Burn

After yesterday's issues, I wasn't really excited about getting my running shoes on this evening. It also didn't help that it came after two work days; eight hours at the computer, and another tutoring. I made it home about 5:30, and really did not feel like moving quickly at that point.

Once again, my wife saved me. Saved me, in that she made me leave the apartment and go to the gym.

The Monday 5Ks are as much about keeping my spirits up as they are about actually getting some speed work in. That might be part of why I didn't really want to do the run today. I wasn't confident about my ability to improve my time, and after a tough day yesterday, I didn't want another one.

I stretched out longer than usual before I started, trying to convince myself to go for the faster time. All day I've been having thoughts about tapering, and maybe dropping my weekly 5K. My inability to continue as far as I would like led me to believe that I needed to start dropping miles. 

But do I? No. I need to push through.

And so I hit the button on the treadmill. And I ran. And at a quarter mile, I bumped the speed. And again at the half mile. My legs were hurting, but it wasn't too bad. And I was able to go faster. I was at top speed by the end of the first mile.

I was counting down the minutes from that point, and the thing that surprised me most was that I was able to keep on. After the second mile was complete, I started to get winded. It was the first time in a while that I've actually had trouble with the cardiovascular side of things. And really, that was part of the greatness of today's run. I ran myself hard enough that I felt like I was working for each step. No suffering, but working hard.

Each step felt better, and each minute that passed brought a little more strength. It was hard, but I felt rewarded, and when I got to the end, I'd dropped 12 seconds off last week's 5K time. 

It completely reinvigorated me. All of the negative things that I've been thinking for the last 36 hours melted away with my ability to better myself. Not even just the last 36 hours, really. The last week. Even though I was able to have a better time last Monday, it didn't have the feeling of accomplishment that I had today. I'm not sure what it was, but something about today made me feel like I had turned a corner.

We'll really see how good it all is tomorrow. The temperatures are going to PLUMMET overnight, which will make my normally difficult Tuesday run very... well... unpleasant. But I feel motivated, and I've got high hopes.

The process of training for a marathon is a long one, and throughout the process, it can really start to feel like a chore. You spend a long time doing the same thing over and over again, and it seems like the date will never get here. But I'm hoping that the energy I've got right now will carry over and show through in tomorrow's run, and Thursday's, and Friday's, and - most importantly - Sunday's. It's my last long training run, and I am determined to make it over 20 miles. 

When you put that it writing, it looks terrifying.

Today's Run:

Indoors / Treadmill

3.1 Miles

18 Minutes, 44 Seconds