Distance: 16 miles
Time: 3 hours
Location: Rose Bowl
Notes: I've been sick the last few days, so the last time I ran was a five miler on Monday. I was still feeling a little under the weather on Saturday morning but decided to give it a try and call it short if I didn't feel well. I felt fine for the first two miles, then one of the participants fell and I helped walk her to the aid station, which took about 15 minutes. When I started running again after we dropped her off, I felt stiff but thought that would go away soon enough. It didn't. I felt stiff the rest of the way and added exhaustion soon after. Gina joined me about four miles in to the run and she was the reason I kept on going. I was kidding around with her by whining most of the way, but after a while I wasn't kidding around very much any more. I really was whining. I felt horrible pretty much the entire 16 miles, and I probably should have called it a short day, but Gina didn't want me to. So I ran and ran. Even on days where I have a bad run, I usually feel good at the finish. Not yesterday. I felt sick for a while after I finished running. All I wanted to do was sit and go to sleep. At least I got my 16 miles in, as painful and miserable as it was. This weekend is a step-back week, just an 8 miler, then we go back up to 18 miles in two weeks.
This whole season has felt like two steps forward, two steps back. When I was working on my papers in December, I took two weeks off running and it took two weeks to get back into feeling like my old self. Even at that, though, I have had three tough long runs (12, 14, and now 16 miles). I usually have one bad long run followed by a great one. Being sick this week robbed me of a few days of quality running just when I felt like I was getting back in the groove. I have two more months until L.A., and right now I doubt I can accomplish my goal of finishing under four hours. I'll have to work hard the next few weeks and stick to a regimen. I also need to get serious about nutrition and hopefully lose some weight.
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1 comment:
Never underestimate the power of race day adrenaline! You will be tapering in no time - and that's when you will start to see the results. Stay focused!
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