With Apologies to Mr. Tergat

Although the long deceased Mr. Prefontaine probably still holds a strong lead in running quotes remembered by the American populace, my favorite saying comes from the former world record holder Paul Tergat: “Ask yourself: 'Can I give more?'. The answer is usually: 'Yes'."

I ran a 10k on Saturday. It was the fastest I’ve ever run for 10k on the roads. I ran 31:42, or 5:06 per mile. I'm pretty pleased with it. Back in the day, I was only the 5th best runner on my high school team - if I’m being honest with myself, it’s great that I’ve gone from a 10:15 high schooler two miler to running 10k road races that average faster than that - more than 3 times the distance, at a faster pace, in a row.

I don’t really know how much more improvement I have in store. Quite a bit still, for sure. I know that I am already working hard. Quite a bit harder than a lot of runners - not all, but most, probably. Many athletes have gotten to where I am currently without ever running ONE 120 mile week, let alone as many as I've done.

But I also know that if I ask myself, “can I give more”, the answer IS “yes.”

Yep, more than this

That doesn’t necessarily mean running more mileage than I am currently. At least not THAT much more. A lot of what I can do better is little stuff: resting more, stretching more, doing more speedwork It can be accomplished without adding more volume. But more than anything, it’s about a better mindset. I can focus more. I can give more. And for the next 8 weeks, until I line up at the start of the San Antonio Marathon, I'm going to.