Baby Ski

Good morning!  Hope that you are having a wonderful Saturday morning.  This week has been a tremendous week for running.  I ran 6.5 miles this morning and now have run 30+ miles for each of the past three weeks.  Back on track.

I always try to write with authenticity in my blog and it's been tough to keep the news I'm about to share private because it's such good news.  But...the news I have to share is not something shared on a whim.  If you are friends with Sarah on Facebook, then you know that she is pregnant and we are going to be parents in December.  I'm so happy to announce that I'm going to be a DAD.  Baby Ski, as we affectionately call the little one, is due on Sarah's birthday, which is fitting.  Both of us knew that at some point we wanted to have a baby and we waited until we could be in the best position possible to become parents.  Both of us are driven in our careers and we needed to be able to reach a certain point before diving into parenthood.  We are very fortunate and I am elated.

I cannot tell you how excited I am about being a Dad.  It's a new role and I've already started mentally preparing for how my life is going to change.  I often talk about balance and not taking on more than one can handle.  I tell my Res Life staff that I only spend time on four things:  Family, IUPUI Res Life, Running, Following IU.  You see, when I do something I'm all in and go 100%.  When you do that and take on too much, then everything else suffers.  Therefore, I know that somewhere in between running and following sports that I'm going to have to spend a little less time doing both of those things.  And...I'm perfectly fine with that.  I'm going to approach being a father like I would becoming a great runner or great sports fan or great Res Lifer.  I have to go all in.  In the movie Radio the coach resigned and told the fans that he had to "get his priorities straight."  A few years ago I learned a lesson on priorities because I took on too much and did not put my priorities in the right order.  From that point forward I have tried to prioritize my life in terms of Family, Work, Running, Following Sports.  Ultimately, I'd rather be a wonderful husband to Sarah and father to Baby Ski, than a fast runner or crazy fan.  I'd rather be known as Josh the great father and great husband, than Josh the fast runner (although, I'll still be out there running).

When I've shared this news people have said, "oh Myles is in for an adjustment."  Now...I've considered myself a Dad to my dog Myles, and so I see it as expanding my fatherhood a bit.  I think Myles will need to learn to share the spotlight just a bit but he will always be my little boy.  And...I have a feeling my 5:30a morning runs might become 5:30a walks with my man, Mr. Myles. 

Have a wonderful Saturday.  Happy running to you...

Training Camp for This Runner

Good morning!  Hope that you have had a wonderful first half of July.  I ran seven miles this morning, 33 miles this week, and now Myles is comfortably resting next to me as a type my blog post for the week. 

On June 10th I wrote about "Living a Runners Life" and how it had been so easy to become derailed from that life.  It was tough to admit and I recall writing that I just needed to "string a few days together" in order to get my running back on track.  I'm pleased to say that five weeks later I'm back on track.  It started slow with me running about 16 miles total that first week.  Now, I've put weeks together of 21, 28, 32, and 33 miles run.  I am feeling better and I've already run more miles in July than I ran in all of June.  I'm very, very pleased and hope to keep stringing days together because days become weeks and weeks become months.

I'm reading a great book by Jon Gordon titled "Training Camp."  Gordon is the same author that wrote "The Energy Bus" and that book is one that I used last spring to make a few key leadership points with our staff team in Housing & Residence Life at IUPUI.  I have to say that Training Camp is quite good and I'm looking forward to using it with our Res Life staff when they return from summer fun later this month.  So far my favorite part of the book is a point the author makes about continuous improvement.  The setting for the book is in a NFL training camp and there is an undrafted player trying to make the team.  His coach makes the point to him that the difference between average/good players and great players is that the great players NEVER stop trying to improve.  The idea of "continuous improvement" is one that resonates strongly with me.  One, in  running I'm always trying to get better and better is something that is limitless.  I still believe that my fastest running days are in front of me and that if I continue to try and improve that I'll get there.  Two, at work I really believe in trying to improve and expand my knowledge and talents so that I do not become obsolete.  It's easy for Res Life Staff with multiple years of experience to just sort of rest on what they know and put less effort into building training sessions, attending training sessions, and doing the job.  I find that the best staff are the ones that never stop looking for that edge, never stop trying to implement the next best thing, and always put a unique spin on what they are doing.  Continuous improvement leads to different.  Different is interesting. Interesting keeps people engaged.  Engaged people do good work.  So...get out there and do what you can to continually improve.

I hope that you have a great week.  Enjoy my latest Myles photo.  He's a treasure and he makes my day...everyday.  Happy running to you.


I continually try to improve my parenting skills so I can be the BEST Dad for Myles

Good morning!  Hope that you are doing well and having a great weekend.  We've had a very hot week with temperatures topping 100+ four days in a row.  Surprisingly, running has gone well and I ran 32 miles this week.  I'm really starting to feel like my old running self as I close week four of my recommitment to running.
This week I've really been able to once again the beauty in running.  I live just one mile from a soft gravel trail that follows a canal that runs through Broadripple to downtown Indianapolis.  What I love about the trail is that it's embedded in the middle of trees, which shade you from the sun and make you feel like you're in the middle of the woods instead of a large metropolitan area.  This week I've seen deer, geese, ducks, turtles, storks, and a few other normal things.  However, what absolutely topped it off was the half naked man I found passed out in his car this morning.  Yes, as I started my run this morning I nearly stumbled as I was shocked at what I saw.  There was a very nice high end BMW parked and I was looking at it as I was running to my normal path.  As I approached I noticed a guy passed out in the front seat.  As I approached, I could not believe that he was not only passed out but wearing ONLY a tank top.  No pants.  No undies.  Just a tank top.  Now, I know better than to interrupt what I assume was a drunk guy passed out and naked.  So...I just kept running.  But...I made up a little tune for you.  When your reading this, sing it to the Goyte song, "Someone that I used to know."  Here goes:

Every now and then I think about when I first saw you
Just a guy, passed in his Bee-e-mer
But...why'd you have to wear no pants?
It was awkward and embarassin'
I thought that I could let it go
But..now your just someone that I don't want to know

(refrain)

You could have just passed right out
Left your clothes on and saved me from typing this song
But I guess it could not be that way
You had to much to drink and could not drive away
I guess that I should be haaaapp-eee
That you did not drive and give my car a ta-aa-aa-pee
Still, I wish you had gone away
Now your just someone that I don't want to know

If you have trouble singing the song, call me and I can sing it for you.  Have a great a week.  Laugh quite a bit.  I'll make sure naked guy in the beemer leaves.  Happy running to you...

Celebrating Running & The 4th!

Good morning and happy Fourth of July!  It's one of my favorite days of the year and I typically celebrate the 4th with some sort of run or race.  This morning was no different as I ran 6.75 miles in very hot, humid, and steamy conditions at 7a. 

Running Cross Country in California, Fall 2007

Today marks my 18th Fourth of July as a runner.  Hard to believe that the first 5K race I ever ran was 18 years ago today.  I'll never forget driving down to Nashville, Tn with my friends, Luke and Seth, and their mom, Pam, on July 3 so we could run this 5K in Nashville on July 4.  Seth, who at the time was the real runner of the group, had picked out this race to run.  Pam agreed to drive Seth.  Luke, an elite tennis player, was not going to run but was there to support his brother, who was prepping for his first year of high school cross country.  Me?  I was confused because I wanted to be a basketball player, the coach had just told me the week before that I was not going to play during my senior year, and I was slated to go out for cross country the next month but had not been training.  I was lost, hurt, and feeling a bit out of sorts.  It was a tough time, athletically speaking.

But...I decided that I might as well give running a try.  I lined up for my first 5K and like many young guys I  thought that just because I could run 6-8 miles fairly easily meant that I was going to be able to win the 5K.  The gun went off and I took off.  I went through the mile in 5:30, which at that point was near the fastest mile I'd ever run.  I was ahead of Seth and I recall running by Luke and he was cheering.  Then...the wheels fell off.  My fitness caught up with me and I began to slow.  Seth passed me.  Other's passed me.  The heat finished me off.  I ran the last two miles at a 7 minute per mile pace.  As I finished, I recall thinking that there was no way I was going to be able to be a great runner by the fall.  It was tough because I really wanted to be a great athlete during my high school career and due to my limitations as a basketball player and spending three years trying to play with limited success, I was beginning to feel like I was a failure.

In life, we have watershed moments, which I would define as moments when we have a chance to really change our future for the better.  While I was not successful at my first 5K, my Cross Country Coach's voice  was in the back of my head saying, "Skillman, you're meant to be a runner.  Stop wasting time on basketball."  And...although my time was not great for my first 5K, it served as a motivator to get serious about running.  From that point forward, I began to train each day, to run what the coach asked, and to give 100% to running.  The Fall of 1994 is one I'll always remember because each week my running improved, I was able to contribute on a very good team that finished fourth in the state, and I learned how to be successful at something.  More than that, though, I learned that in disappointment lies opportunity if you open your eyes and never stop believing in yourself.  For each of the past 18 Fourth of July's, I've run.  Sometimes, I run races and other times I just go for a run down the street, like today.  Every Fourth of July, though, I think about July 4, 1994 when I learned what it was going to take to be a "runner" and how that single day changed the outcome of my high school athletic career and created a life-long "runner."  Looking back, It was truly a watershed moment, one in which I found a life passion instead of continuing down a path not meant for me.

I hope that you have a wonderful Fourth of July.  Enjoy your day and doing what you love to do.  Happy running to you...