I’m not gonna lie to you. I’ve been in a funk. Those of you who know me personally know that the beginning of winter is ALWAYS hard for me. Add to that the fact that Bill and I are recalibrating the energy in our house now that he’s retired and the fact that I’m now starting the peri-menopausal journey fair and square, and I’m just feeling a little discombobulated.
There was a time when I couldn’t have made myself run through a little life-cycle depression or through dark skies and rain. Thank heavens I made a commitment to running more than a decade ago. I don’t know about all of you, but when I’m in a funk I don’t feel motivated to do anything–including running. Fortunately, my habit removes the question. In the past 12 years, thanks to running, I’ve pushed through 12 winters and lots of life transitions without once giving in to the temptation to curl up under a blanket and sleep until June (not that there aren’t days when I don’t get out of my pajamas).
If you’re like me at all, you’ll know the feeling of dread that comes over you when you look outside and see nothing but endless drizzle (especially when the inside of you is drizzling too). Let me offer encouragement to anyone else who is looking at the gray world outside your window or perhaps a little internal gray and wondering how you’ll get through until the sun shines again. Let’s all depend on our good habits, shall we? We’ve developed them just exactly for the times when we don’t have enough will or desire to do what is good for us. Just put on your running clothes and walk out the door. If you’re new to running and you don’t have the habit well developed, here’s a trick: find a runner friend who does and ask her to drag you out a couple times a week. That’s what I’ll be doing even though I’ve been at this for a while–depending on my community when even the strength of my habits won’t carry me out the door. Don’t worry, we’ll get out of our funk.
This week in training:
Sunday: Long run. 15 miles (the last hour in the pouring rain). My last mile was my fastest (10 mins). Good training/nasty weather. This was my longest run in 2013! Since I’ve been working on my pace, I’ve been sticking to half marathons this year. It was good to get beyond that distance as I ramp up for some marathons. And I want to give a shout out to David Robb who was out running in the rain, too. Thanks for pushing me on that last mile!
Monday: I walked through Carol’s workout–probably put in three miles.
Tuesday: Hard walking (still feeling sore from my long run). 5 miles.
Wednesday: Nothing. I sat a lot and read a book.
Thursday: Pace work. Seven miles. Five of those were mile repeats at or faster than 10 minutes per mile.
Friday: Rest.
Saturday: I’ll get out for my speed work at the track: Ins and outs (hard on the straight aways/recovery on the the turns for 25 minutes) after a warm up.
Keep up the good work, friends!
