By: Mizuno Race Team Member, Mike Aish
Well, I made it. I got through the pain and agony of those first few weeks of training and I’m still standing. It’s funny because no matter who you are or what level you’re at it is just flat out hard work. It hurts and the only way to make it stop is to keep pushing through. You have to keep putting your shoes back on and head out the door. I’m starting to feel stronger and that familiar bounce is finally returned in my stride.
Now that’s all fine for me, but being the kind of person that likes to spread a like joy to others, I came up with the great idea to try and get my dog into some kind shape as me. I have two golden retrievers. Maggie Mae is just about 14 years old and besides a few strides of out and backs chasing a tennis ball, she likes to just hang out by our fireplace. The other, Gunner a.k.a G-Bomb, is in his running prime, but I feel he just hasn’t reached his full potential. It may come down to a poor diet and to much time sleeping on the couch, but either way he could stand to drop a few pounds and work on his cardio.
One day last week I woke up and decided that I would take the dog, Gunner, hiking. We have a great little mountain across the street, and I guessed the dog should be able to make the 3+ miles up and around it. No problem, right?
Let’s just say it was touch and go for awhile there. I didn’t know this, but apparently golden retrievers aren’t that great at pacing themselves and to make things worse I think he’s about as competitive as his old man. So when he saw a group of hikers he was off like a bottle rocket chasing after them. It took me about a mile to catch up and by that point he’d passed every threat to a safe victory and was taking a break under a tree. At that point I still had high hopes for our little adventure and it wasn’t until he was re-passed by all of the hikers, and still wasn’t moving that I worked out he was done for the day. We weren’t even half way around the loop.
As a great dog owner, I had packed gallons of water and a good amount of dog treats to get my star athlete through this epic challenge. So after a few long drinks and a treat or two, we were off again, but at a much slower pace than the one we had started out at. It seemed like it took a few minutes, but Gunner started to gather himself and we continued on at an even and relaxed walking pace.
After passing the mid point of the trip, and stopping for another quick snack break, it was all down hill and we were gaining steam. I’m not sure if Gunner was just desperate to get back to the car for a rest or if gravity was just pulling on his large frame, but we made our way down at a more even pace without any major hiccups along the way. He was happy that we had made it back to the car and I was happy that I hadn’t killed the family dog in my effort to improve his fitness level.
After a few more treats, he made it up in to the car and then didn’t move an inch until we got home, where he managed to get himself out of the car and just about made it in to the kitchen before passing out on the floor again. He stayed there most of the day, not even moving to eat…
I love being out with Gunner. He seems to always put a smile on my face and make the day just that little bit better. Who knows, maybe one day we could even be training partners… but I’m not holding my breath. #lifewithgunner
Michael Aish is a former New Zealand Olympian, 2000-10,000/2004-5,000m, and current ultra marathoner for the Mizuno Race Team. With PR’s of 13:22 for 5K and 27:46 for 10K, Michael has been tearing up the ultra scene for the last four years, with his most notable performance being a 2nd place finish in the 2014 Leadville 100.