Success in life is a marathon. But it’s not a race! Like any marathon, it all depends upon how you define success. And, it all begins with a goal. I had some simple goals in mind when we ran the recent Las Vegas Marathon.

First, I wanted to finish the race. But let me stop right there. There is only one winner in any race. And I know that’s not going to be me. So I don’t view these marathons as races. After all, everyone who finishes gets a medal. So, that’s my first goal. By the time I get to the starting line of an organized marathon. (Notice I didn’t call it a race.) I’m confident I will finish the 26.2 mile distance. Still running, no matter how slow. The same goes for this life I’m living. It’s the only one I’ve got, so I plan to finish it. Still standing, hopefully. And that brings me to my second goal.

I plan to finish without major injury. Yes, running the marathon distance does hurt. And this time in particular hurt pretty bad, for quite a while. Nothing like our first, grant you. After all, I was able to squat and take the steps into our RV without hobbling after only a few days. But I only have myself to blame. As much as I’d like to blame it on the course.

You see, it wasn’t the distance that hurt so much. A few weeks earlier, I had already run about 23 miles. And, that was at altitude in Colorado. So I knew I could handle the, ahem, four hours and thirty eight minutes I spent running down the streets of Summerlin and Las Vegas. It was the downhill grade that got me.

I made the biggest mistake all long distance runners do when it comes to any race day. I went out too fast. This was the inaugural official Las Vegas Marathon. Not to be confused with that Rock and Roll race that runs around the strip. So, we woke up at 3:00 a.m. to catch our bus. Actually, there was more than a dozen buses. They drove us all up to Red Rock canyon. That’s where a couple thousand scantily clad runners huddled and shivered in the cold wind before dawn. Just as the sun rose, we all took off.

The first ten miles or more were all downhill. And, with a fairly steep grade too. Everyone was in a hurry to warm up and get their race on. So, I got caught up in the pack. My first three miles were at a sub ten minute pace. And yeah, that’s a fast marathon pace for me. I always get excited with the frenzy at the beginning of these races long runs.

This time was no exception. But I do remember how it got me thinking. The crowd started thin out as we continued downhill through the red rocks. Runners were tossing their sweats, and I saw one already tossing his lunch. Yet, it wasn’t even breakfast time. That’s when I first thought…

Life Is A Marathon – Train to Succeed

Like a marathon – or any major personal challenge – success in life is a long haul. And, it takes a lot of training. There are no short cuts in a marathon, just as in life. You can’t just jump to the end. To reap the rewards, you must put in the work. To paraphrase something smart I heard long ago, to get what you want, you gotta do the thing. And these things take time.

I did put in my training time for this run. But not quite like I could have. Something about running those snow trails all winter in Alaska took its toll on my pace. Something I’m having a hard time getting back. I may have been able to finish quicker, had I focused on more fartleks and interval training. But there is one thing you can never train enough for, and that’s uncertainty. No matter how much you train, you never know what might happen on race day.

Downhill is not always easy.

Take this time for instance. I did review the Vegas Marathon course. I looked at the elevation profile and thought, cool, it’s all downhill. Well almost. You may never realize just how long and steep some highway overpasses are until you run up one at mile twenty. But I digress.

I’ll take running uphill over down any day. All that pounding is hard on the quads. As a result, I felt it for days. I wasn’t quite prepared for the effects of that long fast downhill run. But, such is life eh? We get caught up in responsibility and expectations. So we go for it. We persevere. And before we know it we’ve overdone it. As a result, life is a marathon which we must both prepare for and put up with the results of for the effort we puyt in.

Surprise! It’s Not a Race.

The wind was the other wild surprise with this marathon. Those relentless savage winds blowing at the start never let up. Of course, you can’t control the weather. Nor an awful lot more in life for that matter. But the ten mile downhill stretch down Charleston may have been a bit more manageable if it weren’t for the headwind. As much as I free myself of guilt and blame, I do blame the wind for keeping me from finishing under 4:30 time. And there’s that whole race mentality again.

The first thing people ever ask when they hear you ran a marathon is “What was your time?” I’m usually reluctant to share mine. Not because I’m ashamed, but because it doesn’t really matter that much to me. Sure, I’d love to run a faster marathon pace. But I’m okay being average. In fact, for the Vegas Marathon I finished right in the middle of the pack. Both overall, and in my age group, I fell right in the middle. And no, I didn’t fall in the “race” – thank goodness. And that brings me to my final goal. When running marathons, and in life.

Life is a marathon. Have fun.

I don’t view marathon running as a competition. It’s not about the time. I know, people who say that don’t run fast. But fast is relative. And that’s what I was getting at in my post that Slow AF group.

I finished the Las Vegas Marathon right in the middle of the pack, with the only goal of finishing without major injury. I’m in awe of those who can finish in half the time it takes me, and faster. And for anyone thinking I’m “fast”…the best thing I ever did to enjoy running more, was stop comparing.

Jim Nelson
Slow AF Running Club

My third goal in running any race is to have fun. And if life is a marathon, I certainly want to have fun along the way. The whole way. Like any marathon, I do my best to smile and enjoy the run. Why grimace and grunt and trudge along? After all, we decided to do this thing. So if we’re not having fun, the only one we have to blame is ourselves.

So yeah, I am in awe of those who finish fast. Like really fast. But I do my best not to compare. After all, there is no comparison with some of these freaks folks. It’s not about the time to me. I take on the training is a way to keep in shape. I do that, so when I finish this race called Life I can feel the way I do after any long run. With a sense of accomplishment and a smile on my face. I smile at what I’ve done, not how fast I did it.

The only one you’re racing against is yourself. And the easiest way to understand this is to stop comparing your time to that of others.

Business Success is a Marathon

Finally, just as life is a marathon, so too is success in business. And this too, also comes down to setting goals and how you define success. In addition success in any business endeavor also has a lot to do with training, and putting in the work. A whole lot. but I can’t put it any better than our mentor Lena West did long ago.

We had this quote behind our bathroom mirror for years in our previous rig. It still rings true for all we do. In life, in business, in any marathon. These things take time.

Put in the work. Take your time. Don’t get hurt. Stop comparing yourself to others. And…enjoy the run.