Each week feels now entirely different than the last. There are training days which feel night and day different also. On Tuesday, I went out to run at a time I do not normally run. I was limited on time and had to be a little smart about the warm-up and cool-down. If I have the time, I like to go to the park to run and plan the route so that I have a long cool-down walk back to my car. Tuesday was different. The workout was :90 run, :90 walk, 3:00 run, 3:00 walk, then repeat. I was a tad bit apprehensive about the 3:00 runs because of my left knee, but oddly enough, it has not been hurting as bad. I guess changing things up in and out of the gym has helped. Thankfully I did not have to ice it.
When it came time to run on Thursday, the weather was too bad outside. Even if it was decent, my schedule got away from me. Rather than take the L, I wanted to at least get some movement in, so I went to the gym later in the day and got in an hour on the recumbent bike. That has felt really good on my knee and I love the back support it offers. I have not spent a ton of time using this bike, so I was experimenting with different levels and output. I mainly wanted to keep some tension throughout the duration of the workout and not dip too low in terms of output.
On Sunday, I did the opposite of what I should do to prepare for any type of running. We ate an early lunch out. Having Mexican before a run probably isn’t the smartest thing to do. Having Mexican and then going home to nap on the recliner until you don’t want to do anything at all is even worse. I forced myself to get up and go but went later than I should have, putting me walking back home in the dark. I had wanted to go out and get back while it was still light. I cut my warm-up short which was also stupid. Looking back on the run, however, the numbers were good (for me). I slowed up the pace during the runs, which is hard because I already feel so slow. If I am training to just complete some of these events, speed doesn’t really matter. I don’t want to train to be slower, but I don’t need to go out too hot.
When I finished the final 3:00 run, I knew my HR was up pretty high. It usually shoots up while running and today was no different. Something else to be aware of and work on, I guess.
Facebook memories was interesting this past week as an image of me from running my first half-marathon popped up. This was the Silver Comet Half-Marathon back in 2011 in Georgia. I tried to look up my results but the link is broken, so this photo will have to suffice. I remember running this, hating the way I looked, but being thankful that I was able to do it. I am glad that I have these photos to look back on, because it keeps me going.
On Sunday evening, I tried to grab a quick selfie as proof that I had gone running and to also have something halfway decent to share along with my thoughts. So much for that idea, because all I ended up with was this blurry shot where I look angry and confused. Chances are, I probably was at the moment, with the cold effecting my brain and lungs more than I would want to admit.
