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Why We Run

Very cool video.  I love his cabin, just seems to peaceful.

Taper has arrived with temporary mental anguish.

Week 14 –  I am in the first week of taper, and yes very happy.  Let me get straight to the point my mood has sucked lately!  I feel down right negative, agitated, and the worse part is I consciously know this but really doing nothing to snap out of it.  The marathon is 18 days away,I am excited, nervous and anxious you would thing this is my first marathon from the way I feel but in reality it could be my 1000th and I would still feel this way, it’s just the way I’m wired.  I don’t know how to relax and chill, I think I need to work on that.

I know one’s mood can change at the end of marathon training just from reading and doing research about it, but I have never felt like this before with previous marathons.  Life can change a lot in a year and this year I feel the financial stresses of life a bit more, add that to being tired, kids, work, more responsibilities, then on top of that training for a marathon, it’s good formula for some mental disintegration’s. My training has been far from high mileage, I was averaging 30 miles per week. I can’t imagine if I was running 50 miles per week, I think I would be talking to the walls by the end of training. My wife would make me sleep outside like a wild animal.

One thing I noticed training for a fall marathon and having to start long runs on the average of 5am on the weekends is you never see light, well you do but it’s at the tail end of the run.  Running for 2 1/2 to 3 hours in the dark gets old real fast.  Just knowing you have to do that a week ahead, is quite depressing. Sounds like I should quite running all together!   Like I said before, this is my last marathon for a long time, a very long time. (I have a feeling this might not be true).

I ran 8 miles this morning at a 8:30 pace, which is my goal pace for the marathon but not stressing too much if it doesn’t happen.  I will run 12 miles this weekend and that will be the last run in double digits until the marathon.

Peace and God Bless!

20 barefoot miles before work.

Friday October 18th I ran a 20 miler before work.  The weekend was too busy with family obligations, and had no desire to squeeze in a long run. I woke up at 4:45am and was out the door 5:00am, the weather was perfect, a nice fall morning but not cold, about 50 degrees.  The 20 miler took me 3:09:00 to complete.  Got home, showered, changed and off to work I went.  I was in the office at 9:15am.

I did have a little bit of a scare, when I went to the bathroom right after the run my urine was a rustic color, looked like dirty water, or blood in there.  The reason I wasn’t totally freaked out is because I knew this was common among Marathoners/Ultrarunners, and could happen after a long run.  I carry a 20oz handheld with me filled with water, I didn’t even finish it which was definitely not good. I was either extremely dehydrated, bladder walls rubbing together when empty from dehydration, or had this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_hematuria.

Anyways, the day at work went surprisingly well I started to get punchy by the end of the day, and was just ready to go home at that point. I got in 35 miles for week 12, one more week to go before taper.

Week 11- Sick

Week 11 was a bust. (I am doing a 16 week training program).   Sunday I felt like a common cold was coming on in which turned into a sinus/chest infection.  This is not surprising, like clockwork every year since I can remember, I get this sinus/infection in October almost around the same time.  I did run twice, Tuesday and Thursday, huge mistake.  It’s amazing what turning 40 can do to the body, I speak for myself on this, but turning 40 (I will be 43 in November) was the first time I noticed my body changing and reacting to things differently I remember I used run sick all the time, even with a sinus or chest infection, and I would either knock it out the sickness out, or feel better instantly the next day, those days are long gone.  Now the body says rest or I will destroy you more.  Saturday I went to a walk-in medical center to get antibiotics, I know exactly what I need to knock this stuff out, the trusty Amoxicillin.   Right now feeling better already.

Anyways I got 10 miles in for week 11 and I was supposed to run my first 20 miler as well, oh well keep moving forward.  Into week 12 now, I got in two 5 milers so far, and plan on running a 20 miler Friday morning before work, this will certainly be interesting, especially the day at work. The reason to run 20 on Friday is the weekend will busy with family events, no time to run long.  Crazy what we do for a marathon or ultra when having a family, work, etc. we make it happen though. My goal of running the marathon at an 8:30 pace is losing it’s fire, but that’s okay, my mindset now is just to get to the starting line and have fun. Given the fact this will be my last marathon for sometime, I want to make it an event instead of stressing over numbers.

Peace!

Week 10 – Changes.

Heading into week 11 of training, this week I will be doing my first 20 miler.  Not looking forward to it, but 6 weeks until marathon and getting closer. I have made a decision that this will be my last marathon for a long time, or maybe forever. To be quite honest I am not a fan of long distant running, I’m much happier with shorter distances, I love the half marathon distance and will stick to those from now on.  I have to run my long runs on the weekend extremely early on the weekends, and find no enjoyment in them anymore. I never was a long distance runner to begin with. Once I started running barefoot and hanging out in barefoot/minimal forums much of the talk is about Ultra’s, I got caught up in the hype was THINKING I would be one of these people, I’m not.  I did run one Ultra, it was a 50K, it was fun but wouldn’t do it again, it’s not the actually race that I have issues with, it’s the training. I know I have the physically capability to run Ultra’s, or improve my times with Marathon’s, but the desire to do that doesn’t exist. I’m totally cool with this and will be much happier.

Also, my wife is pregnant with our third child due in April.  Life will be getting even more busier.  I will be 43 in November, I have two boys 7 and 3, with a baby in April, I’m slowing down a bit.   I actually feel great for 43 but moving in a new direction.  I want to get into cross-fit,  a new cross-fit gym opened up right next door at my job, after this marathon I want to start taking classes.  It will be cross-fit, barefoot running, and half marathons, that’s something I can live with.