Her philosophy was simple but true. I’ve learned to focus on what I have rather than what I don’t have. I learned to look for the “silver lining” in things that seem really bad. And I’ve learned to ask, “What is the opportunity in this?”

Last week, I hurt my hand while I was cross-country skiing. I had some x-rays done, and nothing is broken, but I was referred to a hand specialist. I’ve been to the hand doc twice in the past week, and he definitively determined today that I have a ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, commonly known as skiier’s thumb. So tomorrow, I’m having surgery to repair the damaged ligament.

The catch is this: I have a trip planned for the weekend to go ice fishing and dogsledding in Wisconsin. The good news: he believes that by Friday, I should be okay to participate in these activities.

I could have waited to have the surgery when I got back. But I also have a 50K race coming up on March 7. I decided that if I have to forego some parts of the winter activities this weekend to be totally ok for my 50K, then I’m ok with that.

So, what is the opportunity in this? Primarily that I have the opportunity to have my hand repaired by a competent surgeon and be ready for a 50K race in 3 weeks. Also, I’m fortunate to be able to still go on my upcoming adventure, albeit with a bandaged hand.

But the biggest thing and the most important point – the “silver lining”: It’s just my hand and not my foot!

I would definitely take my own troubles back out of the pile…

And, as is often the case – especially when I find myself “struggling” with situations that are uncharacteristic of my normal behavior and capabilities – I ask: “What is the opportunity in this?”

To recognize the opportunity, I look back at my running week leading up to my long run. A week ago, I ran up and down Shaw Mountain Road 3 times to get in my 15-mile run. Since one of my goals is to become a better hill runner, this was a great run. And, to look at the elevation profile from my garmin of one 5.5-mile segment, the hills are pretty tame. (I’ve only been running hills seriously since about last September, so I’m getting better but I have a long way to go.)

My weekday runs were all good runs: one relatively easy run (in 19 degrees), one progressive run (every mile was 20 seconds faster than the previous one), and a speed workout with intervals. Add in a couple of days of strength training at the gym and a 1.5 hour cross-country ski “adventure,” and I felt like I had a pretty good training week.

So why was Saturday’s run such a struggle? Probably because I shortchanged myself on the recovery piece of the puzzle.  Because there wasn’t one day that I didn’t have some form of a workout, the “spring chicken” in me thought I had a great week.

Intellectually, I know all about the hard/easy program, and although I pushed myself on my speed workout, I didn’t really think my other days were too hard.

But what I found out by the end of the week was that I had compromised my FAVORITE and most important run of the week – my long run – by not giving myself enough recovery time during the week. I did a progression run on Wednesday, speed workout on Thursday, cross-country skiing on Friday, then went out for a long run on Saturday.

So, to the opportunity – lesson learned: Recovery time is equally as important (or even more important) to peak performance in everything. Knowing and doing are two different things – we have to act on what we know to be truly successful in anything.

I fell short of my long run goal on Saturday – I ran 14 miles instead of 20. In the scheme of life, that’s not a big deal, and I’m fine with it – I got in 14 miles. I’m glad that I got that little reminder at this stage of my training.

I may not be a “spring chicken,” but as long as on most days I still feel like a “spring chicken” and can do more than many actual “spring chickens,” I’m pretty happy! Think I’ll take the day off today…

That said, I’ve had to move indoors and train on a treadmill – and this week will probably be the same.  Not the ideal scenario for the last couple of weeks before a long race, but I’m lucky to be able to get my workouts in at all.

There was a time when I would have stressed out over this “kink” in my training plan – to be honest, a “kink” in any kind of plan would have caused anxiety. However, I’m totally ok with this minor obstacle, and I’ve asked myself: “What is the Opportunity?” in this.

There are several answers to that question:

• Running indoors is adding variety to my training methods.
• Running indoors is decreasing my chances of injury by falling on the ice.
• Running indoors is giving me a chance to monitor and regulate my speed intervals.
• Running indoors is allowing me to run with Mark, something we can’t do outside.
• Running indoors is allowing me to run early in the morning – in the dark. As a result, I have more time to get things done during the day.
• Running indoors is helping me practice being more flexible in my life.

Remember: It’s not the event, but your reaction, that determines the quality of your life. I have not let this change of training plans derail me from my training and my upcoming goal – which is to run a 50-mile race on January 3. The events are what they are – neither good nor bad. We decide how we will deal with them.

31 miles is a long way to run, and it takes a long time to do it (or at least it took me a long time to do it), and a lot of things can go through your head when you’re out there on the trail alone. Only 51 people finished the 50K, so for the most part, I was alone on the trails for the last 12.4 miles – with the exception of a few other runners here and there.

During the race, I stayed pretty focused on what was going on at the moment. I have to admit that I had a couple of rough spots and wondered whether I was up to the challenge of tackling the second trip up the Dipsea Trail. But I had those thoughts for only a moment. I KNEW I was fit enough, and I never allowed the possibility of not finishing to enter my head. Og Mandino’s words became my mantra: I will persist until I succeed.

In everything I’d read and everything I’d been told, I knew that if I just accepted that there would be some rough spots that they would pass, and I’d get a second wind. And, it was absolutely true. I made it back up the mountain, and in the next two loops, I felt a renewed energy.

I think we all face rough patches from time to time, and if we just keep going despite the difficulty, we will make it through and come out of it stronger as a result.

Running this race was probably the hardest physical challenge I’ve experienced up to this point in my running life – probably the hardest physical challenge period. But, I know that I will have harder races and bigger challenges. And I’m excited about them. It’s exhilarating to test yourself and see what you can really do. And, I know that this is just the beginning of so many more wonderful, challenging experiences.

So, we pick a specific marathon and gear all our training towards that race. But, as “they” say, anything can happen on race day…or “on any given Sunday…” It could rain, snow, or be burning-up hot. You could get sick the week before the race (which is not all that uncommon). Maybe you peaked too soon in your training. Maybe you left your best “race” on the running path. So much goes into training for a marathon and having a good run come race day. Many many factors can contribute to less-than-perfect race day conditions.

For those of us who are not genetically gifted to be able to go out a qualify for Boston every time we run a marathon, we put all our “eggs in two baskets” – that is,  two target marathons per year. And, when we don’t run the race we think we should have run, we can be a bit hard on ourselves. This has happened to me more than a few times.

After a number of races in which I have been disappointed, I have learned that it’s not always about the time – it’s about the experience. That’s not to say that I cheerfully exclaim, “Oh well, I didn’t make my time; that’s ok, maybe next time.” No, it’s hard to go through 4-6 months of intense training only to miss a time goal. Most of us can’t just go out and run another hard marathon next month.

But what we can do is ask ourselves, “What is the opportunity in this?” How can I continue to use this training, this high level of fitness, to help me reach my goal?

First we must acknowledge our achievement. We just ran another marathon – 26.2 miles is a long way. And, it is not an achievement of the weak of body or spirit. Then, we must let go of the disappointment of not achieving our time goal. Let it go and move on.

• We must press on.
• We must maintain our fitness.
• We must hold on to our positive attitude.
• We must set new goals and make new training plans.
• We must pursue our goals with tenacity and courage.
• And, We must KNOW that we WILL succeed.

But how do we prepare mentally for what may await us on race morning? Ironically, it helps to have faced mental challenges in training – that is, training in the pouring rain, extreme heat or cold, or other horrendous weather conditions. But as we so often say (usually in reference to marathon day), “Any given Sunday.” Although we are usually more “worried” about the weather (which we have absolutely no control over), it’s often the one thing that we DO have control over that causes us the most difficulty – our minds.

At Saturday’s Half Ironman with Lori, we woke up at 2:30 a.m. to extremely windy conditions. As her support crew, we tried to keep her calm as the wind almost knocked us down while we were watching her set up her transition area, assuring her that it would be fine.  When it came time to head a mile down the beach to begin the 1.2 mile swim, the wind picked up and made even walking in the sand hard. Lots of the athletes donned their wetsuits and were “testing the water” literally. Worried expressions, sick stomachs, and even obvious fear gripped both the athletes and the spectators.

In a bold, decisive, and responsible act, the race directed canceled the swim 20 minutes before the first wave was to take off. Although disappointed, the athletes showed enormous relief and gratitude for the decision.

So, how do you get your head back in the game? Most of these athletes had trained for 6 or more months, and for most, the swim is the most difficult part. Therefore, they often sacrificed other elements of their training to concentrate on the swim portion.  Now, they are told that they will substitute a 2.1 mile run for the swim portion to maintain the 70.3 mile equivalent difficulty.

Some fared better than others. The ones who were able to postpone their frustration and focus on the task at hand prevailed – with FOCUS being the operative word. Everyone’s plans had changed – pros and amateurs alike.

Everyday we are tested in some way both mentally and physically. Les Brown is fond of saying, “What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.” Every time we are faced with a challenge, we are given an opportunity to grow stronger.

We won’t all pass every test we face. But if we stay the course and don’t give up, we will emerge victorious.

Lori had a great day in Benton Harbor – she switched gears, kept her head in the game, and focused on the task at hand. She even set a personal record in the half marathon portion of the race. She was a true winner.

Had a little trouble with the wireless connection at the hotel last night, but it’s up and running this morning.

Gorgeous drive yesterday – I saw things I’ve never seen before. Tis the season, however – construction season that is. Saw a lot of that, too.

We’re headed to Davenport, IA, today. I’ve never driven across Nebraska. Always another new adventure.

As I was running hills this morning, I thought of how hill running is the perfect metaphor for the things we do everyday. And, how we approach hills is a good indicator of how we deal with other challenges in our lives.

Although I knew that today’s run would be hard, I couldn’t wait to get out there this morning – I looked forward to the challenge. I thought, “How I do anything is how I do everything.” Just saying this helped me as I faced the challenge: I charged up the hills and relaxed on the downs. And, I took one hill at a time and focused on that hill before I turned my attention to the next one. Every time I got to the top of the hill, I felt a sense of accomplishment – I had achieved that goal. How cool is that to achieve 20 accomplishments in one run?

Engaging in any activity that requires me to work harder and draw on inner strength is totally energizing. I am grateful to have the opportunity to test my limits.
You’ve heard people say when they have a tough challenge ahead, “It’s an uphill climb.” And, conversely, when something is easy they say, “It’s all downhill from here.”

I say – Embrace both the ups and downs. We have things to learn from both “hard” and “easy” days. And, keep your eye on the top of the hill – persist until you succeed. Reaching the summit of every hill in your life is the achievement of yet another goal.

Most of these workshops do involve people marketing something to “sell,” and I have no problem with that. Aren’t we all in the “marketing” business? Isn’t everyone trying to “sell” something? If Mark and I decide that we’re going to see a movie, I “sell” him on what movie I want to see. If you and a friend are deciding where to have lunch, do you ever “sell” her on a place to eat? Anytime someone is using persuasion for any reason, that is a form of “selling.” And, everyone of us do it everyday.

Just the words marketing and selling turn some people off. But it’s not so much the act of marketing or selling, it’s the “way” people go about it. I spent a good part of the day not only focused on the information the speaker had to share – and it was excellent information – but also studying the delivery of the various players in the room.

It is true that we have something to learn from everyone we meet, and I learned a lot both from the sales people and the attendees at this meeting. But, as is the case with just about anything, you can learn only when you have an open mind.

Ultimately, although it was a good program with a good product, I did not fall prey to the mob mentality and “buy now” or miss it forever. One of the things that I “learned” is that – for me – I make the best decisions when I have had a chance to research, understand, and analyze the opportunity presented to me, rather than to make a quick, emotional decision.