Marathon Weekend and More!

This was a very exciting weekend for former and current teammates. The McMillan marathoners tackled 26.2 miles early Sunday morning in Houston, highlighted by Nick Arciniaga's and Stephanie Rothstein's 2nd and 3rd place finishes! I also have to give a personal shout out to my gf Natasha LaBeaud for her 2:45 Olympic qualifier in her first marathon! The party started early at 6 a.m. Sunday as we huddled around 2 computers watching the fabulously shoddy coverage of the race. Thankfully, loyal Twitterites were hot on every race development and we pieced together the action. I was so pumped up afterwards that I couldn't wait to run my own marathon (what was I thinking?!).

Check out the coverage by Flotrack!

Rewind to Saturday and the Bruins were tearing up the Dempsey track with standout performances of their own. I have to give props to my old roomie, Scotty Crawford, and top-notch half-miler Cory Primm for their early season performances in the mile. After his 4:01 split in the DMR Friday night, Scott came back to lead his heat of the mile and run 4:06. Then in the top heat CP ran a great race for a nice 4:02 personal best. You know what, why should you believe me, take a look for yourself: Scotty Leading the Mile & Cory's 4:02.

Also, you might like to see Kent Morikawa's Killer Kamikaze Kick in the 3k.

There couldn't have been a better weekend to pump me up for this upcoming week. It's USA Cross Country week!!! Hometown here I come!

No "I" in Team

I am reminded almost every day that the decision to live and train in Flagstaff with McMillanElite was the best choice I could have made in continuing my career, and this week was no different. USA Cross Country Nationals are less than a week and half away, and as the marathon crew made their final preparations to race this Sunday in Houston, I was also priming myself for my competition February 5th in San Diego. 

This week I had two key workouts that I set out to make my best yet and build upon my growing confidence even more. Monday I had a very solid steady state effort, which I was super pleased with, but it was Wednesday that was a special day in my mind, for two reasons. The team had woken up early Wednesday morning to travel to Sedona for some warmer weather and work on the track. I was tasked with completing 25 quarters at around 10k race pace, and since many of the guys/gals were racing this weekend or not focusing on XC, this was going to be a solo effort. 

Words of Wisdom

I think every runner, at one time or another, has fallen into the alluring temptation of attempting to train hard every single day - I know I have. A lot of times we find out we have been training incorrectly the hard way: with injuries or tired, uninspired bouts of running. However, with every step back we take we almost always can take several steps forward, and learning your limitations is one of the best ways to find the path the significant improvements! 

The other day I stumbled upon a blog Ryan Hall had posted. The blog was an excerpt from his recent book Running With Joy. What struck me most about the excerpt was the simple piece of advice it gave. Ryan Hall spoke about the importance of balancing hard days of training with easier days and described this relationship as making "deposits" or "withdrawals" (http://runningwithjoy.com/2011/01/20/training-tip-alternating-fast-and-slow-days/). As runners (or any athlete for that matter) we want to find the perfect balance of hard days (withdrawals) and easy recovery days (deposits) which will lead to our greatest improvements. The most pivotal portion of our training comes from the time we are recovering from breaking our body down. A lot of times we overlook this important aspect of "depositing" our time and energy, so that we can draw upon it later. 

This deposit/withdrawal is a simple yet helpful way of looking at our training and one that I will try to consciously use day in and day out in my own running. The next time you head out the door ask yourself will you make today a deposit or withdrawal, and weigh the benefits of each according to your training goals.

Ouch! - A Typical Visit to John Ball

http://johnballdc.com/

I didn't know what to think as all that pain shot straight to my brain, holy shiiiit! I laid on my side, grunting and groaning, partly exposed (such a good idea to wear my running shorts) to Natasha and Emily. However, none of that mattered, as John Ball continued to work in his stoic manner, scraping away years worth of wonderfully hardened scar tissue that had built up in my right butt cheek. I thought that by grimacing and slamming my eyelids shut as tightly as I could, I might somehow escape some of the piercing pain. Not in the least. 

A trip to John Ball is like visiting a real-life witch doctor, but one that specializes in healing broken or ailing athletes. He begins by asking you what the problem is, and after struggling to characterize your discomfort by combining greatly descriptive words such as "leg...hurt" and "butt...tight," he orders a series of movements such as touching your toes or hopping up and down. In a matter of seconds he has silently analyzed your problem: you run too much. Next, he plops you down onto his padded table, and, if your lucky (which I was not) takes you through a few adjustments. Wa la! You're healed!

I've returned to Flagstaff (J.B. lives in Phoenix) bumped, bruised, and very sore but assuredly much better off than before. John Ball works his magic on many of us on the team, and I know we are all greatly appreciative.

I'm looking forward to another great week of training as I get ready for USA XC Nationals February 5th in San Diego (home town what what!). It's coming up fast and I'm prepared but in the meantime it will be exciting to watch our marathoners tackle the big 26.2 in Houston January 30th. I know I'll be fired up!

First of Many (I Hope)

My name is Marco Anzures, I'm a recent graduate of UCLA who has just recently moved out to Flagstaff, Arizona, joining Team USA Arizona and McMillanElite, in pursuit of my long held dream of competing in the Olympic Games.

I have started this blog as a way to log and share all my new experiences as a professional runner. Since moving to Arizona in September I have learned a lot about what it will take to reach my goals and I'm ready, willing, and excited to accept the challenges that lay ahead. Deciding to chase my aspirations may not have been the easiest path I could have chosen upon graduating, but it was the one opportunity I would have most regretted not taking.

Blogging is something new to me, so I'm not entirely sure how it goes but it seems appropriate that I tell whomever may be reading this a little more about myself. A quick synopsis might go something like this: I was born February 13, 1988 in San Diego, California. I have always been a very active individual and played all sorts of sports while growing up. I was going to grow up to be a Major League Baseball player and play for the San Diego Padres, just like my hero Tony Gwynn. However, my desire to try my hardest ushered me towards running when I clocked an outstanding P.E. mile time my freshman year of high school. When my high school coach told me that I could get into college by running fast, I was sold (it also didn't hurt that I was pretty good either). Four years, and a ton of lost sweat later, I found myself at UCLA, in awe that all my effort had paid off. Now again, after pushing myself even harder I find that I'm still able to continue doing what I love. Running has now become a passion, a cathartic pastime I both live for and thrive off.

Of course this really only explains the skin and bones of how I got to this point in my life - I've totally ignored what I believe to be the most important aspect of my life, namely my family and friends, but hopefully over the course of Marco's Miles you'll be able to see just how important they are to me and my success.

Thanks for bearing with my on my first blog ever, tune in every week or so as I plan to update this at least that often.

Sincerely,

Marco Anzures