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For many individuals who run often and enjoy participating in road races, this sport that tends to test the physical limits of a person can often become much more of a mental battle—especially when pressure from oneself leaves a person feeling rather disappointed. 

Dallas-area resident Ivan Alonzo, who recently traveled overseas to compete in the London Marathon, said feeling completely content with a race is something that’s difficult for him, and he knows this is also the case for many other runners. He believes that the motivation for some people is to put themselves through training to achieve their goals.

“I didn’t grow up athletic and was actually quite heavy as a young adult,” he said. “Over the years, running started as something fun to do with others. However, as I progressed and improved, it evolved into a journey of self-discovery: How much can I get out of myself?”

Alonzo said he recognizes that certain aspects of race day (e.g., weather, unexpected illnesses, etc.) are out of his control, but it’s still easy to blame oneself for not doing enough or handling the conditions correctly, regardless of the outcome.

“While I still struggle with this, I’ve recently tried to look at my results through a few different perspectives,” he said. “I try to recognize what I did and be proud of the effort and whether or not I got the best I could out of myself on race day. I try to approach race day with a few process goals versus a single outcome goal—Did I stick to my nutrition plan? Did I stick to my hydration plan? Did I sleep well leading up to the race? Did I get to the starting line sticking to my training plan as best as I could? That said, I still allow myself not to be content with my outcome goal. It is not my primary goal, but it is still an important goal, and it is what motivates me to continue training.”

Dallas-area resident Jen Frankmann said everyone has different reasons for being hard on themselves when it comes to race or training performance, but she believes that comparison pressures are often a common factor.

“It’s the competitors inside of us,” she said. “If we aren’t competitive with other runners, then it’s the personal competitions we battle within ourselves—the personal drive to always beat our past selves—and we do this (or maybe I just do this) without taking into account factors that make past performances not equally comparable to current performances. We just look at one performance result: time. And if it’s not our A goal, then that feels like failure.”

Frankmann certainly isn’t the only one who often pays close attention to the numbers she sees on her watch and on the finish results. Dallas-area resident Robyn Allen said she thinks much of the unsatisfactory feelings stem from the desire to achieve new goals followed by the pressure to keep up or improve upon those goals after they are met.

“Maintaining a PR speed or distance can be hard, especially when self-doubt creeps in or if a lifestyle change has occurred impacting how we train,” she said. “Physical fitness is something we constantly have to work at to keep.”

Though the self-created pressures can make it difficult to be satisfied with a race-day outcome, every once in a while, those moments of pride occur. For Alonzo, it happened at the Chicago Marathon in 2022 after nearly three years of disappointments in his goal races, which included two Boston Marathons and one Berlin Marathon. When he toed the line in Chicago, his outlook after the heartaches from those races was about to change.

“The race started, and I had one goal—run 20-minute 5K splits,” he said. “So I put my head down and focused on one 5K at a time. I crossed the finish line in 2:47:29 with a small negative split of 1:30. Just then, it hit me that I was finally able to do what I had been trying for so many years. It was only then that I was finally able to say I was truly proud of myself. The sense of accomplishment was so overwhelming that I was borderline emotional. I recognized that I’ve come a long way in my running over the years but have never been proud of myself. That changed for me that day.”

Like Alonzo, Allen also finds that post-race happiness when she’s able to achieve a personal best to add to her accolades.

“Whenever I have hit a new distance or speed threshold, I am always grateful,” she said. “Those days are hard physical days, so I know I left everything I had to give out on the pavement.”

The numbers aren't always the main focus, though. Frankmann said she can recall two races with which she was fully content with how she ran. One was Grandma’s Marathon in 2019, which was her first marathon after having her second child and first marathon after reaching her long-term goal of qualifying for the Olympic Marathon Trials. The second was the Big Sur Marathon in 2022, which was her first marathon after the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials.

“At Grandma’s, I had a blast, and it went better than expected,” she said. “And at Big Sur, I allowed myself to just have fun and enjoy the race with zero pressure of time or pace. And I had FUN along the way. After both of those races, I walked away feeling fully satisfied with how they went. It’s funny how they are the races where the time and pace pressures were no longer there.”

While Frankmann said running an Olympic Marathon Trials qualifying time (which, by the way, she ran not knowing she was seven weeks pregnant) is one of her most significant running accomplishments, there was a moment in eighth grade that truly made her realize how strong and capable she actually is.

“I remember my sectional cross country meet where, mid-race, I had to make a choice to stay with the fast girls or slow down like I always did,” she said. “And for the first time, I chose to dig deep and stay with the girls who always beat me. We crossed the line all together, and that was the defining moment when I realized that I can do hard things. I can get fully out of my comfort zone and do something more. That was huge.”

And though Alonzo certainly works toward his time goals and has now run even faster than he did at his Chicago 2022 marathon, his memorable achievements don’t necessarily involve specific stats on his Garmin but, rather, simply his confidence and abilities.

“One of my biggest accomplishments is becoming a better runner as I’ve become older,” he said. “I continue to progress and push myself further than I ever expected. I find myself toward the front of a lot of races with much younger runners, which is also very motivating and encouraging. The other would have to be the pursuit of the six World Marathon Majors. When I started running, it was never a goal or even a dream, as it was nowhere near the realm of possibilities for me. Over the years, it went from impossible to maybe one day to completing five of the six majors within the last three years.”

For Allen, whether or not she is content with how a race goes, she knows it’s an accomplishment to be able to continue running after beginning when she was in her 20s.

“To be able to run my entire life is the goal, regardless of speed or distance,” she said. “Just having the ability and fitness to show up each week is incredible.”

The Arkadiko Bridge in Argolis, Greece—built sometime between 1300–1190 and only 72 feet long (for comparison, the Golden Gate Bridge is 4,200 feet)—is the oldest bridge that’s still in use in the world.

Recent research revealed that 67 percent of adults drink coffee on a daily basis. People’s affinity for different coffee-based beverages has helped increase the popularity of a variety of coffee shops (many more than those named Starbucks, but you don’t even have to be a coffee drinker to appreciate the laid-back and inviting atmospheres that such establishments offer.

Dallas-area resident Lyndsey Kohn enjoys spending time in various coffee shops throughout the metroplex and said such places are where she’s met some of her dearest friends, read some of her favorite books, and studied for exams when she was in college.

“It’s the best way to slow down and be still for a few hours and maybe even help out a local business in the process,” she said.

Kohn is not alone in this sentiment. Dallas resident Craig Borkenhagen also values the significance coffee shops currently have in his life. One he frequents quite often because of its proximity to where he lives is Houndstooth on Henderson Avenue.

“I’m there almost every day,” he said. “I’ve met all of the baristas and sometimes bring them my baked goods. I’ve made several friends through meeting the other regulars. I haven’t lived in Dallas that long, so having that shop so close by has played a key role in helping me feel integrated into my neighborhood and settled down as a resident of Dallas.”

Sometimes, though, we must part ways with things we love. For financial reasons, Foxtrot, a beloved spot for many Dallasites, recently closed its doors at 33 shops, including its four Dallas locations (Uptown, University Park, Lower Greenville, and Knox). Kohn loved spending time at Foxtrot and said it’s sad to see any coffee shop close down, but what hurts the most is the loss of the community aspect that the space provided.

“You might not see these people as frequently (or ever) again, and that part is the hardest,” she said. “I also love working remotely at coffee shops, and it can be challenging to find replacement spots with the right atmosphere (music, seating, plugs, food, energy, etc.).”

Foxtrot held a special place in people’s hearts, and many of its regulars took to social media to express their sadness upon hearing the news of its closures. Borkenhagen said if Houndstooth ever had to shut its door for good, it would completely change his daily routine.

“I go there for an hour of quiet time (prayer, reading, reflection) most mornings,” he said. “I would adjust, but I’d either start making more coffee at home (I’m bad at that—my coffee never tastes good) or walk twice as far to another place like La La Land, which isn’t quite my vibe. I’d be sad that I wouldn’t see all of those familiar faces—the baristas, the other regulars, etc.—anymore.”

Borkenhagen said he thinks the impact of a place like Foxtrot closing hits customers so strongly is because, in a sense, those places become part of those individuals’ identities.

“If you willingly spend a lot of time in a specific place, you grow to know it on a deeper level than just popping in for a cup of coffee and leaving right away,” he said. “It feels like you are losing a part of yourself.”

For Kohn, coffee shop culture is the closest thing in the U.S. that people have to a third space—an area one frequents that is not where he or she lives, works, or attends school. Thus, when a cherished coffee shop closes, people’s emotions toward that place can certainly take a toll.

“It’s the place in between the commuting to work and all of the mundane life things we have to do,” she said. “It’s the place where we can relax or unwind, or it can serve as a place we actively chose to be a part of. [With a closure like Foxtrot’s], it’s heartbreaking because you are shutting down a third space. I’ve personally had a lot of great memories at Foxtrot on Knox with friends, so it’s sad to see a third space shut down.”

WEEKLY PHOTO OP

Congrats to NatNews dear reader Tory Castillo, who officially became an Ironman on Saturday at the Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas

Monday, April 29: International Dance Day
Tuesday, April 30: Think Tank Charity Trivia Night at Community Beer Co.
Wednesday, May 1: Rangers vs. Mariners at Globe Life Field; Stars vs. Golden Knights (Game 5) at the American Airlines Center
Thursday, May 2: Cool Thursdays Concert Series — Caribbean Chillers, Jimmy Buffett Tribute Band at the Dallas Arboretum; The Pitch at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
Friday, May 3: Mavs vs. Clippers (Game 6) at the American Airlines Center; Candlelight Jazz — The Best of Frank Sinatra & Nat King Cole at Edison’s
Saturday, May 4: WRRC Saturday run from Taco Joint; Best Buddies Friendship Walk at Rough Riders Field
Sunday, May 5: Cinco de Mayo at Grandscape; José Cinco de Mayo