Congratulations! In your hands you have the ultimate guide to adventure. Sure, it’s also a guide to your best half-marathon yet, and the following pages will give you the training plans, graphs, numbers, and science you need to get to your goals. But it is so much more than that. While I can’t be sure that you’ll run your fastest—that part is up to you—I can tell you that your adventure begins as soon as you lace up your running shoes. In this book you are the captain of your own adventure; you decide where, when, and how far you wish to go.
In your hands you also have the ultimate self-help book. Thumb through the pages and you may not see exercises on self-esteem building or the keys to happiness. But I dare you to head out the door, log some miles, and not feel like you made you a better you. Just try and go for a run and not let your mind wander to those places that haven’t gotten the proper attention. You’ll likely find that every mile and every workout is a perfect opportunity to spend some time on yourself, and I suspect you will learn a lot about you in the process.
I’ve been fortunate enough to get to run all over the United States, as well as in Japan, Europe, and the Middle East; it’s been an amazing adventure. But the truth is that some of the best runs I have taken involved getting lost just a few miles from home and stumbling upon that hidden coffee shop—the one I’d never see from the main road—or getting lost in a conversation during a run and forgetting it’s 34 degrees and raining. I’ve run races that people said “awed” them, and yet I’ve discovered the most gratifying running moments when nobody was watching. Yes, I’d be the first to admit that there’s something incredibly painful about heading out for a 5:00 a.m. run, but when you crest that final hill and see an amazing sunrise, it is all worthwhile. You earned a sunrise that the sleepy world is missing out on. And there is something therapeutic about losing track of your pace while sorting through a day’s problems. Or, better yet, forgetting your problems by getting caught up in your pace.
So, yes, congratulations! You’ve stumbled upon the ultimate adventure and maybe the key to happiness; all it requires is for you to get out the front door and make it happen. I wish you the best of luck meeting all of your running goals and running your fastest half-marathon ever. I can’t promise you will hit every goal, but I can promise you this: the journey along the way will be worth it.
So as you chase your goals, remember to enjoy the journey because the process of becoming a faster you is often far more satisfying than just being a faster you.
—DESIREE LINDEN
2012 U.S. Olympic marathoner