Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Is There Such Thing As An Ideal "Ultramarathon Career?"

When I talked about the idea of thinking of every moment of your life as an opportunity to train, I bet you started considering your profession. I did the same thing. I used to be a high school teacher. When I started running ultras, I looked for every opportunity to train I could find.

It started with parking as far away from the front doors as possible, which forced me to walk farther. If I had to go anywhere around the school and time wasn't an issue, I took a route that would bring me up and down multiple sets of stairs. Sometimes I would eat a huge lunch, sometimes I would fast (I'll explain later). When teaching, I'd stand on a balance board to build balance and core strength. I would even do some air squats and walking lunges at the beginning and end of every day to help develop leg strength.

There are some careers offer even more opportunity to train. Anyone that spends time on their feet can think of that as a form of training. Lift heavy objects? That builds strength. Work in a skyscraper? What better way to develop hill climbing and descending ability than avoiding the elevator. Exotic dancer? Pole dancing is perhaps the best core-building exercise out there.

If you are interested in ultras and happen to be looking for a career, consider the training prospects. Something like a walking mail delivery route could make for wonderful training. Better yet, how about working as a mountain guide? Working in an office? Look for a place that will allow a stand-up desk. Better yet, how about a treadmill desk?

If you're not fortunate enough to be in the market for a new career, look at your present career. Make a game out of finding training opportunities. This book will give you lots of ideas. It's up to you to retrofit them to your occupation.

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1 comment:

  1. Really like this concept. It's unique and I haven't read it anywhere else.

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