Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Wednesday Workout Update

I don't want to jinx myself, but I had another great run on Saturday!  It was a low-mileage run at only 4 miles (every few weeks we drop it down a bit, which is a nice break both mentally and physically), but each mile felt awesome.  Loretta and I ran at a good pace for mile one, and then?  We kept increasing our pace.  By the last mile, we were an entire minute faster than the first!  I have to say, we were running fast and by then we couldn't talk at all, which really is not what you're supposed to do on the Saturday runs - they're supposed to be a long, slow run where you are just getting time on your feet.  But the weather was pretty decent and we felt like going for the gusto, so we did.  It felt great to put everything into a run like that!

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I thought that Saturday run was weirdly good.  However, on Monday morning, Cary, Jeff, and I had 45 minutes on tap, in disgusting weather - it was so hot and humid that there was fog.  Gross, right?  Once again, we had a strong run!  We were going pretty fast for me, and I did end up with a side stitch for about the last mile, but I kept running to the end, thanks to some healthy encouragement from Cary.  I know my runs will not always be this good, but it's very nice to have these in the mental bank for when the bad running days roll around.

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Last month I ran 48 miles and walked 16 miles, and I went to Planet Fitness 18 times.  Whew!  My vain side hopes some of this effort is making a difference in how I look.  Honestly, some days I think "yeah, there's a difference" and then others I just feel like a blob.  I suspect that's pretty common with everyone.  At least I know it's making a difference in how I feel, so I'm very happy about that.

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One of my jobs as organizer for our running club is to come up with all of the routes for our Saturday long runs.  It's a bit of a task, as this year I'm trying to route three different groups all in the same direction, along with avoiding certain roads because of high traffic or no sidewalks.  I finally finished everything for the season - the half group goes up to 12 miles, while the full group goes up to 21 miles, and there's a variety so it's not the same direction/route each week.  I felt good and confident about the distances that I knew were coming for me to run as well.  Then, out of curiosity, I checked the routes for the upcoming 10K and 10 mile races that we'll be doing as part of our training, and I instantly felt that familiar-yet-unwelcome anxiety wash over me.   I don't know if it's the thought of a race, or the routes themselves, but I sure wish I could get over this!  And the funny thing is that I don't feel anxious when I look at the race routes for the half marathons that are coming up - nope, just these practice races.  I frustrate myself sometimes, I really do.

Other than the mental stuff, training for the half marathons in December and January is going well.  So there's that?  Sheesh.  

10 comments:

  1. Wow girl you are so strong with your runs and your fitness these days. Well, well done and so happy you had 2 great runs in a row, that's always good for the mind.

    You will be fine on the 10K and 10 miler, I'm sure. Try not to think too much about it (says she who would totally do that :) ) If I look back on your last Wednesday Workout updates it feels like you are stronger than ever and this will be a great running season for you.

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  2. Race anxiety is one of the reasons I stopped racing. It started getting to the point where I was so worried about how the race would go that I never enjoyed them anymore. It's ridiculous because I'm not a professional runner. I wish I could give you some advice but the only thing I know to do is to think of that day as just another long run and not a race.

    There's nothing wrong with going all out for 4 miles. Once you get to double that you might want to worry about being slower but some of your "shorter" long runs really could easily be run at race pace - great practice actually!

    I'm glad things are going better for you :)

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    1. I find it interesting that the routes for the halfs don't bother me - just these shorter races. I cannot understand myself.

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  3. Well, I don't run, so can't relate to most of the running stuff, except to be completely impressed with your totals-totally awesome!

    The part I related to was " "yeah, there's a difference" and then others I just feel like a blob. Yeah. Wish those blob days would go away.

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    1. Yep...no rhyme or reason behind the blob days, unfortunately.

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  4. It's funny, when I was running (back in the day, haha!) if I had a longer run on the schedule I would get nervous the day before and the morning of for whatever reason. Races themselves were a bit nerve wracking, but still fun enough to keep doing because of the novelty.

    I don't know if there is an answer to 'performance' anxiety other than mentally getting yourself psyched for it instead of being nervous.

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    1. Mentally psyched - hmmm. Maybe I should start going over the routes again and again and I might become less crazed. It's a worthwhile idea - thanks!

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  5. Wow - you did a lot of working out between running, walking and the gym - awesome!!!
    I would be horrible at planning routes - I'm more of a just start running type and see where I end up.

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    1. I've gotten pretty good at planning routes - you can't have 50 people loose on the road without some sort of direction. I don't know what it would be like to just RUN, you know?

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