Friday Ramble 01/07/21

This week: Confronting the possibility of failure. Plus: lateral steps with resistance bands, and a quick-and-easy stir fry. 

Way back when I was young and fast, I could drop a sub 6-minute mile whenever I wanted. Please note that statement is mostly kinda true. We’re talking 30+ years ago, and the mind remembers what it chooses to remember. 

My problem as a junior varsity cross country runner was that I couldn’t knock out multiple sub 6-minute miles in a row like my teammates. I was strictly one and done, but man, for that one mile I was really flying. 

In those younger, faster and let’s face it, dumber days, I chased those sub-6-minute miles like the coyote chasing the road runner. And like the coyote, I’d eventually run myself right over the cliff. The sub-6 was equal parts milestone and millstone, so I internalized every fleeting success and inevitable failure. 

I’m older, slower, and hopefully wiser now. Still, I have to admit the thought of running a sub 6-minute mile still fills me with a teenage thrill I can’t really describe. That’s why I made it one of my goals for 2022. 

My last official sub-6 mile happened way back in the fall of 2017 when I dropped the hammer on the final mile of a 5K PR. God that was fun. It felt like I was floating, effortless and free. I’ve tried to do it again a few times, couldn’t quite get over the hump, and put those sub-6 dreams on the shelf. Until now.    

We spend a lot of time at Running, Probably talking about the need to dial our running egos down a notch. We believe strongly in the principles of slowing down and being smart with our effort. We strive to leave something in the tank for future efforts, and to resist going to the well too often. 

All true. But we also believe there comes a time when you put yourself out there and test your limits. That’s why I’m going for that sub 6-minute mile again.