Last week was all about rest and recovery.
One week after the Two Oceans race, our running club did a celebratory run for all participants. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it, but I did a solo run in the afternoon. Wearing the blue race shirt, of course.
There were plenty of walks, too, which we enjoyed.
One of those walks was the Ceremonial Farewell Walk for my favourite trail shoes.
They were in such bad condition that I couldn’t even donate them. Before I threw them away, I cut them up (with a bread knife) because I wanted to see the protective carbon rock plate in the soles. I was expecting a thin metal plate, full of dramatic dents and scratches from my trail runs.
Instead, it was only a thin, but firm fabric. Very undramatic. I was a little disappointed.
So, what’s next?
We will be going back to Switzerland in May. In June, we will be participating in a triathlon in Zurich.
In some adrenaline-fuelled frenzy, I signed us up for the Olympic distance. This involves 1.5k of swimming in the “clear, but pleasantly warm” lake. I don’t even know if I can swim that distance. This is not only out of my comfort zone, it’s in a completely different universe. I am terrified.
Providing we survive this ordeal, the next big event will be the Berlin Marathon in September. I discovered that Berlin is certified as a qualifying race for Boston, which opens up exciting new possibilities. The qualifying time for Boston for my age is 3:55. Considering the cut-off due to field size limitations, it’s probably closer to 3:45. If everything goes well, that should be doable.
Talking of marathon times, I really enjoyed this article in the New York Times (it’s free, but you have to enter your mail address to read it).
It’s about Mariko Yugeta, the first woman over 60 to run a sub-3 hour marathon (2:52). Surprisingly, her main motivation was regret. As a younger woman, she had narrowly missed her goal to participate in the Olympics. Then life got in the way: she got married and raised four children while working full-time. In her 50s, she returned to running.
The article explains that it’s unhealthy to follow the popular “No Regret” culture and to pretend we don’t experience it. Instead, we should embrace our regrets and use them as an inspiration for change.
I especially liked Mariko’s final comment: “What’s important is the here and now, and the future. How can you improve yourself in the days to come?”
- What do you think – what’s the best way to deal with regret?
- Do you do “farewell runs” for your shoes?
I’m joining Kooky Runner and Zenaida’s link-up, Tuesday Topics. I’m also joining Runner’s Roundup with Mile By Mile, Coach Debbie Runs, Confessions of a Mother Runner and Runs with Pugs.
Ach, liebe Catrina, du bist schon wieder in action !! Anderes habe ich von dir auch nicht erwartet. Es ist erstaunlich, wie viel du/ihr beide immer unterwegs seid – ich meine jetzt im Wettkampf und/oder mit einem Lauf mit anderen. Wieder wunderschöne Bilder am Meer – in der doch so anderen Natur als der unsrigen, da muss man ja einfach laufen.
Deine Ziel für dieses Jahr sind ja auch nicht gerade ohne, aber mit deiner Lauffreude und deiner Laufstärke wirst du sie alle nach und nach erfolgreich hinter dich/euch bringen, dann noch ein Triathlon, das wäre was für mich gewesen, da ich von Hause aus Schwimmerin war. Halte dir alle Daumen !!
Was die Schuhe angeht, weniger schön, ich habe so etwas in meiner langen Laufzeit noch nie erlebt, dass sie quasi auseinander fallen ! 😉
Was die Dame angeht, es ist nie zu spät, wenn man irgendetwas machen möchte, sollte man es immer wagen, egal in welchem Alter, solange man noch fit und gesund ist – und das war sie in diesem Fall – tolle Zeit !!
Und nun alles, alles Gute für deine Projekte in diesem Jahr, gesunde Beine, Durchhaltevermögen, aber das hast du ja – und viel Glück von ganz oben !🍀🍀🍀🏃♀️
Es sind nach mehr aus, liebe Margitta – die restliche Zeit der Woche verbrachten wir sitzend! 🙂
Morgen ist ein Feiertag hier in Südafrika, da werden wir mit einer Lauffreundin (diejenige, die neu angefangen hat) einen lockeren 10km Lauf auf einem Weingut machen. Und am Samstag haben wir noch einen Lauf in einem Nachbarort. Das sind zwar offiziell “Wettkämpfe”, aber wir machen alles im Fun Run Tempo. Die Anlässe sind sehr günstig (EUR 6) und machen Spass.
Klar, der Triathlon wäre ein Klacks für dich… irgendwann müssen wir uns mit Schwimmen befassen, obwohl wir uns innerlich dagegen sträuben.
Die Schuhe habe ich viel zu lange getragen – bestimmt 2’000km. Aber schade, dass der vielgerühmte Carbon Plate am Schluss nur ein Stück Stoff ist.
Mariko finde ich sehr inspirierend. Unglaublich, was sie als ü60-jährige macht. Was für ein Unterschied zu den nicht-sportlichen ü60 Damen (und Herren), die ich kenne!
Danke dir! Solange wir gesund und unverletzt bleiben, sollte alles klappen!
Liebe Grüsse vom kühlen, aber sonnigen Cape Town!
Wow, a triathlon – that´s tough! A friend of mine did one in Estonia last year, and she said the swimming part was the hardest. She said there are so many people splashing about so you have to be extra careful.
I totally agree that it´s “OK” to regret things, that just means it´s important to you and you should do something about it if possible. Regret doesn´t equal getting depressed about having chosen differently, but it´s in my opinion a signal to react.
Oh wow, a triathlon in Estonia! I guess she was swimming in the open sea, which is incredibly hard. Not to mention that it’s probably freezing cold, too!
You worded that so beautifully, Riitta! That’s exactly what I think, too. Regret is not a bad thing if we use it properly. We can’t change what happened in the past, but we can use it as a force for good going forward.
Liebe Catrina.
wie schön, eine “Auseierwoche”, die du dir redlich verdient hast. 😀 Eure Spaziergänge wirken schon sehr herbstlich, ich dachte mir noch, wann ihr wohl wieder nach Zürich kommen werdet und da stand es auch schon! 😀
Ich freue mich, euch wieder relativ nah zu wissen, vielleicht schaffen wir im Sommer ja mal ein Treffen, wenn ich in den Westen fahre.
Zu den Schuhen – ach das ist immer so traurig, wenn ein Lieblingspaar gehen muss. Meine ersten Lieblingsschuhe, mit denen ich auch meinen ersten HM gelaufen bin, ließ ich bei meiner Mutter stehen und bat sie, sie wegzuwerfen, weil ich sie garantiert wieder aus der Tonne rausgefischt hätte! 😉
Liebe Doris
Auseiern! Genau! Ach, es war so gemütlich!
Sobald die Sonne weg ist, kühlt es schnell ab. Tagsüber ist es wunderbar mit 20°C, nachts wird’s dann 10-12°C. In unserer Wohnung ist nur ein Zimmer heizbar, das Büro. Aber das stellen wir eigentlich nie an. Es gilt die Devise: warm anziehen! 🙂
Oh, das war ja was, liebe Doris!! Da finden wir bestimmt ein Datum und ein Ort, das passt. Mitte Juli werden wir übrigens in Grainau sein für eine Wanderung auf die Zugspitze. Aber jetzt sehe ich gerade, dass du fast 200km entfernt bist… nicht gerade in der Nähe.
Ha, sehr geschickt mit der Schuhentsorgung! Das müsste ich auch mal machen – die schmerzhafte Trennung geht so bestimmt leichter!
Bin gespannt auf den Wien-Bericht!
Sounds like your triathlon will be round the time as Ditiro’s Iron Man! Let me warn you it’s a lot of training because you’re balancing 3 disciplines. He’s following an online plan – let me ask him to send it to me and you can take a look at it in case it helps! His weakest discipline is swimming so that’s what he has been most stressed about but slowly but surely he is getting there.
What wonderful plans you have – it just occurred to me that Zurich is a Z, so that’s a done deal for your Alphabet Run, LOL!
I love what you read about regret – I think it’s a protective strategy to say we have no regrets. But what if we redirect our regrets to channel else – imagine all the possibilities.
A fellow triathlete suffering at the same time! Ours in on 26 June.
That would be so cool if you could send us the link to the plan, Shathiso! We’re not doing an Iron Man, but it would still be very insightful. Ditiro will have to swim nearly 4Ks, which is an unbelievable distance. Never mind the stuff that follows! I hope you will cover it in a post or two, it’s quite exciting!
Haha, yes!! Now there’s only that X to worry about! 🙂
It was an eye-opener for me – I never viewed regrets that way. For me, it was always something that happened in the past that we need to ignore and forget. And you’re right – so many possibilities!
His is 5th June. It’s Half Iron Man so probably closer to yours. The swim is 1.9km, and then 90km cycle and Half Marathon 😁 Have just asked him for it. I’ll email it as soon as I get it!
For X also check Eastern Cape before you leave SA. I suspect a Xhosa speaking place would surely have an X!
Ah, 3 weeks earlier!
A half Iron Man is still incredible. Ours is about half of that, except the swimming part: 1.5k swim, 40k bike and a 10k run.
Thank you, Shathiso!
That’s what I thought, too! So many Xs in Xhosa, there must be some place somewhere!
I have never done a farewell run for my shoes! They are usually just donated or converted to walking shoes. Interesting idea! I’ve never cut them up, either.
I have no doubt that you can complete your tri! I can’t even imagine you having regrets, Catrina — you do everything! While living is such amazing places, too.
These shoes were in such a bad state, Judy! They weren’t even good walking shoes anymore. I’m sure I did over 2’000k in them – the attachment is real!
As long as I don’t sink halfway through the swim, I should be able to finish that triathlon. Oh my goodness, why did I ever sign up for this??
Ah, no, Judy, there’s plenty of stuff I regret. For example, I could have been nicer to my younger sister when we were kids. I’m trying to make up for it now that we are adults.
And many, many times I wish I would have kept my mouth shut…I hope that one day I will learn from that regret! 🙂
You will not sink. Don’t even think like that!
My sister and I weren’t at all close growing up. She’s 7 years older than me. We’ve grown much closer over the last 13 years (the amount of time we’ve been living here).
I don’t really have a lot of regrets. I do wish I’d found my way to healthier eating a long time ago, although I’ve been working on it for decades! But they say you grown by going through that sort of stuff.
Sometimes I regret not starting to run sooner — other times I think it’s a good thing, that my body didn’t have to deal with all the pounding for many decades!
Haha, let’s see, Judy!
That’s a good point that you make about running.
I agree with you.
Sometimes I also wish I had been running as a young person with a proper coach – but then, who knows if we’d still be running now?
Exactly!
A triathlon would be not only out of my comfort zone but I might drown.
I bet you do fine.
I love that quote.
I think that’s why I finally ran a marathon. I have friends who have died from cancer. You never know how long you will be healthy. I didn’t want to regret that I didn’t do it while I could.
And yes I believe that anyone can. You just have to try.
Ha! Exactly! I was looking at the swimming route and it takes you far away from the shore. I hope they have lifeboats nearby.
Oh, that’s a nice one, Darlene. You were motivated by a potential future regret. I like that even better!
You’re a great role model to be running at 68 – or is it 69? Not many women are out there doing races at that age. You can be really proud of yourself!
A triathlon? 😱 You realize you need to swim? Duathlon is doable, but triathlon is another beast. Will you be taking swimming lessons? If you are like me, you can float on your back & tread water & do a dog paddle. Or maybe you are a secret Olympic style swimmer?🤔 Well I am certain you will manage it. It will be a project for sure. Now you will will need swimming suits in addition to more runners🤣🤣🤣
Runners? I just use them for walking or gardening or dirty work. The problem is they are piling up faster than I can use them. Nobody wants my stinky runners I am certain 🤣🤣🤣
Regret? TBH, never really thought about regrets much. Like Riitta said, it can be a force of impetus to do things differently (tricks). I just know I have projects lined up until my last breaths already, so no time to redo stuff from the past. Forward & onward I say. The past is where one has been & hopefully picked up a few tricks to apply in the future!
Looks like no relaxing for you!🤣 But do rest. It is very good sometimes to do just nothing, so when you get back, it is filled w joy & desire. Nice you took a week off so far w no training. Congratulations. It can be hard to feel that you are losing your fitness. But your body has so much memory of your training, it would take years of doing nothing for you to go back to square 1. I just remember that to give myself permission to do nothing.
Have great fun brushing up your swimming & biking skills. You have the cardio already, now you need the physical aspect of each. We all know you are a first-class runner🏃♀️💨💨💨 You will do well. 🤚
Haha, Yves! I know, it’s going to be such a disaster! We are both horrible swimmers, barely keeping afloat. We should sign up for swimming lessons, but we only have 2 months’ time to learn the proper crawl. Kai tried to go for a swim yesterday but then came back saying the water was too cold. So we’re off to a great start. 🙂
Ah, you have the same problem, I see! You use them for walks and dirty work and then they’re so unseemly you can’t donate them. I bet your wife “helps” you to throw them away in the end. 🙂
I think you are applying Mariko’s concept instinctively, even without thinking deeply about regrets from the past. I love that you have so many projects lined up. Did you give away those beautiful wooden boxes you made?
You are right about the resting and recovery part. I’m definitely not going to race outright until I get to the Berlin Marathon. The older you get, the more recovery time you need and it would be a shame to get injured. Or lose joy.
We have a fun 10K run tomorrow at a vineyard (it’s a public holiday tomorrow) and another fun 12K run on Saturday. Kai may race it (he should!) but I definitely won’t.
Thank you, Yves! Wishing you a lot of fun on our OUTdoor runs!! Haha, you will love them more than you anticipate!
Two months of swimming lessons is worthwhile. You can improve a lot. Cold water. BRRR. no fun without a wetsuit.
Yeah Pearl helps me discard my stuff with glee. I need to use it to the end before it is discard or recycle. Dislike wasting with a passion. Ah the boxes have recipients already. Not in their possession yet. I can make more. Once you have the method, it is not difficult at all.
Ah yes OUTdoor runs. Well I need to get to it.
Good point! Two months are better than nothing!
Haha! She must be like Marie Kondo. 😄 I dislike waste as well, both for financial and environmental reasons.
The recipients of those boxes will be so happy! 🤗
Ok, now I’m doing to do that to my trail shoes after my Ice Age Trail half marathon in 3 weeks! It is time to say goodbye to those poor shoes. They are in bad shape, lol. But so much good juju in them that i can’t bear to not wear them for my race.
My sister sent me that NYT article. It was just excellent and I agree that we should use our regrets to motivate us in certain situations. Like running! I’m just so inspired tho, but how fast she is!
An Olympic tri, huh? Is there no limit for you? You amaze me. Good luck with your training! I can’t wait to see how it goes!
Ha, that’s what I feel about a lot of my shoes! It’s nearly like a lucky charm. I’m sure your Old Faithfuls will serve you well at the Ice Age Trail race!
Ah, I’m glad you got the article! It was such a great read and so inspiring! I love her speediness – it really shows that the sky is the limit. I hope there will be more women who crack the 3-hour barrier at 60.
The triathlon is going to be a disaster, Wendy. The mere thought of standing at the lakeshore with all those superfit ladies in their neoprenes scares me to death! 🙂
That article sounds amazing- I’ll read it. i’ve never done a farewell run for my shoes! I don’t know if i’ve ever been that attached to a pair of those, and a lot of times they’ll transition into walking or work shoes (if they’re still in decent enough shape.)
Your future endeavors sounds exciting!!! I’ve done an Olympic distance triathlon, and let me just tell you you’re LUCKY your swim is in a lake- mine was in the ocean and it was terrifying, ha ha. I can’t wait to hear all about Berlin- you will have a full summer of training coming up!
I thought of you as I read the article and that you would probably enjoy it. It’s very inspiring!
Ah, you’ve done an Olympic distance, Jenny! And you swam in the OCEAN?! That’s awesome.
I’ve done sprint triathlons in the lake before – where you swim a really short distance, and the lake is quite agreeable. But this time the distance is going to be an enormous challenge.
I’m excited about Berlin! Everyone tells me that it’s a fabulous race and a very fast and flat route.
I agree 100% that regrets are a great motivation. I think the key is not to dwell on the regret but to use it constructively as motivation.
First Berlin then Boston! You ran a 3:29 last month so why yes a 3:45 finish seems very doable!
You put it in a nutshell, Birchie. Thinking about our regrets in a constructive way can really move us forward.
I hope so! Berlin is also very flat (the elite often get records there), so I hope I can get a sub 3:30 again. Let’s see!
Liebe Catrina,
schöne Bilder, einschließlich einer Königs-Protea! TOLL! – Da hab ich gleich mal nachgelesen. Die wird ja riesig, bis zu 25 cm, aber soll auch anspruchsvoll sein, halt ne richtig ‘Fürstliche’! 😉
Letzte Woche wart ihr ja schön brav! Sehr gut! 🙂 😉
Wie hieß denn der Trailrunning Shoe von Asics? … und war der wirklich mit ner Carbonschiene ausgerüstet?
… aber 2000 km sind ne ganze Menge für einen modernen Laufschuh. Leider halten sie nicht mehr so lange, wie noch am Anfang meiner Laufkarriere. Da gingen dann schon mal 2500 bis über 3000 km mit einem Paar!
Zum Carbon: Ich hatte im Läuferherz mal solch ein (Demo)Carbonteil einzeln in der Hand. Es ist schon erstaunlich, was das kann! Es wird zwar eingenäht, aber man kann es in eine Richtung biegen, in die andere Richtung überhaupt nicht, da ist es steinhart. Daran ist es eigentlich zu erkennen!
Jetzt müsst ihr bald eure Zelte in Südafrika abbrechen, aber ihr habt ja dann in Europa auch einiges vor. So freue ich mich auf den Juli … und denn sehn wa uns och in Berlin!
Ich bedaure eigentlich wenig bis gar nichts, abgesehen von offensichtlichen Fehlern, die ich gemacht habe. Bzgl. meiner Entscheidungen habe ich noch nie wirklich zurück geguckt, wenn auch mal die Frage ‘was-wäre-wenn?’ interessant sein könnte! … und dann ist mein Leben so gelaufen, wie es gelaufen ist (in und aus Gottes Hand), und es war gut so!
Vielleicht bin ich da zu nüchtern, auch bei Schuhen! Bestimmte Schuhe habe ich zwar auch geliebt, wie z. B. die Salomon XR Crossmax in Rot, die ich beim ZUT 2011 getragen habe! – Von der Zeit habe ich nur meine Liebe zu Schuhen in diesem rot bewahrt! – Irgendwann sind sie fertig und kaputt, dann schmeiße ich sie weg und muss sie auch nicht mehr noch anderweitig nutzen. … es ist ja leider alles nur vorübergehend … 😥
Also konkret: ich weiß dann, wann ich bestimmte Schuhe wegwerfe, so auch um den letzten Lauf, aber wenn sie kaputt sind, bin ich sogar froh, wenn sie dann weg sind! – Ich mache also keinen speziellen ‘Verabschiedungslauf’! 😉
Genießt morgen euren Feiertag und bleibt bitte gesund … wir haben dieses Jahr noch was vor! 😆
Liebe Grüße Manfred
Lieber Manfred
Es gab so viele Proteas! Wirklich schön, wie sie so in der Natur wachsen.
Das waren die Asics Fujitrabucos – im Laden sagten sie, dass es eine “carbon plate” drin hätte. Auch auf der Webseite sagen sie das. Ich stellte mir so eine richtige Metallplatte vor – wie du im Läuferherz in der Hand hattest. Das mit dem Biegen ist übrigens interessant, das wusste ich nicht!
Naja, die Schuhe haben sehr gute Dienste geleistet. Letztes Jahr habe ich auf den Addo Ultra damit trainiert und bin es auch mit ihnen gelaufen. Wir haben eine richtige Mensch-Schuh-Beziehung gehabt! 🙂 Dass du jetzt eine Vorliebe für rote Schuhe hast, kann ich sehr gut nachvollziehen. Gibt es die Solomon Crossmax noch?
Yep – der Juli ist schon bald! Wir freuen uns auch auf die Bergwelt!
Ich weiss was du meinst. Man muss nicht die Vergangenheit in Frage stellen und grübeln. Dennoch gibt es verpasste Chancen, die wir nutzen können, um unsere Zukunft besser zu gestalten.
Ein Beispiel: wir haben vor 20 Jahren liebe Freunde in Deutschland gehabt, die wir leider aus den Augen verloren haben. Jetzt haben wir gar keinen Kontakt mehr. Ich bedaure, dass ich es so weit habe kommen lassen.
Anstatt diese Erfahrung einfach ad acta zu legen, passe ich jetzt besser auf, dass es nicht nochmals mit jetzigen Freunden passiert. Ich gehe regelmässig durch unsere Adresslisten und schicke Leuten, von denen wir lange nichts gehört haben, eine Nachricht. Dadurch, dass wir ein halbes Jahr nicht in der Schweiz sind, ist es noch wichtiger geworden.
Danke dir! Morgen früh um 6:40h kommt Cara (die neue Läuferin) zu uns und dann geht’s ab auf eine Weinfarm. Mal sehen wie’s wird!
Geniesse deine Woche und vor allem nimm alle deine Aminosäuren ein!
Liebe Grüsse aus dem abendlichen Cape Town!
Liebe Catrina,
aus Fehlern lernen, klar! Wäre auch schlimm, wenn wir ständig Fehler wiederholten!
Nochmal zum Carbon: es ist ein Kohlenstoff, kein Metall und sehr dünn!
Übrigens hat Reebok schon in den 90ern Carbonfasern verbaut, dann kam es als sogenannte Mittelbrücke in manche Laufschuhe rein. – Die eigentliche (heutige) Innovation der Carbonplatte ging wohl wieder mal von Nike aus.
Jetzt muss man wohl auch noch aufpassen, ob ‘nur’ Carbonfasern, oder eben diese Carbonplatten verbaut sind? 🙈
Ich frag am Freitag mal nach, da es mich selbst interessiert!
Liebe Grüße Manfred
Lieber Manfred
Ach so! Wahrscheinlich hat mich der Ausdruck “plate” dazu verleitet, mir eine Metallplatte vorzustellen. Danke für die Berichtigung!
Interessant mit Reebok.
Die Carbonplatten in den Trailschuhen sind zum Schutz vor spitzen Steinen gedacht, und nicht für mehr Sprungkraft wie in Nikes Alphafly oder Vaporfly. Ob die sich technisch unterscheiden? Frage mal nach, es interessiert mich sehr!
Danke dir und liebe Grüsse aus dem noch dunklen Cape Town!
Sounds like a great plan! Hope the triathlon goes well for you. I know the swim scared me so I will continue to practice to get over that fear. I read that article and I believe it’s so true about regret! It’s amazing what we can use as motivation to conquer our goals.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who is scared of the swimming part! I need to start training to get rid of my fear.
Ah, you read the article too! It was amazing, wasn’t it? So inspiring.
I have never cut up my shoes like that before! How interesting. I did triathlons for a number of years. The swim always gave be the most anxiety but I always made it through and so will you. I think you are going to love the challenge of them. They are lots of fun
I always imagined some kind of rock “plate” – instead, it’s a textile. It’s really interesting!
I remember that you said you did triathlons. That’s awesome! I’m glad you survived the swim – I’ll be thinking of you when we’ll have our first dip in the water!
Your next races sound great! Ive never done a farewell run for old shoes. I like that idea though!
The shoes have been through so many runs with us – I always feel bad when they’ve reached their end of life stage!
Can I just say that you truly inspire me? I would love one day to qualify for Boston but have given up hope because I am no where near The qualifying time. I also need 3:55 to qualify and my best time is over 5 hours. Anything is possible if you set your mind to it.
Your upcoming plans sound great! I’ll be rooting for you!
Thank you for linking up with us!
Never say never, Zenaida! My first marathon 20 years ago took me nearly 5 hours (4:38). You’re a great runner with a lot of potential. Just think of Mariko and how she is running at over 60!
Thank you – it’s so scary. But then we have to get out of our comfort zone somehow, right?
Enjoy your running – looking forward to seeing you training for the 50k!
Oh Catrina…an Olympic Tri!!! You GO! I want to do a tri someday, but it will be an itty-bitty ‘sprint’ one, LOL. I’ll need major swimming lessons and will have to do a lot of out-of-my-comfort-zone (world, LOL) mind games to make it happen. I look forward to hearing more about your training, as well as your conquest at the finish line 😉 I still have my shoes from my first marathon (I also wore them for my second one). I sometimes take them for a walk, but I just cannot part with them.
Oh, sprints!! I’ve done two sprints a few years ago and these were really fun! Ok, I was still scared at the start but the swim. But the sprint is over in 90 minutes and I really enjoyed it.
I need major swimming lessons as well, but now we only have 2 months left, so we will have to wing it. It’s going to be interesting… 🙂
I love that you still have your marathon shoes, Kim! That’s true love!
Regret is painful so I try to avoid them, but that is impossible.
Sometimes we offend or hurt people unintentionally and often those things cannot be undone.
There are also those family issues which can be difficult to resolve.
As long as you do your best to be a good person, it helps soften the pain of regrets.
I love how you phrased that, Andy!
You are right, some of the things can’t be undone – people move or even die and we cannot right the wrong anymore.
Softening the pain of regrets by trying our best is a great motto to live by. Thank you for that!
Liebe Catrina,
genau richtig, nach einem opulenten Rennen erstmal erholen, gemütlich machen und in Gedanken dem “Ding” noch nachhängen. Ich liebe immer die Tage danach! Und in eurer tollen Umgebung gelingt das sicher bestens. Schon allein so ein Sonnenuntergang am Meer…….
Hii, lustig, dass du deine Schuhe seziert hast! Aber umso interessanter, was dabei rauskam! Nun ja, vielleicht ist das ja ein Zaubergewebe? Vielleicht brauchen wir auch solche Art von Placebo? Aber wenn es hilft, schnell zu laufen ist es ja gut. 😉
Einen Farewell-Run habe ich neulich mit meinen Karhu Ikonis gemacht. Die bin ich total gern gelaufen, war mein Lieblingsschuh. Aber irgendwann merkte ich, dass die Sohlen ihre Dämpfungseigenschaften änderten, sie fühlten sich nicht mehr so an wie am Anfang. Auch wurden sie hinten leicht schief. Dann wird es Zeit für den Abschied, ehe die Gelenke leiden. Meine ersten Marathonbegleiter habe ich noch lange nach ihrem “aktiven Dienst” am Schuhregal baumeln gehabt, zur Erinnerung.
Wow, ein Triathlon! Du bist ja wirklich nicht zu bremsen! Das wird sicher ein Erlebnis und ich wünsche dir schon jetzt ganz viel Spaß dabei.
Und wenn Berlin den Einstieg für Boston bieten kann, den schaffst du! Deine Zwischenzeit beim Two Oceans zeigt das, und Berlin ist Weltrekordstrecke! Damit deutet sich dann ja schon für 2023 ein weiterer Meilenstein an!
Toll auch, was Mariko Yugeta leistet! Das zeigt, wie weit uns Motivation bringen kann, sie hat dazu ihren Weg gefunden und umgesetzt. Ich denke, jeder Mensch hat so seine “regrets”. Es kommt darauf an, wie man damit umgeht und ob man etwas daraus für sich Erkenntnisse gewinnt.
Liebe Grüße aus dem heute wieder sonnigen Rheinland
Elke
Liebe Elke
Das stimmt, die Tage danach sind so viel genussvoller als die Tage davor! Faulenzen ohne schlechtes Gewissen!
Ich dachte beim Wort “Karbonplatte” immer an eine Metallplatte – aber dank Manfred weiss ich jetzt, dass es sich dabei um Kohlenstoff und nicht Metall handelt. An den Placeboeffekt musste ich dann auch denken – Hunderte von Kilometern keinen spitzen Stein gespürt dank einer nicht vorhandenen Metallplatte. 🙂
Ah, auch einen Farewell-Run! Wie schön! Interessant, wie oft die ersten Marathonschuhe ein extralanges Leben bekommen – das haben jetzt schon einige gesagt.
Hoffentlich habe ich nicht zu hoch gegriffen mit der Distanz. Einen Sprint schaffen wir… aber 1,5km schwimmen ist eine ganz andere Nummer, uiui.
Ich hoffe, dass es klappt in Berlin! Und hoffentlich passt es auch zeitlich für die Anmeldung in Boston. Falls nicht 2023, dann wird es 2024. Wir werden sehen. Aber Berlin wird auf alle Fälle ein schöner Blogger-Event.
Mariko ist Inspiration pur! Wie sie das ganz still und ohne grosses Aufsehen geschafft hat. Auch ein sehr gutes Beispiel, wie sie ihre “regrets” positiv umgesetzt hat.
Liebe Grüsse aus dem ebenfalls sonnigen Cape Town!
Richtig so, erstmal alles wieder im Chill-Modus angehen, ausreichend regenerieren will ja auch gekonnt sein. Und als nächstes dickes Ding also ein Triathlon, da musste ich etwas kichern, irgendwie war mir klar dass sowas füher oder später kommt 🙂 Viel Spaß beim Vorbereiten!
Proteas sind toll, ich hab mal ein paar Wochen “Urlaubsvertretung” auf einer kleinen Protea-Farm auf Maui/Hawaii gemacht, war sehr interessant, die brauchen ganz bestimmtes Klima, wachsen wahrlich nicht überall.
Über Mariko Yugeta hatte ich vor einigen Tagen schon gelesen, einfach Hammer was sie geleistet hat und genau die richtige Einstellung mit “important is the here and now, and the future”. Ganz in meinem Sinne, es ist nie zu spät noch was neues anzufangen.
Farewell runs für Schuhe? Nee, nicht wirklich, wenn hinüber dann hinüber, ab in die Tonne oder für was sie auch immer noch zu gebrauchen sind.
Liebe Grüße vom Niederrhein, Oliver
Gerade habe ich ein Erinnerungsmail vom Triathlon-Organistor bekommen – mit dem freundlichen Hinweis, dass es noch 60 Tage sind. SECHZIG TAGE, lieber Oliver! Höchste Zeit, sich in der Nähe eines Swimming Pools zu begeben. 😉
Was, was? Es gibt eine Protea-Farm in Maui? Und du warst da als Urlaubsvertretung? Das ist ja obercool! Auch interessant, wegen dem Klima. Obwohl der Western Cape recht trocken ist, fanden wir die Proteas in einer Gegend, wo es relativ oft regnet – vermutlich ähnlich feucht wie Maui.
Genau! Mir gefällt, wie Mariko still und bescheiden vor sich hingearbeitet hat, ohne grosses Marketing-Tamtam wie damals beim 2 Stunden Marathon. Ihre Leistung ist genauso beachtlich wie diejenige von Kipchoge.
Mich überrascht, dass du überhaupt Laufschuhe zum Wegwerfen hast! 🙂
Liebe Grüsse aus dem sonnigen Cape Town!
I did an Olympic distance triathlon one time. I didn’t think it was going to be a big deal because the running and biking distances were about double. However, I didn’t really pay attention to the swim distance at all! I was really surprised to learn how far 1.5K really was. Swimming is not my strong event, but I just swam slow and eventually made it. I think I was probably the last one out of the water from my group! Oh well. So with that, I am sure you can do it!! That is interesting about your shoe plate. I would think it would be something more than that too!
I just checked your blog and found the post from 2019. Such an interesting read! And congrats on your AG award, Lisa!
I see you needed 42 minutes for the 1.5k – I’m sure that’s going to be very similar to my time. At least I won’t have trouble finding my bike when I get out of the water, ha!
That is so interesting about Mariko and her motivation. First of all, as I’ve gotten slower and slower, at 64 I am just so impressed that she could run sub 3! Not that I could do that even when I was younger, but if I have a regret is that I didn’t take my opportunity to run Boston at least once when I was able to qualify. These days, though the qualifying times have increased, I seem to have many issues that keep me from qualifying. Ah well, I can overcome my regret vicariously by watching you training to qualify and run Boston.
Ah, no, Debbie, never say never! The qualifying time for 64 is 4:20. Once you turn 65, it will be 4:35.
If there was ever a female runner over 60 that I know, you would be the one to qualify for Boston. It would be a wonderful feat!
Oh my goodness! What a busy and exciting schedule you have coming up!
I agree about regrets. I think it’s important to turn negatives into positives. If we don’t learn from our mistakes (or our regrets), then what are we doing?
I’ve never done a farewell run for shoes.
I’m looking forward to the plans, Jenn, although they do scare me!
Exactly! So many people say that they’ve done “everything right in their lives”. I always wonder about that – it doesn’t sound right to me.
I like the idea of the farewell run in your shoes. They served you well, even if the ‘rock plate” is underwhelming. Haha! I still walk in the shoes I ran Tokyo and London in. They are well beat up! All the best with the Olympic tri. I think you’ll be great. I admire you for going for a goal that scares you! My money is totally on you to BQ in Berlin!
They did, Marcia! I must have run over 2’000k in them… far too long! That’s so sweet about your Tokyo and London shoes. I guess some shoes just simply have a special place in our hearts. 🙂
We should really get to that pool and do some laps. We have a nice outdoor one with saltwater – less than 4k from our house.
I heard that the course is flat in Berlin – which is perfect!
I do not have any rituals for my old running shoes. Usually I buy new ones on a whim and then relegate the old ones to rainy dog walks.
That’s very exciting about Berlin and the prospect of Boston!
Interesting about regrets. Probably a more honest outlook at least..
That’s a great way to use old running shoes, Coco! I tend to run in mine far too long. 🙄
Yes! Suppressing and ignoring regrets won’t get us anywhere. 😊
I love that blue race shirt!
After my sneakers hit 400 miles, and if they are still in good condition, I normally wash them and then donate them to an organization called Soles4Souls. They donate the sneakers to those in need.
I like it too! They’re all over Cape Town and people wear them with pride! 🙂
That’s lovely that you donate your sneakers, Kim! I should stop wearing my running shoes down to the point where they fall apart.
Dear Catrina,
ha when I read about your marathon time at 2Oceans – I thought that must be more than enough to BQ (and that on an hilly ultra.) You will get your BQ easily at Berlin – I’m sure!
Uh 1.5km swim? I did take some swimming lessons, but I’m nowhere near swimming that. You should probably at least go and swim a couple of times before that event. The bike – I hope your behind is adapted. Running should be so easy for you.
I always wondered why in my shoes with rock plate I still feel all those pointy rocks in my feet. Now I know! Thank you for that insight. I just throw my shoes away. When they are done, they are done and not suitable for walking either.
And I’m curious – are running clubs still a bit segregated because of where folks live? Looks as if your club has few black runners in the picture.
Enjoy your recovery!
Hi Roni
If everything goes well, the BQ should work in Berlin. I heard that it’s a nice flat course too, which should help!
You’re absolutely right about the swimming part. I need to get more practice in the next few weeks and then just hope for the best. My behind will hurt on the bike! 40k can be long without the proper padding, haha!
I always wondered about feeling the rocks, too. It didn’t happen often and I was very happy with the shoes despite the “missing” rock plate.
Good question! I think it depends on the location of the running club. The one that we’re in is centred around the Waterfront, which is a more expensive area – and therefore tends to be more white. At races, I often see running clubs from the suburbs, where all members are black or coloured (SA officially distinguishes the three: black, coloured, white). We do have (very few) black members in our club, but they only come to races and I never see them at social events. As you can imagine, they are extremely fast runners!
Glad you had a great week of recovery from your Two Oceans race, Catrina. What a great run group you have. I tried to look up the New York Times article, but I’ve reached your limit of free articles. I do get the gist of the story though through your description though.
I had the opportunity of joining the 1991 Canadian Everest Expedition. This was in a time when climbs were representing countries. Not commercial climbs like nowadays where only the wealthy can be part of them. The leader was Ross Cloutier, who headed up the 3 month mountaineering course I took. Ross contacted me knowing I was very much a “team player”. My role was to be in support, not a summit climber. And would get up to camp 1, possibly camp 2. I turned it down, as I would have missed out on the birth of my 1st child. Now that everything now is commercialized, I have no desire.
I’m sad I didn’t get to do Everest, but the birth of my child was important. On the other hand, if I went to Everest, I’d be sad missing the birth of my child.
I’m sorry about the New York Times article, Carl! I didn’t know that it was limited but good that you got the gist.
What? You could have been part of the Canadian Everest Expedition? That would have been awesome! You would have been exactly the right person to support the climbers – Ross Cloutier knew how to pick good team members!
Of course, given the choice between Everest and the birth of your first child (or any child), you made the right choice. Imagine missing that event!
And yes, nowadays these Everest climbs are more like ego-trips of some affluent top managers seeking the ultimate kick. No one wants to be part of that.
On another note, I really hope you’re feeling a little bit better, Carl. Do things that make you give you joy – maybe a few walks in your beloved Copeland forest. And give yourself time. Thinking of you!
Thank you, Catrina. You are so kind. Have been trying to get out in the forest, even if it is just here outside my village each day. It has been helping. Everyday there are new changes with the buds as spring is coming in. Thank you so much.
I’m sure you’re looking forward to Summer time back in Europe. I still get envious about your half and half approach. Best of both worlds for the seasons! I hope you had a good recovery after your ultra.
Mariko’s comment at the end is quite true. I’ll try to remember it. As for my old shoes, I get too attached to them and keep them in a cupboard. They’re also usually too worn down to donate, but I get sentimental.
For anyone having free article reading limit issues (e.g. Carl) here’s a trick: Open a new Web Browser window in “Incognito” or “Private browsing” mode, then copy and paste the URL/link you want to visit there. The sites store “cookies” in your browser that track how many times you’ve read. When you use private or incognito mode your browser ignores those tracking cookies for the site, and they can’t block you based on how many times you’ve read articles before 🙂
I’m very much looking forward to Europe, Sean! You are right, it really is the best of both worlds. It’s actually only thanks to the fact that we have no kids and could simplify our lives with work that we manage to do this.
It’s so funny how we get sentimental! So many have said that they even keep the shoes of their first marathon years ago! 🙂
That is an awesome tip!! Thank you so much for sharing that workaround! I will remember to tell that to Carl when he comments next. So great to have running friends who know that kind of stuff.