Posts about the things I've learned while running

Mentoring While We Run

My youngest is signed up for her very first race next month. It's a half mile, which is a very long way for a six-year-old, and she gets a t-shirt. She assures me her shoes are very fast. Since my knees are still not a hundred percent, I'll do my best to keep up.

My son is training for a 5K set for that same morning. This is his third race and he's getting up at 5 a.m. to run with me. I love that. I am so impressed with his willingness and dedication and I can tell a huge difference in his endurance since this spring.

I never ran when I was a kid. Maybe it was because Forrest hadn't made it popular yet, but I suspect it was because my parents didn't run. I had no example, no mentor, no encourager. I took it up in my forties because my husband ran. (Yes, my college roommate did too, but I was something less than interested then.)

As we run our race for Christ, it's important to realize that we have tremendous influence when it comes to leading others to get in the race or simply to keep trying. I don't say this to put extra pressure on you – who needs that- but rather to encourage and assure you. Whether it's with your kids, grandkids, or other family or friends, you CAN and DO make a difference.

Keep running!

After an Injury

By Paula Wiseman

I had a great plan for the running season. Last year I wanted to hit 10K and I didn't make it. This year I made that distance in April. April. So I set my sights on a half marathon by fall. I found a series of races – A 10K in August, a 15K in September and a half-marathon in October. Perfect.

Then knee pain hit and everything unraveled. I got really discouraged. (I'm a goal-oriented type and scrapping my race plans was a major failure.) I couldn't run three-quarters of a mile without serious pain. I had trouble walking without pain. And steps? Forget it.

I took two weeks off – it still hurt. I got a knee brace – it still hurt. I iced and wrapped and stretched… it still hurt. It was decision time. Work through pain and keep running OR decide running wasn't my thing after all.

I decided to run. Somehow or other.

I consulted with Jay. He gave me a set of exercises and an admonition to run on the track. So I did. Running a half mile, stretching, walking, running another half mile. Two miles, then two and a half, then running a mile at a time. Little by little. I'm back up to three miles. Next week we'll try running on consecutive days.

So what does my whining have to do with anything?

Hebrews 12:12-13 says "Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed."

Running the race God sets before us is not always easy and sometimes we encounter pain and difficulty. It could be anything from opposition and conflict to church politics to failures to … you name it. When something like that happens, we don't stop running altogether but we do need to take care of ourselves. How do we do that?

I had to leave my schedule and plan, and go back to the basics. Sometimes when we serve Christ, we get so busy ministering, we lose sight of the One we're trying to serve. We get ideas, we jump into to programs, we go ninety miles an hour, nonstop. Until we get hurt. Discouraged. Defeated. When that happens, we need to take a break and refocus on the basics of who Christ is and who we are in Him.

I had to strengthen my knees. BUT that only happened when I worked on my hips. Turns out the tendons from my hip muscles were pulling my knees. Jay's exercises were for my hips. Be ready to strengthen the weak areas in your Christian life but always be aware – they may not be where you think they are. You may need a wise coach to help you diagnose the source.

I switched to the track while I healed. We may need to switch to a "softer" area of service for a bit to recover and revive. It's a way to prevent long-term damage or ministry burn-out.

I'm making progress. Each day I run a little longer, and my knee hurts a little less, and recovers from the day's run a little sooner. I hope to be back on schedule before the season ends. When we get back into running our race for Christ after pain and difficulty, look for progress – strengthening, more endurance, and quicker recovery from routine stresses – and be encouraged by that.

Have you ever had to quit running for a while (physically or spiritually)? What helped you recover?

Running Buddies

By Paula Wiseman

Not too long ago, my daughter was flirting with the idea of running some challenging fall races. She likes the idea of running, but the doing… not so much. As she was preparing to head out one afternoon, I overheard her brother coaching her. "It will probably hurt, maybe the whole time, but you have to keep going. That's how you get stronger."

Good advice. It made me smile for a couple of reasons. One, he's younger and rarely gets to coach her on anything. Second, I had said very similar words to him one morning not too long ago when his leg muscles were rebelling.

In my experience, runners are extremely helpful with advice and tips for those of us who haven't been lacing the shoes quite as long. I rely on my husband and his buddy, Jay, and a few online coaches. But I also do my best to encourage my kids, offering to train with them or race with them.

I've written before on the subject of being 'in-between.' I think it's a critical part of our Christian walk, that constant learning and sharing, teaching and mentoring in the body of Christ. Consider these three benefits.

It strengthens the bond between us. Think back through the challenging times in your life. Do you feel a connection to those who counseled you or walked through those times with you? Or maybe there was a time when you were there for a friend or family member.

It encourages both people. New Testament writers Paul and John both mentioned the joy that came with hearing the new believers were standing firm, taking their teaching to heart and living out the truth. It's a real blessing to have someone invest themselves in you.

It models Christ. In the beautiful prayer recorded in John 17, Jesus mentions several things He received from the Father that He, in turn, gave to His followers. So we should freely give all the encouragement and insight we've received.

Who are your running buddies?

Trainer or Racer?

By Paula Wiseman

Memorial Day, I ran my fourth ever race. Here's what I learned – I'm terrible at races. I took a month of great training runs, of shaving seconds off my time and translated that into my worst 5K time yet. It's tempting to blame the heat. (It was about 20-25 degrees warmer than training temps.) Or the hill. (The half mile between 1.5 and 2. Ugh.) Or the crowded race field. (I'm used to running alone.)

I was frustrated enough that I considered scrapping plans for a series of races – a 10K, 15K and half marathon – this fall. Especially after my husband conquered his first triathlon two days before the Memorial Day race, then sailed through the 5K. I might be competitive.

But here's what concerns me more. I'm the same way in my Christian life. I'm great at training – at studying my Bible every morning, attending church services and so forth. But when it comes to testing those things, to putting theory into practice, I often choke.

So how do I fix this?

I keep training. I'll never run a successful race without good training. And that was the part I did fairly well at. That goes for my walk too. I need to keep up those spiritual disciplines- study, prayer, worship and so on- if I have any hope of running well.

I keep running races. I have to keep putting myself to the test. By the end of the month, it's put up or shut up time on those fall races… Spiritually, the same thing applies. I have to allow God to put me in situations where I have to use what I've learned.

I keep striving. Personal bests are never permanent. (Sadly, personal 'worsts' may not be either.) I'll have a breakthrough one of these days as long as I keep putting on my sneakers. As a believer, Hebrews 12 tells me to run with endurance. After all, those folks in chapter 11 did, and look where it got them.

What about you? Are you better at "training", "racing" or both?

Running with Endurance

By Paula Wiseman

Last Monday, I ran farther than I had ever run before – nearly 7 miles. I left the house a little after 5 and got home around 6:15. I ran the whole time. 72 minutes. (Yeah, I'm pretty slow.) Not only that, but it was my third straight "longest ever." I'm not doing anything different than what I did last summer when I couldn't break 5.5 miles. Well, maybe there's one thing different – I'm learning the mental side to running. I'm learning my body can do more than I realized if I don't give in to its whining. I'm also learning to listen to my internal "coach" and not the "critic." Who knows, I may be running a half marathon before the season is out.

Of course, all this has a spiritual application. We can do far more for the cause of Christ than we realize ("all things," the apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:13). However, it is all too easy to listen to that voice inside. You know, the one that says, "That will never work." Or, "You're not qualified." Or, "You're just one person. You'll never make a difference."

How would things change if we listened to our Holy Spirit "coach" instead? What would our families and churches and neighborhoods be like if we grabbed hold of, "You have everything you need. You've got this." Or, "That discomfort is because you're doing something. Keep going!" Or "Look how far you've gone!"

When God called us, He equipped us. We can do the ministry He's given us to do. We can. He has infused us with the Holy Spirit. But we have to make the effort and we have to endure.

(A side note: Endure doesn't mean "exhaust yourself." Sometimes we have to make sure we are running the race God has laid out and not running extra miles someone else piles on us.)

Bottom line- Don't quit. Hang on and push through, and you'll start to see amazing things happen.

"…[L]et us run with endurance the race that is set before us" Hebrews 12:1

(PS- I'm shooting for 8 miles by the end of the month!)

Marathon Training

By Paula Wiseman

I run a little, so I was mildly interested in the results for L.A. Marathon from this past weekend. The winner finished in 2 hours and 12 minutes. That's a mile every 5 minutes. My long run so far this season was 4.25 miles. A marathon is six times that distance. And the winner ran over twice as fast as I do.

If I wanted to run a marathon… I'd have to make some major lifestyle changes.

My schedule would have to shift to accommodate running up to four hours a day.

My priorities would be rearranged with running near the top.

My diet would change.

I'd need some gear.

I'd need another pair of shoes because I'd wear out my current ones in training (which is sad because they are brand new and I really like them).

And I'd need a mentor, someone with experience running marathons who could set up a training schedule for me and make sure I stick to it.

Now I guarantee if took that on, there would be pain, exhaustion and discomfort. I would have to be dedicated, committed and goal-oriented. Above all, I'd have to listen to my mentor.

You see where I'm going with this.

But it struck me today – this life is not the main event. The things we go through in this life are prepping us for eternity. Paul talks about running our race, and I've written several posts about the things I've learned since I started running. But this is all training.

In my training…

Have I made the necessary changes to my life> This must be my priority.
Am I giving my full effort? I have to run every mile.
Am I listening to my mentor, Jesus Christ, and following the program He's designed for me?

What about you? How is your training coming along?

P.S. I'm running my second 5K this weekend. 🙂