2/24/11
13 miles
1:56
8:55 avg pace
So what prompted me to knock out 13 miles after work on a Thursday?! Let me walk you through the inner dialogue I had with myself this morning (don’t be scared)…
OK, long run on Friday morning. Need to check weather. Crap, 100% chance of rain all day and lots of wind. Well maybe I can run 13 miles on the treadmill? Oh that will really suck. I could barely stand 8 miles on Wednesday.
I can’t move the run to Saturday morning since I’m going to Sarah and Aidan’s basketball games (my niece and nephew). I could run after the games but I know that will set me up for a bad run.
I could do it really early on Sunday morning and come home, shower super quick, and head to brunch (I have plans to go to brunch with my friends). But I want to sleep in on Sunday…
WAIT. I can do it today after work. 13 miles is practically a short run these days. Weather is perfect too.
And there you have it. Please tell me other people think this much about their running schedule!
I had a really good run. Which was surprising, given my dislike for running after work. My training plan called for 9:00 average pace but I really wanted to keep it under 9:00. I’m pleased 🙂
This is a drop-week in my training plan, meaning my long run (and thus overall mileage) is decreased to allow my legs to rest. The intensity is still there – I still had a speed and tempo run this week – but the mileage is lower. It’s very similar to tapering before a race. But it’s back to business on Monday.
For the rest of the night, I’ll be doing this:
Matt took this picture after the Philly Rock n’ Roll Half last September. You would have thought Hawk ran the race too!
This really hits home for me. The conversations in my head are at least as long or longer. I listen to the weather and look at the calendar 5-7 days out from today and plan whether it’s a weight-lifting day (heavy rains, wind, snow) or a running day (sun being a big factor here). The trick is to lift every 3-4 days without giving up a good weather day to being inside. I often wonder what my brain would do with all the free time it had if I didn’t need to plan and constantly re-adjust my running schedule!
I definitely do think about my running schedule that much. Are you running Jersey? I am too! And also trying to run sub-3:40…
I am running Jersey! I’m trying for a 3:50. You are speedy 🙂
Well, you can call me that AFTER I run that fast…haha! It remains to be seen if I can actually do it! I started running 2 yrs ago and did a marathon 1 yr ago — 4:09. My best half was this past Oct, which was 1:48:56. So, 3:40 or anything better than that will DEFINITELY be hard for me! Maybe I’ll see you there! I’m hoping it won’t be super hot like it was last year!
WOW…that is a great time for your 1st marathon! It took me forever to break 4 hours!
I did read about the heat last year. I see that it’s a great race but the weather can make or break it. It’s so hard to predict shore weather in early May.
Ha! I have these very same conversations. Plus some. Mine always involve something similar to yours, but also I different level of planning. “If I get up early and do my long run tomorrow, that means I can’t do my speed workout the next day. So maybe I should do my speed workout tomorrow, because I can do speed before a LR. But that would mean I’d have to . . . .” and on and on and on!
I sort of drive myself crazy with all the thinking and planning! If only I didn’t have this job thing that keeps interfering with my running!
Cindi – you took the words right out of my mouth! The whole job thing totally interferes. If only I were an elite then running would be my job!
Good work on 13! If I can run my first half in that time I will be so happy!
I definitely think at least that much about my running schedule, always trying to fit everything together like a big puzzle! I’m impressed that you did that after work – sounds like we paced similarly! 🙂 Nice job!