Fitness Files: Runner’s motivation: to get from here to there

5:30 a.m.: The alarm, awakening me to run, jolted my creative husband up to write. Next evening, he read this poem to friends, gathered for dinner.

“The Runners”

Who are these crazy mortals,

who rise before the sun,

who slip on kinky garments,

tie on shoes and run —

They keep a constant chatter,

dodging potholes and cars.

One might think

they spent time drinking,

in coffee shops and bars.

It’s hard to tell their ages,

they’re slim and move so fast.

I scratch my head in wonder,

how long will this behavior last?

They take a sip of water,

they nibble on some breads.

Aha — I know the culprit!

A mother, who dropped them

on their heads.

— Paul C. Slayback

So, it’s my mother’s fault that I agreed to run the Carlsbad Marathon on Jan 17. Here is the progress report I promised readers a couple of months ago.

I’ve dedicated Tuesday mornings to a long run, adding one mile weekly, until last Tuesday. I completed 19 miles.

Mileage and pace are two different things. I reach the mileage goal, staying upright, moving forward, but do not hit the pace goal of 10 1/2-minute miles. On my long-run day, my family doctor walks her shitzu and a neighbor leads a beagle. Both have called out to me to have a good walk/run.

“Walk?” I answered Dr. G. “It may look like I’m walking, but I think I’m running.”

My Garmin pace-watch sides with my neighbors, reading 12- to 15-minute miles. My former half-marathon time was 9 minutes, 40 seconds, and full-marathon time in cool weather was 10 minutes, 24 seconds.

So, preparing for my January marathon, I make steady progress in mileage and retrogress in pace. What is slowing me at 72 years old can be answered by the Journal of Physiology’s 2008 article on masters athletes:

“Peak endurance performance is maintained until 35 years of age, followed by modest decreases until 50–60 years of age, with progressively steeper declines thereafter [when] maximal oxygen consumption [declines]” as well as lactate threshold, and cardiac output.

Or it could be related to the left knee limp that comes on after mile 10. I’ve promised friends and my husband that I will continue going to a trainer who specializes in pressure point release and corrective movement. The trainer pronounces my knee problem “easy to fix.” My husband says I’m moving better, but occasionally someone still points out my limp.

Last week I wrote about Raven, who runs through spinal stenosis. I’m putting on long, slow miles, grinding a cranky knee.

Why?

I like it. Not the knee, but the long mileage. The sense of accomplishment, completing 19 miles, outpaces anything else I do in a day. I’ve earned the oatmeal and organic orange gobbled post-run and the deep sleep that night.

My son, who surfs, does triathlons and kick boxes, says, “Mom, you’re extreme,” meaning odd and freaky. Many would question finding self satisfaction by running the equivalent of Newport to Long Beach. To shed some light on the question, I searched “psychology of long distance runners.”

I quickly dismissed the first two explanations:

•Runners “focus on a tangible reward like the medal.” Except for my original motivator of weight control, the only reward I recognize is finding a sport I could participate in.

•Distance runners wish to “signal others that they can handle an unnatural physical feat.” Nope. The attention I receive for simple perseverance has always surprised me. Anybody with two working legs can run distance.

What did resonate was timeoutdoors.com‘s description of gains made in focus and erasing negativity. During a race, I do not read people’s shirts or signs on businesses. It’s a waste of cognitive and emotional energy. I do not engage with onlookers or fellow racers.

I do break a race or run into segments and celebrate each milestone. I do banish bad thoughts, replacing them with an encouraging phrase.

What I like most about distance running and racing is its singularity. Daily roles of wife, mom, friend are irrelevant.

I dig inside myself for a strategy to ignore fatigue and to get from start to finish as fast as I can.

Then again, perhaps the strange behavior is from my mother, who dropped me on the head.

Newport Beach resident CARRIE LUGER SLAYBACK is a retired teacher who, since turning 70, has ran the Los Angeles Marathon, placing first in her age group twice.