Make Marathon Weekend a Family Event

Marathon training is a rigorous and time-consuming endeavor not just for you, but for your family as well. Minimum weekly mileage requirements and long runs are necessary to get you to the starting line with a prayer of finishing the event. If you have a time goal, some speed/tempo work is also necessary. Beyond actual running is the pre and post-run stretching, strength training, and perhaps a trip or two to a sports massage specialist to work out the kinks. New running shoes, clothes, and gear must be purchased. Furthermore, how energetic and social are you on a Saturday night after a Saturday morning 20-miler? Finally, your family must listen to you drone on interesting topics such as hamstring tightness, fartlek workouts, and tapering, I could go on and on but you get the picture. Marathon training is a serious commitment not only on your part but also your family.

So when choosing your marathon destination, reward your family. Bring them along and make it a family event. They supported you through months of training. They want to not only share in your moment but see the fruits of their labor. Give them something to look forward to other than being your support crew. Here are some simple guidelines:

Choose an age appropriate mode of travel and location. If you have young children, driving six hours or less is much more painless than flying. In this case, choose a marathon closer to home. I live in Atlanta and have three children under the age of six. Chattanooga (Chickamauga), Knoxville, Birmingham, Huntsville, Charlotte, Savannah (Tybee Island), Charleston (Kiawah Island), and Jacksonville all offer marathons within a six hour drive. As your children get older, flying will become a more viable option and we will expand our geographic range.

Make it easy for them to see you race. Big city events like New York and Chicago can be difficult for families. The crowds and logistics can be awkward if you have younger children. Smaller races can offer opportunities for you family to see you multiple times without aggravation. Also, hotels near or along the race course also offer convenient race viewing opportunities.

Find something fun for everyone. You get to run 26.2 miles. That is your fun. Now research something everyone else will enjoy. Perhaps you can take your family to a fun or interesting restaurant the night before the race. See what your host city has to offer in terms of terms of museums, events, and major attractions. Last year my family accompanied me to the Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon just south of Chattanooga, Tennessee. The race was on Saturday morning. On Saturday afternoon we went to the Chattanooga Children’s Museum. On Saturday night, we enjoyed a great meal at the Big River Grille. On Sunday morning, we toured the wonderful Tennessee Aquarium. By the end of the weekend, my kids believed that this was their mini-vacation.

It is impossible to separate your family life from your marathon training. They must co-exist in symbiotic relationship in order for you to succeed. So make the most of your marathons and set the course for a wonderful weekend experience for everyone.

Remember To Thank Mom and Dad

May 30th marks approximately the halfway point between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. At this time, I thought it appropriate to reflect on the positive influence that our parents may have had on our running.

My parents encouraged my siblings and I to participate in a number of different athletics growing up including running, basketball, baseball, soccer, gymnastics, golf, and swimming. My mother shuttled us back and forth to practices, games, and meets. My father attended nearly every game and even coached on a few of our teams. My brother, sister and I were all athletically-inclined, however, none of us were extraordinarily talented. My parents likely saw this eventuality early on. Nonetheless, they invested their money, time, and emotional energy into our athletic pursuits with encouragement and pride.

In doing so, they sent the message early on that being fit, strong, and confident is important. This message has carried through into adulthood. My siblings and I are all runners. My sister has complete two marathons. My brother has completed a marathon and the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon. We enjoy running and it is an important part of our lives.

I got the running bug very early in life. I ran in a number of 5-milers and 10k’s when I was a teenager growing-up in Pittsburgh. The shallow talent pool in lower age brackets allowed me to win a few age group awards. What must it have been like for my father to wake at 5:45 am on a Saturday morning (after he’d worked all week) to take me to a local 5-mile race? I remember him standing by the starting line with a cup of coffee encouraging me as I took off. About 35 minutes later after I finished, he’d then have to wait another hour for the awards ceremony to begin. I’d then collect an age group trophy (even if only 3 people competed in my age group). As the years have passed and I’ve become a parent myself, I realize now what a sacrifice of my parent’s time this was. But they never complained, always encouraged, never pushed, and always greeted me with a smile at the finish line.

My parents knew early on that I’d never be the next Salazar. Nonetheless, their support of my running at an early age is a deeply embedded part of my current love for the sport. Thank you Mom and Dad.

Welcome to the "Your Running Life" Blog

Welcome to the “Your Running Life” blog and thank you for reading our inaugural post. To help understand what this blog is all about, please consider the following questions:

· Do you frequently have a gnawing feeling in your soul that you’d rather be running?
· When you’re at work, does your mind wander to your next race?
· When driving your kids to pre-school, do you wish that you could transport them using a baby jogger instead?
· Do you check race calendars when choosing a location for your next family vacation?
· When traveling on business, do you choose hotels based on their proximity to parks or greenways?
· Does your bookshelf contain the names Sheehan, Galloway, and Parker instead of Faulkner, Clancy, and Grisham? Do you struggle to wake-up on Monday mornings at 6:30 am to go to work but literally jump out of bed at 5:00 am on Saturdays for your long run

If you answered any of these questions with a resounding “yes”, then this running blog was designed for you. Your Running Life is located at the intersection of running and life. Running will always be a primary topic on this blog, however, many posts will be written through the lens of family, friends, and work (i.e. real life). A purpose of this blog is to provide a discussion forum for enthusiastic, like-minded runners who love to run but have lives as well. We’ll do some essays, commentary, product reviews, race reviews, and advice from the middle of the pack. Family members and friends of runners (who must deal with our obsession) are also invited to join in.

Like you, I am a runner. I love running. Besides spending time with my family, there is nothing I’d rather be doing than running. If I had the time, energy, or physical ability, I would run every day and race every weekend. At the same time, I am also a spouse, parent, friend, and employee. With these other responsibilities and roles, I rarely have the opportunity to run as often as I’d like. Nonetheless, running is part of the glue that holds my life together. It adds to my emotional, mental, and physical well-being. In fact, I hope that running likely makes me a better spouse, parent, friend, and employee. Like you, I am trying to juggle the chaos of my life while ensuring that I “get my run in.”

If you’ve read this far, you understand exactly what I’m talking about. So comment on a post. Give some advice. Share a story. After all, if you aren’t running at this moment, you might as well be reading or writing about it.