That’s right, I’m training for a marathon. I’m not an athletic person. Up until four years ago, I avoided the gym at all costs. I was naturally skinny, so I didn’t think I needed to work out.
When I started running four years ago, I was surprised at the crossover between sports and music. Here are some things I have found.
Breathing
Flutes use more air than tubas. I know three major ways to breathe so that I’m maximizing my air. I felt like this gave me a leg-up for learning how to run. I actually use breathing patterns to govern my pace.
Cadence
In running, cadence is the speed that your feet hit the ground. You’re supposed to aim for 180. As a musician, I know the beats per minute that my body naturally gravitates towards, so I didn’t have to search around on the metronome as much when I was starting my cadence training.
Scheduling
I know how to move around my schedule in order to fit in practice on two instruments. I use those skills for running. It’s actually a little easier because for running, I don’t have to worry about waking anyone up by making too much noise.
Persistence
I know from being a classically trained musician that there will be good days and bad days for anything. The bad days are actually the best because that’s when you get better. When that first mile isn’t lying and I’m in for a bad run, I keep going because I know it will make me better.
Knowing When to Stop
Sharp pain = stop.
Burning = you’re getting stronger.
Overdoing it is so easy in both running and in practicing. When you’re in pain, it’s time to stop. You don’t want to get seriously injured.
We’re told by shoe companies and conventional wisdom to keep going, no matter what. Work through the pain. That might work if you’re working with a personal trainer and have a staff of medical professionals waiting in the wings. For the rest of us, pain means stop.
Patience
Musicians are used to taking a few months to learn a tough piece of music. We’re used to someone taking years to get into intermediate music. We know that some things take time. We know that there will always be someone better or faster.
The marathon plan I chose is a 4-month plan. I need to follow that plan to the letter because the person who wrote that plan is smarter than me in this arena. I know how to follow plans to complete big projects, like learning advanced music for a recital. I have the patience to get through my training and not quit.
Warm-Ups
As a musician, I spend the beginning of my practice time doing warm-ups. I know that if I don’t, my fingers will tangle up on themselves and my tone will go down the drain. I also know that it can prevent injury.
Because of this, I understand the importance of warm-ups in running, and the structure of certain workouts. There are a ton of runners who forget to stretch. Not me. I don’t like having pain the next day.
Have you done anything that your musical training helped with?