Boston Bound: A 7-Year Journey to Overcome Mental Barriers and Qualify for the Boston Marathon

by Elizabeth Clor

Have you ever wanted something so badly that your own mind became your biggest obstacle?

Elizabeth Clor wanted nothing more than to qualify for the prestigious Boston Marathon. Dead set on achieving this goal, she found herself bound up in a vicious cycle of perfectionism and anxiety that thwarted her at every turn, despite making significant gains in her physical abilities over seven years. Boston Bound is the story of how Elizabeth discovered that her own brain was the culprit, and explains the steps she took to completely overhaul her mindset about her running and her life.



For anyone seeking to realize their full potential, physically or otherwise, this story provides specific tools and a useful framework to identify and remove mental roadblocks.

Genres: Nonfiction, Fitness, Biography Memoir, Memoir, Audiobook

218 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 12, 2016

About the author

Elizabeth Clor is an endurance athlete who runs competitively at all distances from the 5K to the marathon. She made the transition from treadmill/fitness runner to road racing in 2005 when she unexpectedly won first place at her college reunion 2-mile race. Since then, she has run over 100 races (including 20 marathons), and was ranked 6th in her age group for the Washington, D.C. metro area in 2015 by Washington Running Report.

She graduated from the University of Virginia with a B.A. in English Language and Literature and is a full-time marketing professional. She authors the popular running blog Racing Stripes and is a regular contributor to various running publications, including the Athlinks Blog.

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the greatest challenges of the marathon is accepting that an extraordinary amount of hard work and preparation seems to all boil down to something that happens within just a few hours. -Elizabeth Clor

This - in a nutshell - is my constant struggle with marathon training. Hours and hours of up-at-dawn workouts, time away from family, painful foam rolling, experimentation with the right nutrition/hydration combos with absolutely no guarantee of a payoff in the end. It's terrifying.

But ugh you guys, I really wanted to love this book. There's so much I have in common with the author (perfectionist nature, hard on myself when I don't accomplish something I know I'm capable of, desire to quit if things start to derail from perfection - to name a few). It was nice to know I'm not alone in this thinking, but where my issues are wholly within me and what I can achieve, the author had a tendency to feel entitlement to achieve her BQ, which is just not something I an relate to.

She does acknowledge this quirk:
And now, with 60 congratulatory comments, I realize how many people supported me throughout my journey, while I might have been too consumed with self-pity to reciprocate.

This was hard to read actually, and I know this is the type of thinking that she ultimately works through to get to the other side, but it was quite a turnoff how entitled she felt just because she followed a training plan.

The essays that captured her conversations with her therapist were eye opening and I can see the transformation she went through to get to where she is. Things I can relate to, like nerves if the weather isn't perfect, if I have GI distress and other external factors were captured quite well.

Quitting is not my best effort
I was so happy to see this in one of her race reports because there have been so many times I have struggled with this, and I'm finally at a place where I can reevaluate goals and not psych myself out when things aren't going 100% to plan (though not quite perfectly there yet, ha).

One of the things that the author says she's conquered, but I don't totally believe, is that she's done comparing herself to other people. As I mentioned above, there was an entitlement - which she acknowledged - that she did all the training that her running partners did, but they qualified and she didn't, and she had a hard time accepting that. And while that's no longer so blatant, she during her post breakthrough races, she keeps talking about how she is passing this person or that person - or someone passed her. While she might not care as much as before, it's not the best way to convey true growth.

Other minor quibbles include a bit of redundant points, and some behavior I thought was kind of rude (drafting off other runners without offering to return the favor, bashing a race volunteer for taking too long to refill her water bottle at an aid station, when that's not really his job and took him away from refilling actual water cups to share with other runners).

Overall, I did get some good ideas to cope with some of the mental challenges I face during races, but there's a lot that rubbed me the wrong way. Oh well!

[Tony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, if a but repetitive

I can't put my finger on it, but in the first two thirds of this book I found it hard to like this writer. I'm sure she's a nice person but something about her was quite annoying early on. Once she had her breakthrough she became far more relatable and less self involved.

This is an excellent treatise on overcoming mental barriers and at times you feel like you're right there with her. I might have liked more insight into her personal relationships but in all it was a good, though not great, book.

[Michael Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

In terms of running books and running memoirs, Boston Bound is a solid view into the mind of the author. Clor exposes her raw and cumbersome mental barriers on her journey to qualifying for the Boston Marathon. It is a mammoth task for any runner, and it really isn't a spoiler to note that she eventually achieves her goal.

What's great about Boston Bound is the honesty and openness Clor provides. We read her lowest of lows and highest of highs over the course of just under a decade. In the midst of all of the training and racing, she learns how to better face perhaps he biggest roadblock we runners face- mental anguish when every run/race isn't ideal. She copes with bad runs and learns to appreciate the good ones with the help of her running crew, sports psychologist, and husband. In the end, however, the change can only come from within her own head, and for a alpha-type person like her, the change is easier said than done.

The reason I gave Boston Bound 3 stars was because it felt very repetitive in terms of the peaks and valleys of the training cycle. There were moments when I kind of grew bored with the "this marathon didn't go well, I feel bad about it" loop she gets lost in. The book is peppered with blog entries, and at times it feels as though some are there to fill out the pages.

That aside, I do recommend Boston Bound to runners, especially those who have busy lives and are unsure how to balance the stresses of everyday life while still running to race. Despite what I mentioned above, it is a low-impact quick read, one much easier on the eyes than the criminally overrated Born to Run.

Boston Bound is inspiring despite its faults, and I took from it the idea that I should appreciate each run as its own personal gift to myself, no matter how well it goes. My goals will be achieved as long as I don't quit.

[my.bookshelf.87 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I follow Elizabeth on Instagram, which is what led me to discover this book. It is her account of the journey she took to qualify for the Boston marathon. Various obstacles are covered, such as battles with anxiety, an eating disorder, OCD etc. It was an interesting read for anyone who's into running. However, I did find it quite repetitive and it did often read like a series of blog posts.

[Sara Russell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found myself feeling happy for the author’s progress in how to create a healthier, stronger mental space for herself by the second half of the book. Yet, there’s a decided selfishness that laces the narrative- a particularly cringeworthy one in the beginning, as characterized by her assertion/pouting of how conditions “weren’t fair,” she “deserved” a better race, she became angry when others achieved their goals, and generally a “why me (or literally a the twice-repeated sentiment of “woe is me” in her poem...!) attitude. Running is necessarily a bit selfish, but this book expanded no further than the authors examination of herself. This is to be expected to a degree in a memoir, though I found the nature of this self-pity to be rather narcissistic. I did appreciate the author explaining what I would consider the beginning of necessary self-work, particularly in separating self from activity, but I generally found the narrative too riddled with explicit and passive excuses and weepy.

[Charlene Serdan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a very quick read. I was looking for an inspirational running book, but found this to be more of a warning "do not run down this path". Many of Clor's race recaps made me feel sad. I was horrified to read she was running well and dropped out of a marathon at the 18 mile mark. She was the lead female and quit because she wanted to save her legs to qualify for Boston a couple of weeks later. She dropped out of many other races as well. Each DNF was backed up with excuses... the heat, the cold, a disorganized race course, her stomach... Unless there is a medical necessity, I don't believe in quitting. We learn more from our failures than our successes.

I don't think Clor once emphasized the joy and peace that running can bring to a person's life. Although she eventually battled her demons to qualify for Boston, I get the sense that she still has a very obsessive, unhealthy outlook on running.

[Allison Sauntry · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a marathon runner who hopes to qualify for Boston some day, I enjoyed the author's tales of the mental and physical struggles it takes to get there. Running is as much of a mental sport as it is a physical one, and this memoir illustrates that for sure.

[KERA TASKER · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow … I am this woman. I literally was reading a book about my future self if I were to continue down the path I am currently on. I am hoping I can take what she’s learned about herself and her emotional struggles that kept holding her back from qualifying, and apply what her sports psychologist told her about expectations and perfectionism. I am glad I read her perspective and learned what worked for her.
This book made me sad and discouraged because I for sure don’t want to wait 7 years to qualify for Boston, but I am truly going to attempt some of her advice even if some of it seems impossible for someone like me to do.
The strongest thing I heard was to identify that you are a person with your own core values who loves running, not a runner. Identifying yourself on something you DO isn’t who you really are. Well… I’ll give it a try so here it goes… 🤞🏼🤞🏼

[Isaiah Fisher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh. Not very good. Held my attention simply because I run marathons and want to qualify for Boston. But her tone and attitude throughout most of the book was really grating, especially as she narrated it in the audiobook. The majority of the book came across as whining. She acted like she deserved to BQ, like she was entitled to it. The whole point of qualifying for Boston is that it's supposed to be hard. You're supposed to have to work for it. If it came easy, it wouldn't be worth striving for. If it didn't involve buckets of sweat and a fair amount of blood, it wouldn't be an achievement.

To her credit, she gets there by the end. She realizes she's had the wrong attitude about it. But it was an unpleasant read getting to that point.

[Mark Fallon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever failed at your attempt to accomplish a goal? Again? And Again? Elizabeth Clor's attempts to qualify for the Boston Marathon provide the backdrop for a larger story about the internal barriers that can prevent us from overcoming external challenges. Her unflinching honesty about her personal weaknesses, and her struggles to improve, makes this more than just a book about running.

[Catherine Riviera · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the premise of the book is great, however Elizabeth seems a very obsessive thinker and writer. It was hard to follow her thoughts when (while I know they stemmed from some mental obsessions) they were a little ridiculous. As a runner I totally get where she's coming from however I think she still overthinks even after her revelations. Congrats to her and her Boston victory

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read my complete review and interview with Elizabeth Clor on the blog! http://www.takinglongwayhome.com/2016...

[Karah Spahn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book but it just wasn't what I was hoping for. I found Elizabeth Clor on Instagram and enjoy her posts, so figured I'd like the book she has written. I thought the title was enticing and was interested in learning more about overcoming mental blocks with regards to running. I was disappointed because the majority of the book was just actual blog posts from Clor's personal blog about the running and marathons she completed. And while there were little gems throughout the book, it just wasn't what I was hoping for.

I found the insights she included from her sports psychologist very interesting and wish more attention had been paid to those.

Takeaways:
Writing a race review and include: What went well, What worked & what didn't work, What should I adjust for next time

To perform well, the key is not to be overwhelmed by feelings. During the performance, successful athletes forget about what they like, what they don't like, what makes them happy or sad, and focus completely on the task at hand. Things that could cause them to become emotional don't distract them. During the performance, they are emotion-neutral. The emotion comes when the performance is complete. This is referred to as "later fun". ...Disappointment is the only negative feeling you should every logically feel after a race. Why feel frustrated, sad, or angry ever? Recover from disappointment, move on, and focus on the next race.

Successful athletes ignore the things they don't like (loud music, crowded courses, too hilly or windy, unorganized, etc.) They assess whether or not they need to adjust something based on a circumstance, and if not, then they simply ignore it. "Instead of thinking to yourself that you don't like the music, why not simply ignore it? Or if you can't ignore it, then think to yourself 'yep, there's music'."

8 Key Principles: (I think these can be applied to LIFE)

1. Separate yourself as a person from the things you do. (I am a person who runs, not I am a runner)
2. Focus on the things you can control, not those that you can't.
3. Don't speculate-set expectations on the process, not the outcome.
4. Stay neutral, and don't let emotions prevent you from doing your best.
5. Seek out positive emotions (i have mixed feelings on this one but agree that sometimes you have to force it or fake it for a bit. Other times, that simply doesn't work and I think it's a little insulting to suggest that people can just "be positive" and things will follow that direction.)
6. Move past setbacks and focus on forging ahead.
7. Don't compare yourself to other people (I am the Worst at this when it comes to running!)
8. Seek out challenges, don't always play it safe

[Debi Stout · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was on Twitter one evening just getting caught up, and I noticed I had a message from someone named Elizabeth Clor.  She asked me if I'd be interested in reading her book, Boston Bound. I deliberated about it for a whopping half a second and said yes.  I wasn't sure what to expect at all. I had never heard of Elizabeth Clor. While I've completed more 5ks and 10ks than I can count and I've completed over 30 half marathons, I've never run a full marathon and know for a fact that I'd never qualify for Boston since I'm one of those "back of the pack" runners.

The book arrived right about the time I had 20 other books to read. I picked it up a few times and just couldn't seem to get past the first page. I thought it was the book at the time.  I picked this book up again yesterday, and by the time I had to leave the house I realized I had read half the book. I was definitely hooked.  So now I've decided it was definitely me, and not the book. 

The author shares her routine of hours and hours of up-at-dawn workouts, all of the time away from family to train and the painful foam rolling. She also shares all of the experimentation with the right nutrition/hydration combos with no guarantee that any of it was successful in the end.

Firstly, I will say this: I can't even imagine how hard it is to try to qualify for the Boston Marathon, but as a runner myself, I've heard the "horror stories". Ms. Clor shares the path she took over her many years of working toward achieving her goal. As she shares the lessons she learned from her experience, readers can benefit in setting and reaching their own personal goal whether running related or not. She shares her story of suffering bouts with depression and anxiety and how she moved forward to overcome these obstacles. As a runner I have learned that being mentally tough is the hardest thing to achieve as an athlete. Through her story, Ms. Clor gives readers  the techniques that worked for her.

Ms. Clor's message is inspirational, not only for us runners, but for everyone. The author's great writing style made the book a page turner and I loved the fact that she included her Boston Marathon recap at the end of the book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone hoping to qualify or who just enjoy a great book about running.

[Chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll tell you why I gave this book four stars instead of the three the content more likely warranted (the writing was okay). It's because Elizabeth was willing to put herself out there and run the risk of ridicule for her obsession with what is admittedly a very, very first-world problem, and of people calling her whiny and repetitive. (I am definitely like that about running sometimes, just in private and to my long-suffering, lovely husband).

She was also willing to be honest with herself, and to share the outcome of her introspection with others - she isn't, and neither am I the only female who runs recreationally, as a hobby, who questions WHY she puts so much time and emotion into running - and that's just the tip of the iceberg (plus it gets worse once one has kids, but that's a story for another book I guess). So although this book read like a series of blog posts (because that's what it kind of was meant to be, right?), I think she did a fairly good job of tying everything together, and giving a good perspective of how to deal with the flip side of recreational (but competitive) running.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like many other readers, I found the first half of this book to be a bit repetitive and not as engaging. The second half of the book was really great and I (like many other readers) particularly enjoyed the parts about Elizabeth’s therapy with Neil and the takeaways from those sessions. Overall I loved the thoughts that this book provoked, and it’s so great to hear about Elizabeth Clor’s non-linear journey to Boston. Boston is an ultimate goal of mine but not something I’m raging after, so this was a great way to set myself up mentally toward this running goal.

Note: I actually listened to this as an audiobook and I think it made a significant (positive) difference in my perception of Elizabeth—hearing the thoughts read directly by her softened the severity of some the thoughts that I presume other readers found to be “whiny” or “entitled.”

[Benjamin Torres · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to give it to her, she is brutally honest on how she felt on her failures and successes as a runner, but that only painted her in a terrible light. She comes off as a petty, obsessive and self-pitying person, who through determination and self-discovery manages to qualify for Boston. This breakthrough coincided with her, getting a personalized training coach, but she attributes her achievement mostly on her being able to tackle some mental barriers, which I am sure helped, but she barely gave credit to her coach which pissed me off. If you want an inspirational book, you should look somewhere else, although if you are having problems qualifiying for boston, it could probably help, to listen to her story.

[Owen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook version and I liked this a lot. The book focuses on the author's metal approach to running the marathon. She is hard working and dedicated to her goal. We learn how her approach to running shifts to becoming better suited to the immense challenge of qualifying for the Boston marathon. The book is about how to she mentally faces the challenge and not a book with specific mileage training plans.

While runners may enjoy this book more than non-runners, non-runners can benefit from the book too as the author outlines her 8 steps to improvement when facing difficult challenges.

I felt that the author did and excellent job of reading her own book. Highly recommended!

[Selena Rollason · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is brilliant for anyone working to achieve some kind of goal in life - be it running a marathon, seeking a promotion at work or trying to buy a home. It takes the reader through the mental process of focusing on the journey rather than the outcome and how our mental energy and focus can play a big part in our success.

Whilst I'm a runner myself, I've applied many of the principles of this book into my life, my work and my family. We all have goals in life and this book is great for putting the process of acheiving them into perspective! Highly recommend!

[Isadora · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! I have seen that some people feel it’s repetitive or that Clor seems self-centered throughout, but that is very much what ultimately led her to qualify for Boston! She didn’t give up, she examined herself mentally and emotionally, and ultimately “cracked the code” for her own body and mind to reach her goal! I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her journey, as I prepare for my first marathon and plan to qualify for Boston one day myself.

[Martin Lindeborg · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read on tackling mental barriers and race anxiety. Are you a runner, or are you a person who runs? Would seem like a weird question but it all adds up in this book.
The second half of this book is when the real learnings come, first half is a bit of a struggle with a lot Marathons not finished and Elizabeth feeling bad about it. But kind of again adds up in the why this has to be part of the book.

[Patrick Hanlon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good guide on the vagaries of the marathon and the mind games that can dog one in pursuit of a BQ. I would have preferred to hear about the lessons learned after each race rather than the total aftermath for Clor as the struggle continued with no relief in sight. Perhaps proceeding with the lessons learned after each race in the immediate debrief may have diminished the overall drama of the ongoing pursuit of her goal but that may just be a matter of my tastes as a reader.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This incredibly honest personal narrative will speak to anyone who's ever worked long and hard to achieve a goal, only to find it alluding them. Over the course of seven years trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon, the author learns a lot about herself and how to be mentally tough enough to deal with any obstacle she encounters. In the end, she shares those secrets with us. A great read.

[Stacy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too self obsessed. Girl needs a job or a hobby for some perspective of how the real world works. She also needs a coach, or someone to correct her prancy tip toe weird ass run thing she has got going. She looks too weird to take seriously. Learn to run normal and maybe people would actually take you for a normal human, not a zero personality blah NPC who prances.

[Nicole Watkins · Rating 1 out of 5]

I made it to page 82 out of 198. It's a lot of complaining. I just couldn't keep going. I follow Elizabeth Clor on IG and was excited to read this book. I was a little apprehensive after reading some negative reviews, and unfortunately, I agree with most of the reviews I read. A LOT of complaining.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Man, I couldn't relate to Elizabeth at ALL (though as frustrated as I was reading her approach to racing, my personal feelings about the subject/author shouldn't have a bearing on the actual quality of the book). However, like other readers would have preferred more insights into her relationships and less focus on her blog posts.

Bonus points for pronouncing "Mississauga" correctly though!

[Cecilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story of overcoming mental barriers and achieving a goal you’ve had for so long. I really related to Elizabeth throughout the book. I struggle with extreme anxiety and find it hard to see the positive in things. I found this book inspiring as I hope to one day also run the Boston marathon.

[Rachel Blazer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading race reports and training information is fun (for those who enjoy running), but this was seriously repetitive and could have been 50% shorter and just as effective. She has great insights that could benefit lots of runners, but it’s a slog to get to them.

[Joyce Obedzinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I have read when it comes to mindset and running. The tools used to overcome her running issues can also be used in everyday life.
I feel like every runner should read her book.

[Karin Buchholz · Rating 5 out of 5]

So funny how much pressure we as runners put on ourselves. I am in the middle of a running crisis due to my high expectations and my constant comparison with others. The Book really helped me to put everything in perspective. Thank you!