I've been lazy.
This past week was our annual "Staycation" week, and I have let it get the best of my running. Friday night was the first time I ran since my botched attempt in the rain. Why? Because we got busy, because I was tired, because I was LAZY!
I hear real runners talk about how they feel awful if they don't run. I'm not totally there yet. I feel guilty if I don't run, and after three days of it I felt sluggish and loaf-like but I don't automatically notice it as being from not running right away yet. Every day that I put off running I felt like it was OK. I know that it's not, I have a race next weekend! And after I ran last night I felt totally better so I do see that it is making a difference in how I feel.
But it is still sort of a chore for me. I'm not at the point where it's a break, or my escape or something I totally look forward to. Yes, I look forward to how I feel when I achieve something I didn't think was possible. Yes, I like how I feel after a run. And I think that part of the problem is lack of a structured schedule. This week was overtaken with our staycation activities and I never really planned a run schedule. And although I have a race next weekend, there's no formal training plan that I'm following so I'm a bit lost with what I should be doing. I do very well with following instructions and when I have a deadline and when someone or something tells me what to do and how. I don't fare well left up to my own devices, lol.
So I came up with a formal plan for myself. I don't know if it's a sound one, I don't know if it will work, but it's a plan & I'm going to follow it. Since I skipped 3 days in a row, when I went to run on Friday night I was not at my best. I knew going into it that I wasn't going to have 3 miles in me. So I went down with a goal of 1 mile and if I could push the speed a little, I would. I didn't do anything great, and to be honest I don't even remember what the first mile's time was (this is what happens when I wait another 3 days to write about it!). But I ran the first mile straight through, and then walked for 0.15. And for another mile and a half and worked on fartleks. Many times I pushed it up to a 9.0 on the speed. So while I didn't do great with distance, I did push myself a lot with the speed.
My plan heading into Saturday was to do more of the same and work my way up to the 3.1 miles by Tuesday, of course with taking Monday off. After the race next weekend, I need to come up with a plan to keep myself on track. Without a plan I am lost - this week just proves that!
First, you ARE a real runner! Second, there is no right way to be a runner. I happen to be one of those ones that can't handle missing runs, I feel off-kilter. But lil sis, who I share more DNA than anyone else on the planet, is a totally differnt kind of runner. She has a love-hate relationship. She loves turning off the alarm and going back to sleep and bagging her run. She hates having to train for months on end. But she loves a race, so is willing to put the time in. And she loves what running sometimes gives her - a way to escape, a break from the drama in her life. But just as often, she has terrible runs that she struggles to finish. And that is after almost 20 yrs of it! So don't worry about it having to feel a certain way, we are all different and running brings different things to us all!!
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