Sidelined...

Training is an interesting thing. I forgot how, well, hard it can be. My last two long runs have been excruciating, going from 10 miles to 12 miles. Speed is hard to find. Last Saturday I did my 12 mile run on my favorite trail, and after mile 8 my legs just couldn't power through. I actually took some --gasp!--walk breaks!

I rarely take walk breaks. I think they leave a bitter taste in my mouth because of my first marathon training program 9 years ago. I was a relative newbie at that time, and was in the 15 minute mile group. Our program was a run/walk program and we would run 2 minutes, walk 3 minutes. The plan was to do this for the entire marathon. So, every Sunday for 6 months our group met in Shoreline Park for long runs. One member of the group would set his watch for the walk breaks, and eventually we had Pavlovian responses any time we heard a beep (run? walk? drink water?). When it came to the actual marathon, I did the run walk for the first 18 miles. But honestly, it did not feel good so I ran the last 8 miles with minimal walk breaks. I think the constant starting and stopping was very jarring on my body and the experience was not enjoyable, save for the facts that I was in Hawaii and I completed a marathon. So, after that race I secretly vowed to myself to never take a walk break again. Or do a marathon again. of course, I broke both vows.

Anyways, with last Saturday's run I was extremely puzzled as to why the long runs are hard. I mean, I did 3 --albeit far from PRs---half marathons in 2010 with little or no training. I have enough confidence in my body's abilities to know that if I roll out of bed most likely I could run 13 miles.

But, why is it so hard now?

Then my friend Diane reminded me that training is supposed to be hard. I have diligently followed a training plan for 6 weeks where I have run 4 times a week, so my body isn't the super freshest when it comes to the long runs. The point of training isn't to have a great long training run. It is to push your body so you can have a great race run.

Plus, I have learned the hard way that preparation is key. I am kind of not the smartest when it comes to training. The Tuesday before my 12 mile run I was so preoccupied in ensuring I brought my garmin to my first mermaid track run of the season, that I forgot to bring socks. So, I foolishly ran without socks and got a blister the size of a tennis ball on my foot. And I foolishly forgot to put glide on my feet before the 12 mile run, which made the blister angry like the Hulk. And I foolishly ate half a psycho donut the night before the run. And I foolishly went to bed at 12:30 the night before the run. And I foolishly forgot Gu for the run.

Yeah, I am not that smart.

But, it helped me learn the things I shouldn't do before a race. So, mentally I was preparing myself for the training 10k race that would be the Saturday after the 12 mile run. The race that I foolishly thought was still open for registration online. But it wasn't so I figured I would chance it and do race day registration.

Unfortunately, the Monday before the race i woke up with a throat that felt like it was being stabbed with an ice pick.

Awesome. I caught my hubby's cold.

So instead of prepping for the 10k last week, I was sidelined to the couch coughing and sneezing and trying to not be down on myself for not training I was . Yesterday was the 10k, and I knew it wouldn't help my recovery if I raced.

The funny thing is, when you hit a bump in the road after you find your groove, it always seems so daunting to get back on track. But I am determined to accept the reality that, yes I lost a week of training, but I still have 4 weeks of good solid training to go before the half marathon.

I think I should be back to normal by tomorrow, so...
Let's do this thing.