In the early 90's, as part of my Master's program at George Washington University, I took a wide variety of classes for topics surrounding change. One such class covered Change Management from a organizational behavior perspective. During this class, the professor preached that there is no such thing as motivation, its all about incentives that drive people. This theory was repeated in recent books such as Super Freakonomics and more. I see many articles and blogs on what motivates runners to train, finish long races, and more...This premise started making me ask myself the same question, is motivation what drives my training and races or is it pure incentive?
I would lean toward incentive...I don't think you can ask the question by itself, but you need to look at specific real life scenarios. After a night of going out on the town, is it motivation that makes me train the next morning?--NO! When I sign up for a race, is it motivation that drives me to do so?--NO! When I'm running my last mile of a long race, is it motivation that drive me to the finish line?--NO! Lets take each of these questions individually.
So, I've eaten a 10oz steak, drank some wine, and indulged in dessert. I wake up the next morning and my stomach feels like a rock. Does this motivate me to run? No. I have an incentive to run so I can keep my weight down. Then why do folks sign up for races? Most races cost an arm and a leg! So why do it? Does a race motivate you? No. I sign up for races to see if I can beat my PR, see how I compete against others in my age group, and in some cases for the prize. Is this motivation? Lets look at one last example, what gets you to the finish line? In a recent race, in my last mile, I started cramping in my shins and calves. Very painful, so was it motivation that got me to the finish line? No. I ran through the pain because I new if I did I would break my PR. Is this motivation. No. It was simply an incentive that I had to break my PR to set the bar higher for the next race.
I know many believe in the motivation theory, but I just don't believe in it. To me, regardless of how non-PC this sounds, people generally do things because they get something out of it--shear incentive...These incentives can range from self satisfaction for volunteering to winning the prize. Here are a few links to some books on the topic if your interested:
Showing posts with label training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label training. Show all posts
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Run to Lose and to Rid the Blues!
In June of 09, I weighed 215 lbs and had high cholesterol, elevated blood pressure, and didn't feel good about appearance, so I decided to try to do something about it. I thought I was already running about 4 miles a day, but boy was I wrong. I was eating whatever I wanted and I had a 38 to 40 inch waist. Those damn chips! I knew I had to change my habits or else! I heard through a friend about the NIKE+ product Nike + iPod Sport Kit - White, ONE SIZE that would enable you to track your training, so I decided to give that a shot along with a significantly different diet. The first time I used NIKE+, I started with my standard run only to find out I was running about 2.5 miles and at over 9 minutes a mile. This was the start of a significant change in my life...
On July 2nd, I started a training and diet program. My goal for training was to increase my runs to 5 miles and not worry about anything except getting through it. It took about 6 months to get my runs up to 5 miles. I usually ran 5 days a week, but at some points would go 10 days in a row. My times were coming down to around 8:30 minute mile and my weight came down to about 195. I would log my miles diligently with NIKE+ and enter an occasional challenge here and there for motivational purposes. Tiger Woods Microsoft Xbox 360 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12 The Masters - PGATOUR12 would whisper in my ear...Congratulations, this is your furthest run yet! During this time, my dieting became pretty strict. I didn't count calories, but just tried to eat right. Typically, I ate fruits, cheerios, and yogurt for breakfast; salads, soups, and flat bread turkey sandwich for lunch; and soups, salad with chicken, and whole wheat anything for dinner. I only drank water, milk, and coffee on a regular basis. I also only drank light beer or red wine for dinner. If I ate poorly the night before, I would train extra hard the next day to balance it out.
During the spring of 2010, I entered a few races and increased my mileage per week and maintained my diet. I also entered the NIKE+ Human Race and my first half marathon for motivation purposes. During the spring, my weight came down to around 180, my waist size came down to 32 and I was feeling pretty good about myself. I dropped my times down to around a 8:10 minute mile. At that point, my NIKE+ system start to intermittently have problems (including Tiger ;), so I decided to give a Garmin GPS GARMIN Forerunner 210 GPS Enabled Watch with Heart Rate Monitor Bundle Pack, Black - Non watch a try. Garmin actually maps your route and provides you details on mile splits and elevation. This proved to be just what the doctor ordered.
In June 2010, I registered for my first 20 miler to be run in late September, so I started training relatively hard. At this point, I did back off my diet by adding the occasional pizza, steak, burger, and, YES, THOSE DAMN CHIPS to add the extra fuel necessary to compensate for the extra miles. During this period, I would alternate runs every other week. The first week, I would run one 10 miler, four 5+ milers, and one 13+ miler. The second week, I would run one 10 miler, and five 5+ milers. During the period, my weight stayed about 180-183 and one month before the race, I got a pretty bad sinus infection and couldn't maintain my program. I managed to get in four to five days of work, but at much lower mileage. The last three weeks before the race, I tried to ratchet up my program and at the end of September, I successfully ran my first 20 miler at an average pace of 7:50 minutes a mile. This was a great spirit lifter, but also I wasn't prepared for the after effects or the toll it would take on my body. I started running two days after the race, but with much wear and tear. I didn't know that you should back off for about a week or two before getting back into the mix.
Since October, I've been running six days a week averaging just over 30 miles a week with times consistently at or below an 8 minute mile. I have kept a fairly consistent diet, but have not been as strict (CHIPS). My weight fluctuates from 182 to 185 and I am somewhere around between a 32-34 inch waist. Now I'm ready for the next stage and have decided to sign up for a 10 miler in April to get it going. My goal for 2011 is to improve my time, lose a few more pounds, and to start dieting and training for my first Marathon in October 2011! MCM or Bust!
On July 2nd, I started a training and diet program. My goal for training was to increase my runs to 5 miles and not worry about anything except getting through it. It took about 6 months to get my runs up to 5 miles. I usually ran 5 days a week, but at some points would go 10 days in a row. My times were coming down to around 8:30 minute mile and my weight came down to about 195. I would log my miles diligently with NIKE+ and enter an occasional challenge here and there for motivational purposes. Tiger Woods Microsoft Xbox 360 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12 The Masters - PGATOUR12 would whisper in my ear...Congratulations, this is your furthest run yet! During this time, my dieting became pretty strict. I didn't count calories, but just tried to eat right. Typically, I ate fruits, cheerios, and yogurt for breakfast; salads, soups, and flat bread turkey sandwich for lunch; and soups, salad with chicken, and whole wheat anything for dinner. I only drank water, milk, and coffee on a regular basis. I also only drank light beer or red wine for dinner. If I ate poorly the night before, I would train extra hard the next day to balance it out.
During the spring of 2010, I entered a few races and increased my mileage per week and maintained my diet. I also entered the NIKE+ Human Race and my first half marathon for motivation purposes. During the spring, my weight came down to around 180, my waist size came down to 32 and I was feeling pretty good about myself. I dropped my times down to around a 8:10 minute mile. At that point, my NIKE+ system start to intermittently have problems (including Tiger ;), so I decided to give a Garmin GPS GARMIN Forerunner 210 GPS Enabled Watch with Heart Rate Monitor Bundle Pack, Black - Non watch a try. Garmin actually maps your route and provides you details on mile splits and elevation. This proved to be just what the doctor ordered.
In June 2010, I registered for my first 20 miler to be run in late September, so I started training relatively hard. At this point, I did back off my diet by adding the occasional pizza, steak, burger, and, YES, THOSE DAMN CHIPS to add the extra fuel necessary to compensate for the extra miles. During this period, I would alternate runs every other week. The first week, I would run one 10 miler, four 5+ milers, and one 13+ miler. The second week, I would run one 10 miler, and five 5+ milers. During the period, my weight stayed about 180-183 and one month before the race, I got a pretty bad sinus infection and couldn't maintain my program. I managed to get in four to five days of work, but at much lower mileage. The last three weeks before the race, I tried to ratchet up my program and at the end of September, I successfully ran my first 20 miler at an average pace of 7:50 minutes a mile. This was a great spirit lifter, but also I wasn't prepared for the after effects or the toll it would take on my body. I started running two days after the race, but with much wear and tear. I didn't know that you should back off for about a week or two before getting back into the mix.
Since October, I've been running six days a week averaging just over 30 miles a week with times consistently at or below an 8 minute mile. I have kept a fairly consistent diet, but have not been as strict (CHIPS). My weight fluctuates from 182 to 185 and I am somewhere around between a 32-34 inch waist. Now I'm ready for the next stage and have decided to sign up for a 10 miler in April to get it going. My goal for 2011 is to improve my time, lose a few more pounds, and to start dieting and training for my first Marathon in October 2011! MCM or Bust!
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