For most of us, a schedule is provided for the bulk of our formative years. Essentially you have until high school graduation mapped out. Beyond that, more and more falls on your shoulders.
For the bulk of my 20’s, I wasn’t exactly organized. Spent most of those years working in retail while hoping the rock star thing would pan out. Still spent a lot of time socializing and had a bunch of friends to meet up to play basketball or go surfing or mountain biking or golf or at least something active outside.
All of the sudden I’m 27 and need to start figuring things out on my own. Everyone I know has real jobs and are getting married. The trips to the beach or amusement parks or to the trails together are less and less. Same with the other activities. Guess it’s time to grow up, Peter Pan.
I finally get into an industry that I would like to pursue as a career and have normal work hours. I decide to join a gym. It dawns on me that even though I have always been into keeping fit, I had no idea what to do in my gym. Sure, you pick things up and put them down but in what order? Turns out that I don’t even know how to swim and they have an amazing pool. I mean, I know how to swim but not like that. Who does laps?
Fortunately for me, a friend of mine moves home from California where he spent some time working as a trainer while at USC. He joins the same gym and helps me out with workout plans. I was making notes and trying to keep it straight in my head but then do the unthinkable for me. I buy an organizer. One of those 365 day planner dealies with an address book and everything.
Now I am tracking my workouts on a daily basis. Chest and triceps one day. Back and biceps the next. Legs and shoulders. Add in cardio and core work and so on and so forth. Now I am putting in notes for my job and tasks there, for my bills, for social events… Organization happens.
Much to the contrary to all of this, another friend who joined the gym tells me he’s running a half marathon that upcoming weekend. Despite never running more than 5 miles at once and didn’t even sign up for the race, I run 13.1 miles bandit style finishing in just over 2 hours. Afterwards, my knees are shot and I can’t walk for almost 2 weeks. So much for planning and being thought out.
2 years later and under some delusion that I know what I am doing, I make up some sort of a plan and decide to run that same half marathon with the intention of destroying my previous time. Instead I add an hour to it finishing in the bottom 2% limping the whole second half of the race and the following 2 weeks again.
Time for a new plan.
Another friend who is quick and has done this for real introduces me to Hal Higdon (https://www.halhigdon.com/) after I decide it’s a good idea to run a marathon. I’m glad I have friends. Anyway, Hal breaks out an 18 week plan for novice marathoners. I’m certainly nervous and a bit overwhelmed looking at it but he also gives bits of real life advice along the way as you go week to week.
I do my best to follow the whole thing to the letter but even as Hal points out, life gets in the way from time to time. I should also point out that I went into this saying that I was one and done.
Again, so much for plans sometimes.
I can probably tell you about every step I took of that marathon. Finished it and not too long after had the thought of doing better the next time. Done that pretty much after finishing each race since. I’ve used a variation of Hal Higdon’s plans over a dozen times. Still use them as a base and adapt from there now that I have a better idea what to do.
It’s been well over 20 years since that bandit half marathon and I have learned a whole lot. I learn more while making mistakes and I tend to make plenty of mistakes. I’m not a bright man. But I have picked up on other people’s mistakes now, too.
My hope is that you can perhaps learn from some of my mistakes by not planning early on. I am still chasing faster times in every distance I am able to run. I also still use a daily planner but years back my brother bought me one specifically for running but I keep my day to day in there for my home life, work life and social life as well.
Yes, technology exists and I do use it from time to time. People also use trainers and coaches for work out stuff and others are in a position to perhaps have an assistant for other aspects of life.
I still enjoy a pop up, non-planned event of all sorts from time to time but keeping things mapped out has certainly helped me in innumerable ways.
As this year is half over, I am now mapping out the fall and into winter. I understand that not everyone likes to do this. It can feel suffocating at times but this is why I like a solid foundation and then keep space for some wiggle room. Having the carrot dangling in front of me keeps me moving. Hopefully in the right direction.
Best of luck to all of you. I also know how the best laid plans don’t always make a difference. Sometimes you have to go with what you got and figure it out on the fly. That may end up being a whole other blog post, however.
Cheers!
G.R.I.T. 