Taco Bell. Yes, that fast food chain that has been the cause of many a stomach ache, had one of the most successful ad campaigns in recent fast food history. It started around 2006, when the college crowd would hit the restaurants late for the inexpensive snack of choice, tacos. Capitalizing on what was already a food starved segment of the day, Taco Bell introduced Fourth Meal. That between time meal for the adventurous and sleep deprived. Although the ads have since been eliminated, many of the restaurants remain open late and many competitors have followed suit by keeping their drive-thru open into the night.
It was long about this time that I started making a run for the border about once a week. My schedule kept me late at work and most nights there was food left over for me when I got home. But, once a week I would “treat” myself to a quick bite in the car on the way home. No one in my household would ever eat Mexican food of any kind and this was my only chance for a little taco time. As I am sure you are aware, eating tacos while driving is not advisable. But what could I do?
About a year or so later, I began running again (unrelated to my weekly taco trips). I had signed up for a 5k at work in an attempt to become more involved and I didn’t want to have a bad showing. I started running a couple of months prior, since I had not run in probably 10 years at that time and I knew I was going to have to start slow. So slowly I started. First, it was just around the neighborhood, getting some motion in to the old legs and air into the shallow lungs. Mailbox to mailbox was my mantra. I’d run from one to the next, always extending the distance each time I ran to work up to a mile. Which I did, then it was on to trails for pushing that distance up to where it needed to be.
That distance I found to jump fairly rapidly. I worked an out and back up to two miles total and kept at that distance for a couple of weeks. I knew, though, that if I was going to do a three mile race, it was no good only being able to run three miles. So I set my sights on four. The out and back served me well during this time because I could gauge pretty easily where I was slowing and how far I still had to go. It wasn’t until I started pushing that fourth mile hard that I saw an increase in speed. All the time I was increasing endurance as was my goal. Once I hit that four mile mark, however I found the way to speed during the fourth mile.
So that became my mantra, Fourth Mile. Just like the commercials, only miles instead of meals. It was the goal of each and every run to push through the Fourth Mile. Chanting as I would go, this is where speed comes from, Fourth Mile. That sort of thing can go a long way during your runs to get you to the goal, whatever it may be. When I was doing mailbox to mailbox, it kept my mind focused on the goal rather than the burning sensation in my lungs. When training for my first 5k, Taco Bell set me right. I still use this during training now. Fourth Mile. When it seems impossible to push the last mile or when you don’t even want to go for the run in the rain, Fourth Mile.
Incidentally, a strange thing happens after you’ve conquered your Fourth Mile. It becomes nothing. What seemed insurmountable, is now over. You don’t consider it anymore, because there’s a new Fourth Mile ahead. Maybe it’s the next mailbox or next block. Maybe it’s the 20th mile. Whatever it is, the last Fourth Mile is done. You run past it like a jilted lover waiting for you to turn your head, but instead you go on. Your next challenge is calling.
Dr. G
#grinditoutrunning
