Just the other day the Governor of Minnesota laid out all the things that need to be figured out now that schools are closing. There’s food, childcare, emotional and behavioral support and much more. Hearts ache caring for these kids daily since September and not knowing what their daily will look like for the foreseeable future. The most structured and steady thing in our lives is closing until further notice. Nobody knows what to do.

MYAS is an organization that works to improve the delivery of youth sports services to athletes, coaches, parents, officials and the associations that serve them.

http://myas.org/

Clarence and I talk about a lot of things that the MYAS is and does for youth sports in Minnesota and beyond. We also talk about bringing people together and Clarence throws out a challenge. Before every game, introduce yourself to someone that doesn't look like you.

Live today with RELENTLESS COURAGE!

It's feeling like spring thaw here in Minnesota!

Today I talk about one thing that I do in the spring when weather starts getting warm and I transition from skiing to running.

PSA: Stay off the trail in the early season. Run dirt roads instead.

Here's a quick breakdown of my 2020 training calendar. I add "i think" in there because I've got to sign up for everything to make it all official. Superior 50k is first and that one's going to happen.

What are you up to this summer? It doesn't even need to be running related.

In reading the article “How Block Training Can Help or Hurt Ultramarathon Training” by Jason Koop I found it very interesting.

https://trainright.com/block-training-ultrarunning-ultramarathon/?utm_source=ctsnewsletter&utm_medium=email&inf_contact_key=351a3a29feea6b531a2b9f74e0c2f82709c74070ac2bf3cfa7869e3cfd4ff832&fbclid=IwAR1UsAaGZvWpJIBeyGlnYECYgeR6fia--tJ2cTopxFBMUbEQ_RMsx7CBsxs

I like what Jason says about it being a fairly advanced form of training. The better we know ourselves the better it works. We need to be careful not to pound out too much intensity for days in a row.

It is a great way to squeeze in some meaningful training in a short amount of time.

Early in the season I’ll still do a more traditional program but leading up to a big event I like the block style training because it gives me an opportunity to take inventory after day one, get rest into the second half of a long effort and test fueling a few weeks out from an event.

The reason why I got into block training in the first place is because everyone said I should, my kids were small and it was easier to put the ultra-hat on for a few days and be available elsewhere the rest of the time and I really enjoyed the challenge of it all.

A few challenges I’ve given myself over the years are:

• In 2014, during five straight days in July, I ate five miles for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It was a challenge and I traveled slowly, made it through the week and made it through Superior 100 later that fall.

• That same year I ran a half marathon on the SHT the evening before the Voyageur 50 mile. I finished in time and felt great after.

• Pretty much every year I head up to the SHT for a big block of training prior to Superior 100. In 2014 I did 63 miles in 36 hours. In 2018 my friend Jason and I did a marathon overnight, slept and covered 20 miles + the following day. This year I didn’t travel north but I did do a big block here at home to dial in nutrition primarily. It a was a three-day block and nothing too crazy. Biggest run was just ten miles or so but I was able to get to the point where I needed food and I got tired.

I like block training but I don’t think it’s for everyone. I don’t usually do it as I’m ramping up my season and if I do it is on a small scale and doesn’t involve speed back to back but just miles and time. I try not to put my body in a position where it could get hurt from speed or pounding within a block. I walk when I need to cruise when I can.

How long it takes me to finish an ultra is really not that important to me. The most important thing is to have something on the calendar to train for and look forward to. For the past decade that something has been ultramarathons. I’m not sure what that will be in the next decade but for now, ultras it is!

Use blocks to figure out fueling and explore a deeper sense of physical struggle. Be smart and remember, your body is capable of much more than we often times give it credit for. It’s going to hurt. It should if you’re challenging yourself in training for and running an ultra-marathon.

I found the article “How Block Training Can Help or Hurt Ultra Marathon Training” very interesting and enjoyed adding a few thoughts of my own.

Today's episode I talk with Mark Johnson, owner of Performance Run Gym!

Here's a list of things that we talked about in this episode. If you haven't checked out Performance Running yet, you should!

www.performancerungym.com - Contact owner Mark Johnson right from the site.

Interview with Mark Johnson - Why PRG then, what's the current state, what is the vision?

Purpose of back to back runs? How often in a training plan and how far out from a big event?

What's the purpose and timing of a lifting session heading into recovery?

What should we be doing at this point in the season if we're training for an early season/mid season/late season 100 around strength training and how does our strength training fit into our overall plan?

PRG pricing, packages, options and upcoming programs.

Here's a blog post from April 11, 2013 called "What's Your Why"?

This is from about four years after Simon Sinek came out with his Ted Talk, "Start with Why".

During a meeting while working for a major health club here in Minneapolis, MN we watched this movie. It was a movie of Simon's Ted Talk.

I wrote my post many years later and it's not directly from what he had to say, but that's kind of the idea.

Live with relentless courage!

I'm 40 today!

The rhythm of your life is not determined by what happens to you. It's determined by how you respond to what happens to you.

Surrender.

A Tale of Two Trips was written about my experience at the Superior 100 Mile Trail Race in 2019. Trip one is my volunteer experience leading up to the event and trip two is my experience during the event.

I've been meaning to share this full audio, adding notes as I go, for a while now and finally I carved out the hour plus to make it happen!

This reading provides some insight into the mind of a 100 miler and acknowledges those who helped me during the event. Enjoy... and live today with relentless courage!

Don’t Kill Your Creativity – Be Agile in Your Process

Don’t get too attached to the legality of your plans.

How often do we write a plan and it works no matter what happens?

The answer is never. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea to make plans. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t make our plans intending for them to work perfectly every time. It just means we need to be real in our expectations during our planning.

Real life doesn’t happen in planning. Real life happens when things get dirty. Real life happens when ideas move and become action.

When we take action, we learn. We learn about the plan and the process. If we are set on sticking to the plan we created, we risk killing the creativity of the process.

I try and use lessons from the trail and my experience doing ultramarathons to help others. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that the best laid plans can fall apart in an instant.

The cool thing is that when they do, there is usually a path to success that becomes visible. If we don’t take off the blinders once we leave planning though, we can miss out on the path to success.

This idea applies across the board. Maybe it’s weight loss, starting a business, marketing, ultramarathoning, parenting and the list goes on and on.

Planning is important. Agility and the ability to pivot based on the reality of what we see is also important. It might even be more important. Don’t get too attached to the legality of your plans.

Share your thoughts with a comment below.