My Week On The Run...

This week's round of training was for the most part just an exercise of will.  After a decent start on Sunday, the seemingly endless winter came back with a vengeance, making Monday through Wednesday just miserable.  I guess that those are the days that train us the best.  The days that we don't want to be out there, the days that dare us to venture outdoors, the days that cause every fiber of our soft selves scream to that a nap is not only more desirable, it's probably smarter, too; these are the days that harden us as runners to the point of looking into the sky mid-run and screaming, "Bring it on!"

 

Maybe challenging God isn't the best training strategy, but to some degree, that feeling of a certain amount of invincibility is necessary for the type of training it takes to get into the racing shape for which we seem to perennially be striving.

 

In any case, with all that said, this was my week on the run...

Sun 3/24
6 miles (46:51)
Abbreviated downtown loop.

UMYF ended and the youth all left abnormally quickly afterward, so I managed to sneak out for a run before heading home.  As I was running, I thought I noticed the wind picking up and the temperature dropping a little too quickly, which turned out to be more true than I could have realized.  I darn near got blown off the road driving home, and the next few days turned grossly cold and windy considering the time of year.

Mon 3/25
10 miles (1:19:39)
Downtown loop with extension.

An exercise of shear will power.  Cold, raining, and just crappy outside.  The run felt fine on the legs, but I let it take more out of me mentally than I should have.

Tues 3/26
0
Every now and then, I get the feeling that I only have a finite amount of will power for a given time period, and I definitely used it up on Monday's run... Needed to re-coop, but given a little twinge in my right foot, the rest probably helped, as it felt a little better with a day off.

Wed 3/27
10 miles (1:16:37)
Downtown loop with extension.
Low-key night for youth since it's spring break for most of them, so I had a bit more time.  Felt great after the rest day, including the little foot twinge improving a little.

Thurs 3/28

8 miles (1:01:37)
Downtown loop.
Felt good and was planning on 10, but called it at 8 due to a bad combination of pushing a pair of shorts through one too many runs between washings and foregoing body-glide...

Fri 3/29
10 miles (1:17:07)
Downtown loop with extension.
Weather improving; good temps and no rain.  Light traffic (between rush hour and time for folks to be going out for the night...).  The people gawking out the restaurant and bar windows just didn't know what they were missing.

Sat 3/30
8 miles (1:04:26)

Pt. Mallard
Temperature was fine, but raining the whole time.  Crossed paths with Carson and Carlos out for a long run in preparation for an April marathon, but other than that, for the most part I had the damp, rainy, misty river all to myself.   Fun, all things considered.


Total:  52 miles (6:46:17)

My Week On The Run...

As a bit of a reprisal of a series of a couple posts from right around two years ago, I figured I'd put up a few more details from this weeks running forays than those found on my daily training blog (which, again, ironically enough, doesn't necessarily feel like the most appropriate venue for posting the nitty gritty details of my typically ambiguous, jack of all trades type training).  I'm still fairly confident that I'm the only one interested in such trivialities regarding my training, if it could even be called such, particularly due to the lack of consistency and low mileage of the last couple years, in addition to the fact that I'm not really training for any specific race or toward any discrete end at the moment. However, if nothing else, my posting up slightly more detailed accounts of my daily runs could possibly afford a point to which I can refer others, should they ever be curious as to the somewhat monotonous nature of my training, on the off-chance that anyone would ever develop such a curiosity.  As a point of note, all distances are currently approximate; one of these days I'll get around to measuring a little more precisely (perhaps even accurately) these routes...

In any case, yet again, I don't know if this will be a regular installment or a one-time post, but, for what it's worth, here's how my week of running went for March 17 - March 23...

Sun 3/17
4 miles
Abbreviated downtown loop.
An enjoyable, if all-too-rare Sunday afternoon run.  Weather was simply too nice to not run.

Mon 3/18
10 miles
Downtown loop with extension.
Took a nap after work to try and let the rain pass, which it did.  A bit of a sluggish run, but very enjoyable nonetheless.  More on this run here (or copy and paste http://letsgoforarun.blogspot.com/2013/03/rain-delay.html)

Tues 3/19
6 miles
Original downtown loop.
Had to cut the run short for a meeting at the church.  Productive meeting, but with the weather as nice as it was, I wish I could have had a more substantial run.

Wed 3/20
3 miles
Short loop.
As per normal, best run I could get in after work and before youth.  Need to work on timing, and I could probably manage a 6-miler with a little more planning...

Thurs 3/21
10 miles
Downtown loop with extension
Illustrious Father's 64th birthday, so a bit of a symbolic 6.4 at one pace, followed by a token change of pace to round out the mileage.  A surprisingly easy 10, all things considered.

Fri 3/22
8 miles
Downtown loop.
Had to talk myself into this one.  Really didn't want to get out there, but, as is often the case, the first step was the hardest, and it turned into a pretty good run.

Sat 3/23
6~ish miles
I'm not entirely sure what the distance is for the day, although I'm fairly certain that it's over 6 (probably closer to 7 or 8).  Helped put up some course directions, "confidence markers," and "motivational" signs for the McKay Hollow Madness Trail Run.  Took a little over 2 hours, but included putting down flags, writing signs, and a significant amount of technical running, with some pretty good climb and descent included.  Fun day.


Total:  47 miles

Rain Delay

Usually rain doesn't justify a change in the running schedule, be it a delay, cancellation, or otherwise.  Such alterations can all too easily transform into a wholly unjustified excuse, and as a friend's sister used to say, "Excuses are like bellybuttons; everybody has one, and none of them taste good."

However, yesterday had the perfect combination work delays, radar reflections, and available time to make the gamble of a future mental battle worth it.

A call to try to calm a very nervous coworker en route to an OCONUS TDY location had me leaving the office a bit later than normal, which allowed a few last-minute checks of various weather radars.  If my estimations were remotely accurate, the line of rain and storms looked like they would be through the area a smidgen over and hour later.

This guesstimation, combined with the later sunsets of Daylight Savings Time and one of those rare nights free of other obligations, seemed like just cause to grab a nap, then hit the road.

Admittedly, the nap lasted about fifteen or twenty minutes longer than planned, but the subsequent run made the gamble entirely worth the while.

Birds chirping playfully in the bright afternoon sun, the cool, humid air rushing by, and a general sense of post-storm revival permeated the streets.

In spite of being slow and sluggish, the environment in which I found myself and the inherently calming effect of watching the slow fade of sunset into night made it one of the more enjoyable ten-milers in recent memory.

We run, walk, trot, jog, bound, sprint, trek, and otherwise ambulate in so many conditions, both internal and external, that we sometimes lose sight of the wonder to be found in our seemingly mundane routines.

...and then sometimes we get to have a rain delay...