If you were fast enough to break 4(or faster) would you sacrafice drinking, smoking, eating unhealthy, and your social life to do it. And for those who have done it, was it worth it?
If you were fast enough to break 4(or faster) would you sacrafice drinking, smoking, eating unhealthy, and your social life to do it. And for those who have done it, was it worth it?
yes it was
D.B.I. wrote:
If you were fast enough to break 4(or faster) would you sacrafice drinking, smoking, eating unhealthy, and your social life to do it. And for those who have done it, was it worth it?
If it not worth it, why are you talking about it?
If your asking those questions then it wouldn't be worth it for you.
It was, but 3:50 was not.
Do you mean for a 4 minutes for a mile? 1500m? 100m? 2000m?
I do not drink much, eat unhealthy, nor smoke, and it wouldn't change my social life any more than 10K training or marathon training.
rekrunner wrote:
Do you mean for a 4 minutes for a mile? 1500m? 100m? 2000m?
This is a stupid question.
In history there have been something like 350 Americans run sub 4. There are 400 current American Billionaires.
While I'd surely like to be a a billionaire more, running sub 4 is far more exclusive. Shame most people don't realize what it means to run sub 4.
Here's another stupid question: Is 30 degrees hot or cold?It doesn't hurt to understand your audience.Except for Eddy Lee, no one cares about 4 minutes anymore. The world went metric in the 70's -- at least those who could do the math.
Stupid Question wrote:
This is a stupid question.
rekrunner wrote:
Do you mean for a 4 minutes for a mile? 1500m? 100m? 2000m?
D.B.I. wrote:
If you were fast enough to break 4(or faster) would you sacrafice drinking, smoking, eating unhealthy, and your social life to do it. And for those who have done it, was it worth it?
As someone who ran 4:02 and is constantly asked by people if I ever broke 4, yes I think it is worth some sacrifices. Some of the posters are correct in that it is nowhere near as impressive as it was 30 or especially 40 years ago, but it is still pretty special. Had I cut down on the drinking and put in some more miles and got in the right race, I feel very confident that I could have done it, but you know what? I didn't and that is that. If you have the ability to do so, go for it. 20 years from now you won't remember all the drinking and other things that seem fun at the time, but you will remember how you let a goal slip away. Also, being dedicated doesn't mean giving up everything. Plenty of great runners had a very active social life, they just knew when to show some restraint.
Maximus wrote:
If you have the ability to do so, go for it. 20 years from now you won't remember all the drinking and other things that seem fun at the time, but you will remember how you let a goal slip away.
+1
optional wrote:
Maximus wrote:If you have the ability to do so, go for it. 20 years from now you won't remember all the drinking and other things that seem fun at the time, but you will remember how you let a goal slip away.
+1
I kind of disagree. I very rarely think about the my goals and the accomplishments kind of fade too. Honestly, I remeber the social aspect of being a runner more than the actual numbers I put up and I'm thanful for that. Its actually quite sad that you cherish your approach to 4 minutes more than the fun times you had.
thenegotiator wrote:
optional wrote:+1
I kind of disagree. I very rarely think about the my goals and the accomplishments kind of fade too. Honestly, I remeber the social aspect of being a runner more than the actual numbers I put up and I'm thanful for that. Its actually quite sad that you cherish your approach to 4 minutes more than the fun times you had.
I think you are misunderstanding me. I absolutely enjoyed the social aspects of being part of a team and that is something I will always remember. Traveling to meets, hard workouts, team dinners, etc. were great memories. The memories I don't cherish are going out drinking on a school night, getting too drunk to know what I did, etc. Those were not necessary to having good memories of college and I don't really remember them, except that they didn't help my running. In talking with former college runners, you often hear regrets of not going for it or having too active of a "social" life that affected their running. As I said in my first post, most successful runners have an active social life, they just knew how to restrain themselves when it really mattered. I personally don't think I did that. Still have great memories, but those memories were of the team camaraderie, not the team drunkenfest.
It's a time that stands forever. Most of us aren't going to OTQ. But certain marks are universally respected. Don't talk about 'I could have' DO IT
I haven't done it. I think I could have and maybe one day I could (1% chance). But I honestly think that it is the only true global fraternity in our sport. It is our currency as distant runners. It is the only way we can relate to the public and each other. Everest, a billion dollars, playing any professional sport, heck even going to the olympics can all be justifiably said to be easier than breaking four.
If you have to question if it's worth it, then it's not. I have never considered anything I have done to make me a better runner a sacrifice, because I have always preferred to do something that would help me improve.
thenegotiator wrote:
I kind of disagree. I very rarely think about the my goals and the accomplishments kind of fade too. Honestly, I remeber the social aspect of being a runner more than the actual numbers I put up and I'm thanful for that. Its actually quite sad that you cherish your approach to 4 minutes more than the fun times you had.
I think it is kind of sad that your social life (which face it, means drinking and partying for most college kids) was more important to you than setting goals and striving to reach them. I am guessing you are still in your 20's. For many people, they get to a point where they settle down and all of a sudden those drunkenfests don't mean that much anymore and they are left with a feeling of regret. Oftentimes those people won't admit this to anyone else, but feel it deep down.
And if I am misinterpreting you "thenegotiator" I apologize. Most people in college equate social life with heavy drinking, but of course not everyone does.
Independent of that, I think someone can still have great memories of college running and still have some regrets, especially if they were so close to sub 4. If they let it consume them and it keeps them from remembering the good times, then they have a problem. But it is natural to have some feelings of regret when a few small changes may have been the difference between sub 4 or not sub 4, All-American or not, All-Conference or not, etc.
thenegotiator wrote:
I kind of disagree. I very rarely think about the my goals and the accomplishments kind of fade too. Honestly, I remeber the social aspect of being a runner more than the actual numbers I put up and I'm thanful for that.
"thenegotiator Was A 4:30 Miler."
If you have to ask, it's not worth it. For you.