Friday, February 6, 2009

how bekar got her groove back …

After feeling bad about myself for skipping runs last week, I only ran twice and it was a total of 10 miles, this week my running groove has magically re-appeared. And those two runs last week were far from pretty. On a bad week I remind myself I have only been back to running full-on for five weeks now, thanks to that evil little (no, big) stress fracture from last fall, but in the end it doesn’t make me feel any better about one bad run… or 20.

This week however, after a full week of eating total crap (yep I had two, count them TWO cheeseburgers with french fries this week) and not drinking nearly the amount of water I should have been, my runs have been surprisingly good. I’m still wary, because tomorrow I run 12 and it could just as easily go to total crap!

I ran a six mile-tempo run on the dreadmill last night. My new dreadmill theory is to keep the incline set at 2% at least, and when not on a tempo run do incline intervals during any treadmill workout. I was happy to find last night that my run came easier than weeks past. In fact I wanted to speed up, but staying mindful of my foot I stayed at 8:27s for three miles and only bumped up to an 8:13 for the last mile, started and ended the run with an easier pace.

As I was running I recalled how just a month ago I was at the same gym huffing and puffing, wanting to vomit on the guy next to me during speedwork. Marked improvement. The miles and work are paying off after all. Victory.

I’m just sharing the joy of a good running week! The thing is that next week could end up proving brutal, you just never know in regards to running do you? Running is like a present you unwrap every day. That gift is either swift feet, strong legs and easy breathing, or a brown flaming bag of dog poop.

4 comments:

californiameaghan said...

all too often for me i unwrap a flaming pile of dog poop. :( youre my hero.

Oz Runner said...

glad you got the running groove back...it comes and goes sometimes so just roll with it...this great weather we've been having definitely helps provide good runs, don't you think? hope you have a good long run tomorrow...

running man said...

I always run with the incline on the treadmill at least 1 or 2 and run same times as I would be trying to run otherwise. I noticed those times were much easier later. It's my new strategy to increase my speed I think. Happy Trails.

The Gibsons said...

umm, first off, LOVE the new masthead...totally fits with the weather, at least here, and may be a trigger for those good runs this week.

second, unwrapping the dog poop, while not enjoyable in the least, is better than unwrapping it and then stepping in it on the way out the door for your next run. here's to avoiding the poop.

woo!