Now, instead of drinking it I decided to keep it and open it when I accomplished a marathon PR. When I returned from California I set the bottle in the front room of the house so every time I walked by it I thought about being able to celebrate the PR and what a good feeling it would be to open that great bottle of wine. The more I thought about drinking the wine the more motivated I was to PR. It got me excited.
In October 2012 I ran the Chicago marathon. My goal was to run a sub 2:50. The last few miles I had a few things running through my mind. They were "I can do this and show my coach what I am made of. I did this in training all I have to do now is hold the pace. I want to do this for my support crew and finally the celebration of the WINE!!!!" I did not want to have to walk past that bottle again. I wanted it to be mine.
I ran through the finish at 2:49:02. I exceeded my goal and that night I was out celebrating with my friends, coach and family. We drank wine and I enjoyed my victory.
A few weeks after the Chicago race I went to Door County, Wisconsin to visit my aunt. Because the weather was so rainey, we decided to go to a winery. As I was enjoying the glass of wine I decided there and then to keep the wine/PR tradition going. So, I bought two bottles (since they were smaller than the bottle I received in California.) Now, when I PR I will send one bottle to my coach, who does not live in the area, and I will enjoy the other bottle myself.
I feel this "Reward yourself" way of thinking also works when training. I have heard many runners proclaim," When we finish this workout we can get a Starbucks!"or "After I run the 20 miles I can enjoy a big dinner.".Have you ever said this to yourself? I know that warm cup of coffee tastes very good after running when it is below zero. A little motivator can really help along the way.
I saw this also true with the winter program we had at the running store. For every five times a person came for a run they earned winter gear. We had an average of 30-40 runners every week when it was 5 degrees out. They were dedicated and motivated.
My motivator is in place.
I have set my PR, goals and bought the wine.
Now all I have to do is keep working hard so I can enjoy my wine celebration. I will walk past the two bottles of wine everyday. They will be off the shelf in the fall. That is the plan :) A can taste the victory!!!