Greetings from the other side of the weekend, also known as Monday! It’s a rainy, dreary day so far, and I think my mood has followed suit, even if I didn’t mind the gentle, not-too-cold rain while I ran this morning. Some Mondays just feel especially Monday-ish, or perhaps after a long and tiring week last week I needed some extra weekend-ness, though as far as weekends go it was pretty perfect, weather included. It was warm enough to sit outside, but there was a little hint of fall in the air and the leaves have started to turn and blanket the ground. I will miss the warmth, but I also appreciate the seasonality. The forecast assures me that the warmth will be very short-lived.
I started the weekend with 14 miles on Saturday morning with 8 middle miles alternating half miles at race pace and easy efforts. My legs felt fairly heavy, and the race pace effort was requiring more grit than I would have liked, but I got it done and vowed to be especially cautious about resting for the next 2 weeks. My goal for the race pace effort half miles was 3:35-3:40, and I just couldn’t seem to hold on to this workout, which was disappointing after nailing a speed workout earlier in the week. I knew I was tired and that non-running activities had expended more energy than usual in the days leading up to this run, but still. I finished the run in about 2 hours when it was all said and done. The remainder of the day would have made Tom and Donna proud, and involved some pampering, a trip to the running store, a great book, and an adult beverage (or two) on the front porch with my partner in crime.
Sunday was an easy 5 miler, and I did make an effort to keep it just that, i.e. easy. My average pace was just over 9:00, which is a definite recovery pace for me. After a week of alarm setting, Saturday mornings included, I let myself wake up whenever my body wants to on Sundays. Since I do my long run on Saturday, Sunday is my shortest run of the week, and it’s nice to have a “whatever” morning. Get up whenever, run whenever. Usually I’ll crack an eye open around 7, but this week I managed to make it until 8:15. If you age-grade that, that’s like noon for you younger, hipsters. Sometimes my dogs aren’t so generous or patient with their muted pleas for attention and/or door opening, but they too were silent until they heard the creak of the bathroom door.
I spent a fair amount of time perusing social media this weekend, which I know isn’t unusual in 2017, and, in fact, not perusing social media would be the bigger anomaly, but lately I’ve been feeling so inspired by all you badass women I keep stumbling on who are working hard and going after really amazing and aggressive goals. I don’t have any in-the-flesh running friends, my spouse included, so I do rely on this virtual space to find those connections. Training feels personal and individualized, and while I’m a-okay slogging through it on my own day after day, I love reading about everyone else’s experiences. They’ve created my own tug to try to share mine.
Also, I have to give a shout out to this latest iteration of Brooks’s Ghost. I’ve been wearing Ghosts for probably 2-3 years now, and while 9 was better than 8, 10 is amazing. (This was part of Treat Yo Self Saturday—new shoes.) As soon as I put it on I knew they were going to be perfect, and I sent a small plea out into the universe that they would be available for the foreseeable future. The toe box is perfect, the cushioning is spot on. It feels like my foot is cradled in all the right ways. My feet were starting to hurt a little in the 9’s, and while I put a fair amount of miles on my last pair, it seemed like they were more uncomfortable than my shoes usually get towards the end of their lifespan, but I’ve also been working a lot harder, so who knows.
That’s all I’ve got today. Wishing everyone a wonderful, safe week.
Yours in comfortable shoes,
Sarah
*Photo credit: Stephan Welz
