Imaginaining

Imaginaining

Imaginaining is a play with words out of the idea of drawing power out of imagination while training.  The beauty of our imagination reveals much unbounded energy that no plan could offer.  It is a world unreachable, never to be, always striving, just beyond.   Unlike the predominant message, that hard work brings dreams to reality, the age old tale, a righteous tale unattainable for my run today.

It is not dreams coming true that matters as much to stay as they are, dreams.  To live the dream like a child at play.

So, how does one imaginaine, and how do we unleash it's full potential?

Body

My body feels so relaxed when I run, even at times when it hurts, when I feel heavy, feel slow, though relaxed and easiness carries me along.  Nothing stops me when I go, the speed I run is my speed, nothing else compares, no matter how much faster others may seem, my body is the most relaxed, feels the best, feels so strong, so loose.   Any tired or lethargic feeling I had previous to my run is gone.  Any frustrations or elusiveness, not a worry, as I am fully in control with no vice holding me.  I am one with my body, fully and completely...

Spirit

Whenever I go outside for a run, I am one with the elements.   The wind and the sun and the temperature, aligned perfectly to challenge me.  I can feel the wind pushing towards me when I need the challenge and it pushes at my back to help me with a break.  The trees, to my sides, are feeding the air, and how fresh and inspiring it is to inhale.  

I am one with the world while I am running as if it is speaking to me, aligned with me along my adventure.   The world is most alive while I run, it is as if the world itself wakes up in all places I pass through.

The world, actually, is a dream itself just the same.  When I run, I am running wherever I want to feel that I am running.  Whether on the sandy beach or in a jungle...  Even if I am not exactly there, I feel it, I imagine it.   I could even feel I am running in the worlds best marathons, on the best courses, even if where I actually am may not be so.

Soul

Everytime I set my foot outside for a run, I am already setting many world records.  I am already a world champion before I am even halfway through my run.   Regardless who runs by me, they have no understanding that it is me, who is the best, most awesome runner that has ever set foot.

That is the art of Imaginaining.   It is to feel, with no respect to any feedback of time or comparison to others, that we are the best that can be.  There are so many other factors that play in my life and with all of the constraints and setbacks, everytime I set out for a run, I am beating anyone in the entire world history.  If anyone were to be able to align exactly the same factors and experiences that I have had, there is no way they could match me.  Nobody understands what it takes for me to go for a run.   I am the best in the world, I am the best runner ever and when I run, I feel so great, so wonderful.

I set records, I win, I am the best at what I do.  The advantage is that everytime I run, I keep getting better, breaking even more records, getting faster, lasting longer.

....

It is with imagination, where I run best.  I no longer am in pursuit of my dreams... I run in my dreams.

On race day, when it is me against others in a race, it does not matter to me who wins.   Most important to me, is doing my best and when I run I am the best regardless of anything else.

It is with imagination, how I run.  With imagination, how I train.   I do not need to care who is faster than me, who is way out of my physical reach...  They do not have what I have and if they did, I would definitely be way better than them.  

All that matters is what gets me out to run.

A Race for Everyone

A Race for Everyone

Convincing people to participate in the worlds greatest race (for example, Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon) is surprisingly complex.  Have you ever tried to convince someone to join in the fun?  I assume everyone wants to join in the fun, but they feel it is not for them for whatever reasons and then they opt out.  That is what I am guessing at least.

For me, it is extremely challenging to convince people to race.  It is always up to the person themselves to go.  However, I could say that I proudly was able to convince some people who otherwise would have never considered participating.

There are some common barriers that may or may not apply in which people do not come out.  I'd like to share some common barriers that I have encountered, maybe you could agree or not, but at least reinforce that everyone should experience at least one race.

The Projection Dreamers

Runners are dreamers while they train, how else can they achieve so much and stay motivated?  It isn't the dreaming that blocks people from participating in a race.  It is how people dream that may condition exclusivity.

There are two main types of dreamers that may block participation in a race:

• The Dream Gamers
  Dream gamers have a desire to include as many people as they could that would fit their dream model.  They needed to know the who, the where, the when and the what of every single person and if they are celebrities, what a better fit.  With that information, one could puzzle together what would fit into their dream world.  Dream gaming is a great way to interact with people and it provides a sense of friendliness that resonates the complex dream gaming landscape. 
  The only fallacy of dream gamers is the dependency on others to participate in their own dreams.  They set expectations on the participation of others and often feel let down if their counterparts do not meet what may fit their dreams.
• Dream Crashing
  On the other side of the coin is dream crashing in which one is aware of the dream gaming enactment.  It is in their best interest to ensure they are not part of any dreams that do not align with their own models.   They spend a lot of their time focusing on other targets and making sure they are completely antagonistic to those dreams.

Both dream gamers and dream crashing spend an exuberant amount of time focused on other people.  Which is absolutely great!  The only misinterpretation with that time exhausted is that it is always future focused based upon sand castles that are no longer in construction.  It is the disassociation between the past and the future where each of these two types of dreams are not able to focus on the present.

A race most likely does not align with a dream, mostly due to the nature of it's momentous impact, anything can go wrong.    Runners dream in their training all the way up to the race, but on race day, dreams become a confronted reality.  The purpose of dreaming is for possibilities and confronting that chance may bear elusiveness.  To hash away externalized actors in the dream is a very scary place, nevertheless, the atmosphere of a race buffers with numbers.  The more the people, the better, which is why projection dreamers need to show themselves.

Race day helps dreams come true!

The Smokers

It is expected that if I tell you that I am a smoker, you know just to walk away, to not ever invite me.  That walking away hurts the smokers, because even though they want to create the luminosity that they are proven veterans of their personal fire, that does not mean they do not also yearn affection.  

There are two types of smokers that may feel there may be a blocker to participate:

• The Cage Breakers
  These types of smokers consistently break themselves out of any given cages.   There are numerous studies which show that the affect on cage size and the frequency of reward responses on a subject increases adverse effects of aging, illness and negative behaviors.  People that are veteran smokers have the ability to break out of those cages so that those stress factors have less impact on their livelihood.  This is a great ritual to manage stress, but of course we know of the consequences using commercialized synthetic chemical induced products on our organic states.
• The Einstein
  No, this is not a new dance move.  There was a smartie pants named Albert Einstein who took great pride in enjoying a cigar succeeding every milestone he reached in his work.  He smoked as a way to take a moment and appreciate life and his achievements.   These are the best types of smokers.   Whenever a friend asks me for advice on how to quit smoking, I always give them the same response:  "if you enjoy smoking, then why quit?".  Now, the cage breaking smokers never understand what this means and they keep on smoking thinking they are doing the Einstein, but the Einstein smokers know very well what I am talking about.  If they want to quit, they just quit knowing there is always something out there in life that can be used as a token of appreciation.

If you know what type of smoker you are dealing with, it makes it easier to approach them.  It just takes you showing them how they can create for themselves that personal fire.   The Einstein runners are easy, just let them know they can enjoy a nice smoke once they complete their race. 

As for the cage breakers, just ask them this simple question... Why are they in a cage in the first place?  If they see the worlds greatest race (for example, Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon) without a cage, they are convinced and will join.

A race is a token of appreciation!

The Sedentary

Sedentary people are everyone, I am one of these people.  No matter what I do in my life, no matter how hard I try, there is always something sedentary.  Whether it is managing education, managing career, managing health, managing expectations of others, managing others expectations of me, managing my carbon footprint, managing finances, managing stress, managing time... there is always something out of balance that needs attention.  There requires so much energy to start up something that has been lacking attention for so long.

The sedentary people are the most important people to participate since it is those very people who reflect what life is all about on race day.   Life is all about engagement and balance and attention and patiently seeing things through to the finish line, no matter what pace, what style, no matter how it is done.

As for the common blocker for sedentary people to join a race.  They feel they are expected to compete and race out of the realms of their own limited capability.  However, it is very common with runners or walkers to pace themselves in a race and ensure they do not push beyond their limits.   So then, why do sedentary people feel they must push themselves beyond their limits any different from every other single competitor in the race.  Convincing a sedentary person to participate is quite easy.

They just have to know that their pace is their race.

The Scrooge

A scrooge can be visited by the ghost of the past or the ghost of the present and they will not ever change their mood.  They tell you about all the qualms of the race, that it costs money, they never show up and support the runners, they make noise about road closures or the injuries or the weather.  When they scrooge the race, they scrooge everything and everybody.

There is no need for convincing scrooges, let them be for the moment.  When they are visited by the ghost of the future, they return from that experience supporting every other runner in the race, and complete the race with smiles, bearing great gifts for all.

Why a Race is for Everyone

Why is a race for everyone?  The more people who participate in a race, the more likely the race represents the people who are in the race.  The more people who support the race, the more likely the race represents that community and charities supporting the race. When one opts out of participating in a race prevents a great experience for everyone.  What makes a great race is more and more people.  A race is where you see happy, supportive, appreciative people where:

• Race day helps dreams come true!  
• A race is a token of appreciation!
• Everyone's own pace is their race!  
• A race bears gifts for all!

Repeating Performance

...as I ponder and reflect my races, I wade through and explore patterns of my performance, some of which annoyingly repeat.

We all run and train and engage in races to challenge ourselves.  In a way, we try to create our own patterns, create our own destiny.

Still, I get into those moods where I feel I'm stuck in some repeating pattern and there is no way out no matter how hard I try.

That is when... I look first outwards at my race performances in review.  When I find nothing helpful which precisely outlines my destiny options, then I switch and look inwards.

My First Memory

Instead of looking at today's world, which is pretty much a chaotic mess, I revert to more simpler times, such as... my first memory.

My very first memory,  I was probably about two years old.

What I remember was sitting with a lot of other people around the same age as myself.

This experience to me seemed like it was some kind of party.  I made the assumption that there was gifts going around.

Knowing that I might be getting gifts, I remember being very attentive.  Looking for the rules I had to follow to get those gifts that seemed to be going around.

All of us in the group were sharing ideas on what we needed to do to... establishing the rules we all had to follow.  I was trying hard to capture all the communication.  I was having a tough time figuring it out, I'm not the best at taking notes.

I also remember trying to see if I could persuade the people next to me if I could be passed some gifts considering that was the rules of the game.  I remember receiving something and I felt I had to pass it on, because I was about to get some better gift.   I passed on whatever I had to make sure I was free'd up.

I was quite excited.  What a party.

In reality, if you were to see me in that very experience, you would most likely see a bunch of snotty nosed toddlers sat down all in a tight circle by their parents.  Crying and throwing things around, making a mess and sporadically chanting clueless rants.

To all of us, however, in that circle of toddlers, it was very complex and meaningful and extremely important.   What is interesting about this memory, as I remember it, is that I built up side stories about every person at the so called 'party'.  I built up side stories about the game, about gift receiving and giving, about how everyone was communicating with me on how the game as to be followed.

Essentially, I made assumptions, made generalizations and everything fit the story, all aligning together towards me getting a gift.

Racing Patterns

Now, I am not going to sit here and analyze my first memory and how it plays out in my race performances.  All I can suggest is that it is still in my banks.

Whether or not I value my performance is not what I am trying to figure out here.  Rather it is such that I am wondering why I keep repeating the same performances over and over.

I'm just annoyed with repeating performances, whatever the value is.

Lose Yourself to Grow

There is however, one very unique performance, that I have had the chance to experience at least a few times out of my hundreds of races and tournaments.  That very unique performance is why I keep trying and coming out.

What is that unique performance?   It is the performance that just doesn't fit with my regular pattern of performance.  Where I somehow perform at some level or another that is beyond current comprehension.  Rarely happens, but I can assure that for each of those instances, I grew in character.

So, if I think about those unique performances in congruence with anything else in my life.  I appeal that I wasn't carrying anything with me into those instances.  I actually was not really even thinking or aware or even there.  I lost myself, I let go of everything and just relaxed and let whatever happen, happen.  That is the benefit of being caught up in the moment of a race and letting go.  Running sometimes does that if you allow it.

I just sometimes look for uniqueness out of every race, every performance.  Dredging through my first ever memory is quite complicated to carry around with me everywhere.  I actually feel it weighs me down when I race, no matter how I would want to analyze it.  Even if it is silent back in my sub-conscience.

Part of losing yourself is also losing all of that complexity that weighs you down.  Which is the idea of just letting go.  When I let go, I do lose myself in the performance, not concerned with however it turns out... as if it was to be a new experience, becoming the new, more relevant first memory of my life.

Marathon Sub Stance

Marathon Sub Stance

Ottawa Marathon Leaders 2014

I am blogging about my sub 3 hour marathon which gets way more notice then better amazing stuff.  For example, a lot of amateur runners can get down to 2:30 or 2:40 in a marathon and that is amazing.  However, the sub 3 hour wall gets all the appeal.  Mainly because anyone can do it and popularity always revolves around the most likely.

For the next few sections, I'll talk about my first trial race, then the fail race, then I'll review the Ottawa Marathon where I, along with many other runners, nailed that 3 hour mark.

Toronto Yonge St. 10K

A target race requires two test races.  A push race and a the upset race.  Either or can be sequenced.

I put the push race first to set the tone for my confidence.

This was the Toronto Yonge St 10 k which is a huge competitive affair consisting of a moderate downhill component.  

I ended up with a time of 37:23 (mm:ss).  

From that finishing value, I went to the RoadWarriorRunning Race Calculator to find that the predictor for the marathon was calculated to 3 hours and 52 second.   That was way past my goal which was a great confidence builder.  Mind you, as said, this was mostly a downhill course.  The marathon did not have a downhill.

Sporting Life 10K

This was my upset race since all confidence building carries with it ego manifestations. Everything ready for the final race, including twelve 30 kilometer training runs. I needed an my ego smashed so that I didn't go out too fast as I always do.  Shattering my ego and picking up the pieces really helps to get it right for the final competition, being more aware of the limitations thought gained through the training regime.  Plus, training to smash my ego scares me so I put more investment to prepare.

I needed to purposely sabotage myself and deal with the challenges, meaning going out faster, finishing way too fast and hurting!  All that hurting and pain made me slow down and helped me remember why racing is not all what appears to be.

From that train wreck, I ended up with 38:22 (mm:ss).  This hurt and set me back a minute from my last race on the same course.  

This was worse than the time that I raced a few weeks before, which set the tone as the upset race.  Which helped to set the focus for the marathon as I wasn't super fragalistic to go superman through the entire 42 k - I had significant limits to take note.

Ottawa Marathon

This was the target race, which meant that either everything would matter or all would shatter.

The first 5 k of the marathon was smooth, the course was perfectly flat and there was more than enough supporters cheering on the sides of the road.

Luckily the sun shadowed by a rolling crisp cool fog which contained the marathon for the next 30 km.  This was too good to be true.

I kept up a consistent pace up to the half marathon since the rolling fog followed us.  Once I hit the half marathon, I did a full check.  I still felt strong, my breathing was consistent, I took water or Gatorade at every station, my feet and legs were somewhat fine, a little tenderized.

Staying relaxed I noticed that I was having a tough time keeping my intended race pace, deviating a bit.  This did increase the pressure for the sub 3 hour but managed to stay relaxed.

Once I reached 30 k, I did another full calibration of all systems.  Since I was told the last 10 k of the race is where it all starts, I was very cautious and scared.

When I reached the 36 kilometer mark, I searched for that usual discouragement in me, but since I did train so diligently, I couldn't find it.  Usually, in a race, I experience a point where I just want to quit. Not this race, no way.

Eventually I reached the 40 kilometer mark.  There was the very minor few runners who stopped in their tracks whom I had no way to help, while the majority of the participants in my sequence were staying strong.  This cluster of runners helped me maintain.  All I could do was watch the runners in front of me and mimic their strength. Eventually, I arm pumped forever to get to the finish line.

Motivation

Substance

What was the motivation to get me from out of nowhere to suddenly achieve a sub 3 hour marathon?

Let`s start with the two main cognitive motivators for goal reaching:

• Substance Achievement
• to posit through that achievement that one exists as a whole distinguishable from it's properties. In these cases, I want to differentiate myself from the social vices and norms.  Creating a standalone definition of myself.
• Emergence Achievement
• a higher-level aggregate demonstration of skill and accomplishment composed by it's properties. In these cases, I find motivation to conform to a distinct group or sub-culture, sharing the resources within that group.

For the most favorable outcome of a race, the strategy is to combine both motivators through race competition and running clubs/community.   

There has to be huge passion to be selfish to create substance, while at the same time, immerse in a sub-culture or group and contribute (emergence).  It is the mix of both motivating factors which helped me to achieve even greater accomplishments then what alone could be possible.