the almanzo seems like a big thing to me. a real thing. that feeling of something really pushing your limits. it is an untoward thing to say it is a feat. a feat is something like working two jobs, six days a week to support your family, and doing it while keeping yourself true. i would say the almanzo is a good training tool. the real reward of something like the almanzo is the training that it drives.
a real thing impels you to get over those little bumps in motivation.
for example, yesterday, i was at work and i had ridden about three miles that morning. then i ran about 2 miles during lunch (not much time during lunch). in the late afternoon, it started raining and then hailing. i started to think it would be difficult to ride in. eventually, i said that the miles are important to make and it would be good to do it. so i did. and it was. but i would have had a little more difficulty summoning the motivation to do the ride ‘just because.’ another example is just riding my bike in the 26F mornings. the necessity of having my bike and putting in miles during the week makes the action straightforward…go ahead and ride. without the training path provided by a real thing, it would be more of a choice. and choices take more time and resources to process. chocies can go one of a few ways. with a plan and a goal, some of those choices are made for you. a real thing helps organize some of the decisions, it helps gives focus to a training.
the importance of choosing a goal, is that you choose a path...a series of actions you are going to take to achieve that goal. it is almost like you are making hundreds of choices beforehand. instead of weighing the pros and cons and deciding each and every day whether biking or running is an important thing to do that day, you have chosen a goal and you have chosen a training plan. the plan has all your decisions made for you for the next few months. that saves a lot of time.
having made these decisions, helps especially when the doldrums come on. if you think, well i am tired -> the answer is go on and run. recovery is important -> go on. the only reason i am biking is to go to another workout and i am too tired for that -> go on. i need to save time and go home and do something productive because we are going on a trip and i need to help my wife -> go on. you have made this decision and you move things around it. my advice is use the goal as a tool to help you live your best life.
that question, though, is larger, how do you choose the path and what is a good path?