This is a perfectly time article. Since coming back from Alaska and COVID, my training has reset a bit. This past Sunday I had an 8-mile run at a 7:33 pace. I got going an hour later than planned, so it was getting a little warmer and more humid. I hit the first four miles on pace, but halfway through mile five I was dragging ass and absolutely gassed. I checked my Garmin and my heart rate was higher than normal, so I stopped running and walked for a couple minutes. Then went back to running, stopped a mile or so later and walked. Then same thing a mile after that. I finished and felt pretty miserable and started pondering how much I'd lost from my vacation and COVID.
I decided in that moment that for the rest of August, I was going to lean more on treadmill runs in the cooler gym rather than dealing with this kind of humidity. I'll mix in some outdoor runs where it makes sense, but I'm willing to give the humidity the W and adjust my training plan. Today, I went for a harder 6-mile run with 5 miles at 7:19 pace and final mile at 6:26 pace. I made it through that hitting those markers and felt much better through the entire run.
I've still got work to do to get fully back on track, but taking my struggles on Sunday and adjusting my approach really made me feel a lot better today.
Refreshing to hear/read that smiling is *actually* more than just some placebo-y benefit that I tricked my mind into, because there are few better running memories than being 3/4 of the way done with a long, long run, where I'm undoubtedly tired but somehow still feeling good, and feeling a smile stretch across my face. It's as if my body is relaying a message to my face that says, "you're a madman and I'm in some pain right now, but all we can do is laugh at the absurdity of the entire situation"
You got at something I was trying to write, but couldn't quite get right. The ability to A) Laugh at yourself and B) Subtly distance yourself from the self talk is huge. Look at those pronouns: You, I and We.
You're in it, but you're outside yourself, and still somehow all in it together. That's brilliant!
Thanks for this - it really resonated with me as well. I used to do your water bottle trick with my keys. I tried to switch hands half way through (which also meant I was on the second half). The self talk resonates too. I returned from a trip abroad where there was walking (and even one run in a lovely park area), but it didn't compare to my 3 times a week regimen. When I returned, I felt good and decoded to push myself a little. I power hiked a steep hill and then after depending, I just felt my body give out. I had to take my pace down to speed walking. Rather than feel disappointed (I used to think - if I am running, then there should be no walking), I reviewed what I wanted to do and what my body was ready to do. While I was disappointed, I didn't feel like I failed. The old me runner would have been angry, but now I just listen and know that eventually my body will be able to jog and then finish out the run.
PAUL! THIS! "Break your run into bite-sized chunks"
This is one of the tactics that has gotten me through some of the longest miles over the years and I legitimately thought it was just my OCD making sense of numbers. It's been powerful for the backside of long runs for me. I'm glad to know it's something that other people do.
It certainly is. And what's funny is that I always rationalized that it was my way of breaking it down into my consumable bites. Just as you put it. Like just 5 two-milers. Or just 6 three-milers. My brain could swallow that a lot easier than just one chunk of 10 or 18 miles. Its funny how busy our brains our when our goal might be thinking of nothing.
This is a perfectly time article. Since coming back from Alaska and COVID, my training has reset a bit. This past Sunday I had an 8-mile run at a 7:33 pace. I got going an hour later than planned, so it was getting a little warmer and more humid. I hit the first four miles on pace, but halfway through mile five I was dragging ass and absolutely gassed. I checked my Garmin and my heart rate was higher than normal, so I stopped running and walked for a couple minutes. Then went back to running, stopped a mile or so later and walked. Then same thing a mile after that. I finished and felt pretty miserable and started pondering how much I'd lost from my vacation and COVID.
I decided in that moment that for the rest of August, I was going to lean more on treadmill runs in the cooler gym rather than dealing with this kind of humidity. I'll mix in some outdoor runs where it makes sense, but I'm willing to give the humidity the W and adjust my training plan. Today, I went for a harder 6-mile run with 5 miles at 7:19 pace and final mile at 6:26 pace. I made it through that hitting those markers and felt much better through the entire run.
I've still got work to do to get fully back on track, but taking my struggles on Sunday and adjusting my approach really made me feel a lot better today.
Your patience will absolutely pay off. Keep staying flexible with your training.
Refreshing to hear/read that smiling is *actually* more than just some placebo-y benefit that I tricked my mind into, because there are few better running memories than being 3/4 of the way done with a long, long run, where I'm undoubtedly tired but somehow still feeling good, and feeling a smile stretch across my face. It's as if my body is relaying a message to my face that says, "you're a madman and I'm in some pain right now, but all we can do is laugh at the absurdity of the entire situation"
You got at something I was trying to write, but couldn't quite get right. The ability to A) Laugh at yourself and B) Subtly distance yourself from the self talk is huge. Look at those pronouns: You, I and We.
You're in it, but you're outside yourself, and still somehow all in it together. That's brilliant!
I like this!
Thanks for this - it really resonated with me as well. I used to do your water bottle trick with my keys. I tried to switch hands half way through (which also meant I was on the second half). The self talk resonates too. I returned from a trip abroad where there was walking (and even one run in a lovely park area), but it didn't compare to my 3 times a week regimen. When I returned, I felt good and decoded to push myself a little. I power hiked a steep hill and then after depending, I just felt my body give out. I had to take my pace down to speed walking. Rather than feel disappointed (I used to think - if I am running, then there should be no walking), I reviewed what I wanted to do and what my body was ready to do. While I was disappointed, I didn't feel like I failed. The old me runner would have been angry, but now I just listen and know that eventually my body will be able to jog and then finish out the run.
Love to hear stories like that, Will. Life's too short to be angry about running. (Disappointed yes, but not angry.) Wish I knew that way back when.
PAUL! THIS! "Break your run into bite-sized chunks"
This is one of the tactics that has gotten me through some of the longest miles over the years and I legitimately thought it was just my OCD making sense of numbers. It's been powerful for the backside of long runs for me. I'm glad to know it's something that other people do.
Gotta put that OCD to good use. In the right context, it's a super power.
It certainly is. And what's funny is that I always rationalized that it was my way of breaking it down into my consumable bites. Just as you put it. Like just 5 two-milers. Or just 6 three-milers. My brain could swallow that a lot easier than just one chunk of 10 or 18 miles. Its funny how busy our brains our when our goal might be thinking of nothing.