Sunday, July 16, 2006
Donor Motivators
I tell everyone who donates to the Leukemia Society that they are not just funding life-saving cancer research but that they are keeping me motivated to keep going when I'd really rather quit. Yesterday that motivation came through when I most needed it, on the longest and toughest Team-in-Training group workout of the year (so far). The heat and humidity combined for an official heat index of yuck.
The schedule called for 10 miles, and while I made it through the first 6 pretty well I started to fade during mile 7. The path on this part of the run featured trees on one side that managed to block the breeze but couldn't be bothered to get in the way of the sun. The heavy air, the miles of pounding steps, the sun cheerfully torching my face and a nice dry mouth were the perfect opening for a voice in my head.
"Just walk a few steps, it'll feel much better." "You've already written off your goal pace for today, so walking for a minute can't hurt." Not that my pace was unltimately important - nobody was keeping time yesterday. But I thought of those who have donated to LLS to support me, and decided I would do what I had told them I would: let their support carry me through to the end of the run, just when I wanted to stop.
I ended up finishing just a few seconds under 90 minutes, a pace that I would have been ecstatic with just a few months ago. But I'm trying to see what I can really do, and I wanted to thank everyone, though you didn't know it, for encouraging me and pushing me to keep going.
The schedule called for 10 miles, and while I made it through the first 6 pretty well I started to fade during mile 7. The path on this part of the run featured trees on one side that managed to block the breeze but couldn't be bothered to get in the way of the sun. The heavy air, the miles of pounding steps, the sun cheerfully torching my face and a nice dry mouth were the perfect opening for a voice in my head.
"Just walk a few steps, it'll feel much better." "You've already written off your goal pace for today, so walking for a minute can't hurt." Not that my pace was unltimately important - nobody was keeping time yesterday. But I thought of those who have donated to LLS to support me, and decided I would do what I had told them I would: let their support carry me through to the end of the run, just when I wanted to stop.
I ended up finishing just a few seconds under 90 minutes, a pace that I would have been ecstatic with just a few months ago. But I'm trying to see what I can really do, and I wanted to thank everyone, though you didn't know it, for encouraging me and pushing me to keep going.
# posted by Joel Corbin @ 3:51 PM 
