our first time runners/marathon trainers!!! Kris mentioned she wanted to be part of the group experience and Susie wanted to check this off the old' Bucket list!!  Neither gals are runners and both finished their first FIVE mile run last Saturday! Nice work ladies!! You are on your way!

These are just a few of our teammates.  Take a second to meet someone new this week on the team and holler a hello to these smiling faces! (and this was even AFTER we ran in the cold, wind, and spitting rain!!!)
See ya'll tomorrow!

Saturday Runs!

What a great first 2 team runs we've had!! If you haven't been to one yet...check out the pic's below and see what you're missing!  I can't tell you through pictures though the emotions going with this group.  People are becoming runners and our team is starting relationships that will be such an important tool to finishing this marathon strong.  It's been awesome seeing so many new and old faces the last couple weeks!  

We have heard from Michelle Greene and Dana Foster on the importance of stretching and core strengthening.  Both of these things are important to pay attention to as you go through the marathon training process.  If you haven't been shown some proper stretches please grab someone at the next group run and have them show you what to do and what not to do! Most importantly stretch after you run for at least 5 minutes to work those already warmed up muscles.  To help support your back and spine, which in the long run is associated with all the muscles you use running, be sure you are paying attention to your 'core".  Dana left some great hand outs that will be available to show you some good stretches to try out as you focus on this area. 

Wow! I know there is A LOT of info coming at you right now.  I hope you are getting the info you need for your personal goals, growth, and experiences.  Please don't be afraid to ask questions and seek someone out on Saturday mornings to help you along.  Happy running this week!

Don't forget about these group runs happening during the week if you need a little accountability or motivation or just like a good run with someone sometimes:

Tuesday, 5:30pm at Naz church

Wednesday, 7am, at Orchard Hill Church

Thursday, 6am at Cedar Falls Rec

Grundy Center Running groups:

M,W,F at 5am meet at Community Center

T,Th (Mike Brost, 5am) meet at Community Center

Running Groups anyone?

Just a reminder of THREE weekly running groups happening...

TUESDAY's at 5:30pm. Meet at Nazareth Church.  Ron Martin is the man to contact if you have any questions!

WEDNESDAY's at 7:00am. Meet at Orchard Hill Church, E door. Laurie Williams and a group leaves from these doors each week. (if you are interested in child care during this run please contact Kerri Karsjens at kitkat7777@hotmail.com)

THURSDAY's at 6am.  Meet at doors of Cedar Falls Rec Center. Contact Jess Hansen or Angie Schreiber if you have any questions!

All paces and runners welcome!  Leave a comment if you have any questions regarding any of these groups!!

As I was picking up additional copies of the Marathon Team running log, the clerk at the print shop asked me if my “program” looked as I expected. My initial reaction was to explain that my booklet was not a program, but rather a log/journal to track training for an upcoming marathon. However, upon further reflection, perhaps this log could be seen as a “program to a play” – a play not yet written. How will our individual and collective stories unfold? How will we remember and be remembered in our roles? My hope and prayer is that each of you can look back on your log and see Christ in and between the lines.

Ron Martin

thoughts on 1st team run???

Approximately 125 runners this morning!! Amazing! God is good! I have some pictures and some notes to share with you about a few details Coach Don shared.... but we want to hear from YOU!

What were your reactions to your 1st group run with the 2010 marathon team?  How did you feel?  What were you expecting and what happened? Did you make new connections? Was this the farthest you've gone ever in your life? Are you a seasoned marathoner and did you meet anyone new? Are you dreading or looking forward to next's week group run? Did you surprise yourself?  Do you LOVE that last mile stretch on Greenhill Rd Trail? :-) (note a little sarcasm there) 
Share your thoughts...  would love to hear from you!

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