by Haley Fletcher
You guys, the temperature is getting warmer, the snow is starting to melt…yes, even the stuff coming down today. Spring is in the air which means running season is here. If you’re like me, winter is typically “rest” season. Time to recover those legs, get that nutrition in check, and build up some strength…am I right?
Having a few marathons under my belt, let me tell you what I have learned since starting Alchemy. My first marathon (pre-Alchemy) was a struggle. I thought I was doing everything right. Running non-stop. Never resting. Eating whatever I wanted, and hardly lifting weights because muscle meant extra pounds and extra pounds meant slower times (at least in my mind). Boy, did I have it all wrong. That first marathon ended with knee pain, an achy back, blistered feet, a week long recovery process and a 4:11 time.
Fast forward to last fall. Alchemy was in my life for almost a year now (if you count the pilot classes), and the difference in trainings was incredible. P.A. (Pre-Alchemy) I felt sluggish, exhausted, unmotivated. This time around, everything was different. Mile after mile, the legs just kept going and running was actually getting fun.
You see, running is a huge mental game. Let me tell you a little trick that helps get through those hot 20 milers on Saturday morning when you’d much rather be getting brunch with the “squad.” Think of it like an A20. Take each mile as one minute of that A20. Focus on making it to that halfway point. Push yourself. Listen to the voice of your Alchemy coach pushing you forward, motivating you each step of the way. Pretty soon you’ll be at that last mile and you will not want to stop.
Just like in class, you give it everything you got until that last tick of the clock, until that last .1 mile is done. You cheer for yourself along the way, never giving up because you are strong; you are capable of doing anything.
Alchemy has taught me strength training will indeed give me muscles but that extra muscle weight will not slow me down. Since starting Alchemy, 20 minutes have been shaved from that first marathon time. I used to have really bad knees along with patellar tendonitis. After building strength from A-Strong, and A20/A10 classes, those knee issues are gone.
Not only has my physical strength grown, but that mental strength as well. Alchemy is full of athletes and we can all motivate each other to keep going, take those long runs together and build strength together. Just like we say during those 3 final breaths in class, you will work so much harder in a group than you ever would alone.
So here’s to an amazing season of many miles, PR’s, and chocolate milk (the best recovery drink ever!). See you on the streets Alchemists. #PYL
