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If you are participating in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure, you have no doubt started training by now. The 16-week point is approaching fast for Dallas walkers.

If you are an experienced walker or already can confidently do 3-4 miles in your sleep, you may not need to start with the 24-week program. I do the full program anyway, but I think it is a personal preference. The earlier you start building up your miliage and endurence, the more prepared you will be for the actual event. Having a few extra weeks of training definitely won’t hurt you!

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Also something you may or may not know is that the expected pace for each mile is 20 minutes. If you can walk 3 miles currently but are not clocking in at under an hour, you may need to train at a faster pace. Why? During the event each part of the course opens and closes at a certain time. If your pace is too slow, you may not make it to the next pit stop before it closes. In those cases, most likely a sweep van will pick you up and take you to the pit stop where you will then board a swag bus to lunch or back to camp depending on where on the route you are.

If you walk too fast, chances are you will have to wait at a pit stop before being allowed to continue since the entire route is not open at the same time and safety teams and sweep vans are still monitoring the previous part of the route.

One great thing about the year we walked is that they provided a schedule with the times the pit stops opened and closed each morning before you started the route. I believe they do this every year. My advice is if you know you are behind pace for whatever reason (maybe you got a late start, stopped for too many pictures, made a convenience store run) and want to continue walking for the rest of the day, take a sweep van to the next pit stop well in advance of it closing. That way you can keep walking the next part of the route and not risk having to be taken by bus to lunch or camp.

Do you have any great training tips, or techniques that have worked for you? Please share them in the comments.

Source: 3-Day Suggested Training Program. You can also find the 16-week program chart at this link if you are a registered participant. All other comments mentioned in this post are solely my opinion and suggestions. You should consult your doctor before starting any training plan.

Walking 60 miles is a difficult task, and I know lots of participants in the 3-Day choose to go it alone. I can tell you firsthand that I wouldn’t be able to do it without my BFF, Nikki. We push each other to keep going and to continue fundraising and training on days when the other needs a little motivation. Having a team mate(s) definitely makes the miles pass faster too, both during training and the actual event.

One key thing I learned in 2008 is if you walk with a team, don’t expect everyone to walk at the same pace. I cannot stress that enough. We had six team members our first year, and for the most part we did not train together except for Nikki and I. She and I had an established a pace and had followed the training schedule pretty closely. We had another teammate who did not train at all, and managed to walk most of the first day at a pace faster than ours. We had several others who also didn’t train as much and had a slower pace than the rest of us.

We were all first-time walkers that year (except Ana who had never been on a team before). Naively I think a lot of us had the idea that we were going to take every single step of the 60 miles together as a team. We quickly learned in the first few miles that wasn’t going to be the case. I wish that I had known that ahead of time so that we could have addressed it before the event and had a plan in place. Unfortunately the result was that some of the slower-paced walkers got their feelings hurt when some got farther ahead, and the rest of us spent most of the first day feeling guilty. Don’t let that happen to you.

My advice is to talk about this with your team (if you have one) in the weeks and months leading up to the event. Make plans to meet up at lunch or at a pit stop, and of course at camp for nightly activities. You can start out the day walking together, but then part ways and keep your own pace. On the last day, you can meet at the last pit stop and walk into holding as a team. Nikki and I saw a team who met on the side of the road and toasted with champagne before finishing. I thought it was really fun that they found a way to get together before the end to celebrate their accomplishment together.

In reality, you’re in the company of thousands of other walkers. You will find someone to walk with if you do get separated from your team, I promise. Sometimes you will walk faster, and sometimes you will walk slower. You may find someone interesting to talk to and walk at their pace for awhile. Nikki and I met a survivor who was currently going through treatment along the route on our third day. She was walking and participating alone, so we asked her to join us and we talked and walked at her pace. We then parted ways at the next pit stop. These are the parts of the journey that make it so incredible. If you aren’t a member of a team and don’t plan on joining one, you will find and meet tons of people. Don’t worry!

If you are still nervous and want to ensure that you are with someone you know the entire 60 miles, find a training buddy on your team. If you train together for the 24 or 16 weeks leading up to the 3-Day, chances are your pace is going to match since you walked together all of those miles beforehand.

Also, please train. Remember the teammate I mentioned who didn’t train but walked a faster pace on the first day? She got injured and was not able to complete the second and third days. Don’t expect that you are going to be able to wake up one day after not training all year and walk 20 miles for the 3 days of the event. Yes there are sweep vans and SAG buses along the route if you cannot continue, but if you plan to even attempt to walk more than a few miles you need to condition yourself or you may get seriously injured. There’s no shame in taking a sweep van or bus even if you do train. That is what they are there for. Do what is right for you. Nobody is going to be standing over you asking which of the 60 miles you did not complete. Besides, there are some fun vans and a few even give you little trinkets when you ride. Use them when you need to. Don’t push yourself beyond your limits and risk injury.

If you’re currently registered as an individual who hasn’t joined a team yet, why not invite your friends to join you? Now is the time, because if you use the promotional code REGISTERWITHAFRIEND by June 22 you will each receive a $35 gift card for Shop3day.com! There are some really great training items and gear on there, so how great would that be? Also? You can earn up to five gift cards, which would be $175 to use in the online store.

Happy walking whether you decide to join a team or make friends at the event. Either way, it is an experience you will never forget.

Nikki and I attended our second Training Kickoff in my hometown on May 22. I was really excited about seeing what this route was like because as a Training Walk Leader I will be organizing a lot of walks in this area over the months leading up to the event in November.

We met up at our local outfitter, New Balance, at 7:30 AM. Like the week before in Dallas, it was overcast and seemed like a really good day for an early morning walk. The turnout was a little bit better than last week as we geared up to walk down Parkwood, around the Dr. Pepper stadium, through Central Park, and back around to Preston.

We asked some nearby women to take our picture in front of the sign (these are my shoes!), and later we discovered that one of them was a survivor. That is one of the most emotional parts of these events. They always ask how many first-time-walkers there are verses veterans, and there are always a pretty large number of each. They ask how many people are on teams or are looking for a team. Finally they ask how many women participating are survivors and how many years it has been since they were diagnosed. This is the point that I am thankful to be wearing sunglasses, because I always tear up. These women are one of the main reasons that we walk. We do not want another woman to have to raise her hand and say she has had to go through this.

This was an easy 3 miles. I think I always do better when I know the area and the route we are taking and can visualize in my head when we will make it full circle back to the beginning. Frisco has lots of beautiful pink and white flowers planted everywhere, and there are tons of things to look at. I loved that they also set up a mini cheering station in the park where the kids sat in cars and honked the horns and the adults gave high-fives and passed out candy.

When we were finished, we waited at the store and watched for the final walkers to come in. Those that were still there took a group picture afterward. They also do some pretty amazing drawings for gift cards to local restaurants and the New Balance store. Nikki was actually the big winner of one of the $50 gift cards! She shared with me and we bought some t-shirts and socks for training.

I walked away from the last 24 week kickoff looking forward to training season. I’ve been struggling a little bit with fundraising this year. In 2008 when we first participated I was well beyond the minimum at this point in the year, so I know this year is going to be a challenge. It definitely helps to get out and meet new people spend time making plans for future events. I know it is going to be a fantastic year and we are looking forward to November and sharing our journey up until that point with you.

The past two weekends in a row Nikki and I have gotten up early Saturday morning to attend the Dallas and Frisco training kickoffs for the 2010 Komen 3-Day for the Cure. I have new pictures and stories to share, but I am still heartbroken that so many of our posts from 2008 are gone forever due to a blog-upgrade gone wrong. I am happy that she had posted this to her MySpace (does anyone even know what that is anymore?) back in the day so that we could retrieve it and repost it this year. I think this is a beautiful entry, and it might just be the inspiration you were looking for. I know it still moves me to read it, and I am so proud that she is my teammate and BFF.

I choose “Life” as the category for this blog, because that’s really what it’s about. Not necessarily MY life, but others’ lives. There are a couple of things going on here. First, let me tell you about my Mom’s friend Donna at work. A couple of weeks ago, Donna’s husband started complaining about being tired and not feeling well. They assumed it was nothing and figured it would go away. Eventually, he started feeling worse, and having other more severe symptoms. They went to the ER, and after quite a few tests, it was determined that he has cancer…of the liver, the pancreas, it had even spread to his intestines. All of this from feeling tired and “not well”. It’s too far gone to treat, and he’s been given just a couple of months. Donna had told my Mom about her disbelief of the situation. Just a week or two ago, they had been sitting on the back porch planning the landscaping for their yard, and now he’s going to be gone in less than two months. The cancer is too advanced to treat. They won’t even try chemotherapy.

Now, I am not telling you this to depress you. I’m telling you this because it woke me up a little. Despite the things that I have heard, seen, and read in the past couple of months since signing up for the Breast Cancer 3 Day, it never occurred to me how quickly cancer can steal a life. I’ve heard of the treatments that these women endure and how hard it is on their bodies, but I had never considered those treatments not even being an option. What do you do when all you have is a little time, and then it’s done? How does a mom with small children explain to them that she might not see the end of their school year, their next birthday, or Christmas? Now I feel like I TRULY understand the need for early detection. What could the difference have been if this had been discovered two months ago?

Yesterday was the official kickoff for training walks for the 3 day in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Laurie and I went down to University Park, which is a beautiful old neighborhood near SMU. We joined about 150 other women who were there to kick off their training with a 4 mile walk. It was incredible to see the people that turned out. There were young women, middle age women, older women, husbands, brothers, survivors, supporters… We started our walk through the neighborhood at the New Balance store (they’re an official outfitter/sponsor for the walk) and wound through the gorgeous neighborhood. The sidewalks were well shaded by the old trees, and the houses were absolutely incredible. Along the way, neighbors and kids came out to wave to us and clap for us. Some even thanked us. The sidewalks had been decorated with encouraging phrases (like, “YOU ROCK!”), arrows, and pink ribbons.

There was a “cheer station” where supporters were waiting to greet us with candy, give us stickers and cheer us on. There were cars that honked and waved as they drove by. At the finish line, we were greeted with even more cheering and high fives!

I knew all along that this was a good cause, and that this was a wonderful thing to do. I guess I just hadn’t really felt it as much as I did yesterday. Being around all those other women, many of which have beat the disease, really drove this home for me. I can’t wait for the big event now. I can’t wait to meet more incredible people with amazing stories.

My feet are sore, and my legs a little achy today, but that’s nothing compaired to what some of the other women there have been through. I’m just grateful to be healty enough to be able to make this journey. Next year, there may be more survivors walking, because of what we are doing this year. THAT makes sixty miles soooooo worth while, despite the horror stories of blisters and swollen feet we’ve heard. I’ll take some blisters for the team! We really are going to make a difference, one that we will remember for rest of our lives.

Love,
Nikki

The last of the 24 week training kickoffs ended in DFW this weekend, but there are more at the 16 week training interval. I highly recommend that you attend one. These are the closest things to experiencing the actual event (in an ultra mini dose, of course). Check the 3-Day calendar to find events scheduled in your area. It’s a great way to get motivated, inspired, and involved.

In 2008 I participated in my first 60 mile Breast Cancer 3-Day. As a newbie, I was eager to meet others in my area who were also passionate about the cause. I decided to sign up to become Training Walk Leader with the hope of making new friends and finding walking buddies to train with throughout the year.

I was also assigned as the official TWL for the Luke’s Locker store in Plano, and we lead several walks in conjunction with their in-store workshops. They were very kind, and even provided water and sports drinks for those that participated in the training walks.

It was fun coming up with new routes to try that added distance and were still challenging. We met some great people, some who traveled long distances to walk with us. One of the most beneficial aspects is sharing stories and learning about what successes and struggles other walkers are having. It is the perfect opportunity to exchange fundraising tips, and even to help mentor new walkers.

Of course now that I have experienced the entire event firsthand, I have even more advice and wisdom to share. Everyone has something important to contribute though, whether they are seasoned 3-Day veterans or walking for the very first time. You never know who you will meet and what they have to offer in terms of support or ideas.

I am once again taking on the role of Training Walk Leader in the 2010 Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure. I will lead walks in the Frisco and Plano area. I hope to see some of you out there on the trails with us. I had my Introductory Conference call last night with our Field Coordinator, Karen, and I have to say that I am getting really excited training season is just around the corner. For those of you that are going to following the 24 week plan, we’ll see you May.

Not in Dallas? No training walks scheduled in your area? No problem! Step up and lead your own walks. Go to the Special Interests tab and check “I am interested in becoming a training walk leader.” A Training Walk Coordinator will contact you in April to get you started. Inspire walkers in your area to join you!

In addition, you will receive this awesome Training Walk Leader Legacy pin to add to your collection, and you are also asked to be a Safety Monitor during your 3-Day event. It is an honor to be considered a leader for this amazing cause, and I encourage all of you to step up. Please let me know if you have any questions. I would love to help.

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