 Cheers, cheers, cheers YouTube family. Okay, hope you're doing well. There's my tea, not drinking turmeric tonight. I frankly don't even know what this is, but it's very tasty. How was your weekend? Hope it was well. Hope your long run was great. Hope your race was great. And thank you again for your patience with these vlogs where I'm talking in the bare bones studio. Believe it or not though, it looks like we're gonna be updating the studio in the next two days. Maybe three, but definitely gonna start probably on Tuesday, so stay tuned for that. But thank you for your patience. I realize these vlogs are not as exciting, but I hope again to be bringing you as much value as possible. Today, we're gonna dive in. Why? Oh my goodness, because it's Sunday night when I'm recording this. When you're watching this in real time, I will potentially, I could very likely be tying up my running shoes to go for my first jog, not a run, but jog back, yes, to get ready for my next marathon, my next marathon, which I don't know what it is yet, but it's hopefully gonna start happening here on YouTube in a very real way tomorrow morning. So I'm just trying not to get too excited, you know, stay even keel, listen to the knee. All right, there we go. So my mental approach for marathon training at the beginning of the marathon training block. Here we go, and we've dabbled in these topics before. So first and foremost, absolutely, I always begin with the why. Why am I training for a marathon? Why am I going to the gym? And this can be connected to you as well. Why am I doing plyometrics in snow? Why am I running up a mountain and it's 10 degrees out? Why am I driving across the city to meet with a group because I personally need that accountability to go run in the mornings, because if I don't have accountability from a group, there's a good chance I won't get my run in that day. So that is my first and foremost mental approach for marathon training blocks is the why. If my why is not solid, if I don't really believe in the training and putting myself through some suffering, through some sacrifice, there's a really good chance that I will fizzle and that I will not put forth my best effort in the training, whether it's the running, the stretching, the recovery, the sleeping, whatever the case may be, the strength training, the list goes on and on and on as you very well know. All right, so that's it. Number one, your why. Number two, deadlines are king. Deadlines are king. At least they are for me mentally. When I hit that register button on the website, like I did a couple of weeks ago for the Pikes Peak Marathon, it's in the brain. It's like, okay, my money's deposited. There's a date on the calendar. I've marked it off on the calendar. Let's go, baby, let's roll. So deadlines are king for me, whether it's in life, whether it's, I actually love deadlines in life, whether it's, I need to get the house painted by this date because I don't know, whatever the case may be or I need to get taxes done by this date, like deadlines are king. You know how it is out there in the world. So for registering for a race, it's the same deal. And I personally, everyone just hold me accountable. I have not hit that register button yet for my spring 2020 marathon. I'm getting closer. Actually, honestly, frankly, what I'm waiting for is to see how the knee reacts to the run tomorrow and the next day. I will make a decision I think in the next seven to 10 days because if the knee needs a little more time, I'm probably gonna choose a marathon that's in May rather than in April because I just to have a little more training time. Does that make sense? So anyway, deadlines are king. That's number two. Number three, mental toughness at the beginning. Okay, so what do I mean by this? I personally need to continue to do better. I must say it's been a good break from running but I'm eager, eager to get back and I'm eager to continue to push myself mentally in addition to physically through this next training block. So what am I gonna do? I'm gonna pick a sacrifice. This is kind of, I've done this before but maybe not to this extreme. And again, the more mentally tough that I am and mental toughness, like that's a phrase that's thrown around very haphazardly sometimes and really at the end of the day for me comes down to action and how accountable am I being to the tasks that I need to accomplish in running, in life, in sleep, in recovery, in work, in relationships, whatever, okay? So I'm gonna pick a sacrifice for this next marathon training block. I'm gonna give up something, okay? And why? Because every time I deny myself and say no to something that I really enjoy, I believe that I am making myself a little more sharp. I'm challenging myself in a little, little way, okay? So I'm not afraid to get it out there. In 2018, I gave up beer for an entire year. Like I love beer, I love whiskey in the winter time and I enjoy a good wine. You know what I mean? So I'm giving up wine basically because I only drink wine so therefore I'm giving up alcohol for the next marathon training block. Not because I have anything against alcohol. I love, you've seen me drink wine on the vlog. I love it. But I'm giving it up to sharpen my mental focus in this next marathon training block. I know that sounds a little extreme, but I'm ready to make the next step. I'm, and frankly, I think, I don't think. I know knowing my personality and that's another factor, keep in mind your personality. I know my personality well enough and how I'm wired that I will, my body and my mental fortitude will respond well to that just saying no to that wine for the next three months basically. So I'm excited for that one. Oh, it's a good one. Okay, okay, here we go. Number four, ironclad, ironclad, ironclad habits at the beginning of the training block. Not a weekend, not a month in, not two days in. The first day in. When you say, when you register and you say, okay, training starts now, that first day in my humble opinion is the most important day of the training block, the marathon training block. Why? For me personally, it sets out the habits, what I already mentioned, the habits that you're gonna lay forth for yourself for the next 90 days, for the next 120 days. However long your marathon training block might be or if you're getting ready for a half marathon or a 10K, whatever, but I'm getting ready for a marathon. I think those habits you set forth right at the beginning are critical. The habits of stretching, the little things, not the running. The running is the easy part. That's the fun part. It's the stretching, the recovery, the massaging or whatever, however you take care of your body. The sleep, that is all the sleep. I need, honestly everyone, I need to do better. I need to do, my sleep is, in fact, I didn't sleep well last night. So anyway, that's number four, ironclad habits at the beginning of the marathon training block. Oh, it's a big one for me. And mental approach, number five, getting ready for marathon, for me, marathon number three, all right, as we begin the marathon training block. Learn, and we've dabbled in this before. You know, if you watch every day, you know we dabbled in this topic, learn, learn. And that's a very open-ended word right there, but learn to enjoy, little crazy, learn to enjoy the suffering. I think we runners, we have a gift. We are given a gift to, it's a bizarre, it's a bizarre sport we do. It's just bizarre. People like, you know, basketball is amazing, football, hockey, soccer, but you're in a team. There's a ball, there's a huge crowds to cheer you on. Running, you are solo, you are out there. It's, you're out there and it's crazy and it's cold and it's dark, and you're training and you're training and nobody's cheering you on when you're training, like you're just out there suffering. And I think that little switch, just that little switch in your brain to tell yourself and train yourself and make yourself learn how to enjoy the suffering, that silence, that pain in your muscles. Yes, like when your legs start to have pain, you literally have to switch in your brain. I like the pain. That is a good feeling. I enjoy the pain. Let's keep dabbling in this pain in balance, but as much as possible in this training block so that when I arrive on the starting line, when I have suffering in the race, I'm ready for it. I'm used to it. I'm sharpened for it. Okay, so that's number five, learn to enjoy the suffering. Okay, my number six mental approach to prepare for a marathon training block to embrace that suffering. Here we go. Fitness does not lie. Fitness does not lie. You know, when you arrive at the starting line, fit as a fiddle, you have confidence. And that confidence is the mental edge that I'm looking for. When I look around that starting line and I'm like, guess what? I think I out-trained all of you or at least 99% of you standing next to me, I'm gonna outrun you because my fitness level is above yours and I put in the work. And so, and I know, I don't wanna sound like cocky here. I'm just telling you like confidence, confidence, confidence is gold at the starting line. So fitness does not lie. That is a reminder that I put right at the beginning of my training block so that when nine weeks from now, 10 weeks from now, when the fitness really starts to develop and I'm like, oh yeah, wait a minute. I had a goal at the beginning of the training block to be able to tell myself, fitness does not lie, meaning I'm so fit, I'm so confident, let's roll. It's time to rock and roll. And last but not least, for my mental approach, going into this marathon, training block, and I hope you can pull, I realize I talk in some hyperbole sometimes, but I do it because I'm passionate about the sports and I'm passionate about seeing you meet your goals. And frankly, I met some big goals in 2019 and I do believe I'm just getting started at this marathon race and business, okay? So I wanna pass what I'm telling myself to all of you right at the beginning. Like this is the beginning, because no Houston, no Olympic trials, I'm hitting the reset button and this is the beginning. So this is why I'm communicating it to you. So number seven, last but not least, nothing crazy here. Don't forget your why, okay? So yes, I know, that's actually the last step. I circle back to number one, all right? If you forget your why during your training block, I believe, at least based on my experience, if I don't remember that why, the training gets really, really difficult. And there you have it, seven steps, my mental approach, marathon training. I hope they help a little bit. And I know, again, I know I get a little crazy sometimes in here in the studio, but it's because, again, I love what we do. And I love that you're here watching. And, but I wanna hear your thoughts as well. So question of the day, what is your mental approach look like at the beginning of a training block, getting ready for a marathon, ultra marathon, half marathon as well, but a longer race, a race that you gotta dig pretty deep for, okay? You gotta enter that pain cave a little bit. So that's the question of the day. Thank you so much running today when you're watching this. I'll keep you posted. You'll see it on Strava, onward and upward. Sound good, everyone? All right, we're gonna toss it back to, on the right, how to meet your running goals, your racing goals in 2020. That'll be on the right, recorded a couple of weeks ago. And then on the left, I'm gonna link to the how to run faster playlist that I made in 2019. There you have it, everyone. All right, seek beauty, work hard, and love each other. See you tomorrow.