When the temperatures do a nosedive in mid-May, what else is there to do but dig out your electric blanket and curl up with coffee/tea, dogs, and books? (Okay, there may have been some TV in there too.) While I do appreciate a cool, but not finger-numbingly cold run, I’m also ready to dig out my shorts and tank tops, which is to say that I was less enthused to pull out my fleece this weekend. After my cool morning runs, I gave into the craving to hibernate.
My runs this weekend were nothing too fancy or long, since I’m only a week post-race and still in that re-grouping and planning stage. I ran an easy 5 miles on Saturday, and an easy 7 miles yesterday. It’s possible that Saturday’s run was cut a little shorter than initially conceived, because I might have gone out Friday night to celebrate with my husband and his co-conspirators for a recent work-related award in that way that involves adult beverages and camaraderie in sharing of said beverages. So, theoretically, it’s also possible that the spring in my step on Saturday morning might have been slightly impaired, though still surprisingly present. It’s been awhile since I imbibed without considering a subsequent run, so I took advantage of the break in training and celebrated with some real gusto. I have a feeling this also contributed to the willingness to give in to the cold weather.
If I’m being honest, I’m having a little trouble getting excited about training after my half marathon last week. The doubt and fear has started to settle in, i.e. the doubt that I know how to keep improving and the fear of setting myself up to be uncomfortable again in my next race. I am registered for a September half, the same one that was black-flagged last year, but I think I’ve realized that I’m fairly inexperienced in this whole racing thing, even with a fair number of races under my belt. I’ve never really dug in and tried to race well, and as my racing history for the past ten years has been riddled with starts and stops, I’ve also never simply powered through the ups and downs. So, perhaps that’s the silver lining, knowing that I’m powering through.
Having said that, my runs this weekend did feel good, even if the effect is slightly lost on me now, sitting here in the throes and woes of my Monday. I’m winging my runs this week with a general idea of ramping back up, and will hopefully have the beginnings of a more formal plan before too much longer. Other highlights from my weekend included: a drum recital, bread baking, reconnecting with the Gilmore Girls, and finishing a book by one of my favorite authors. I’ve also recently discovered the magic of the purple sweet potato, the slightly more firm cousin of the regular sweet potato (don’t hold me to that, I’m using “cousin” very loosely and non-scientifically here). If nothing else, it’s fun to eat purple food. As it turns out, they’re a staple in Hawaiian cuisine, and have 150% more antioxidants than blueberries (source). People also do really amazing and beautiful things with them, like this purple sweet potato mooncake. Fortunately for me they appear in my regular grocery store frequently, so perhaps I’ll be more adventurous with them this week. I mean, I’m completely sold on that mooncake…
