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The continued prayer is, “Lord keep me focused. Keep my mind stayed on You. Help me to bring You praise. I know You believe in me. Please help me in my unbelief. Amen.”
This run was really disappointing. The weather was the usual SoCal nirvana, the route was the same ole route and I didn’t bring Sarah, so there were very few distractions, but I set out to really push myself and really shave some time off my normal run.
When I got to the end of the run, according to my RunKeeper, I only shaved 2.5 minutes off my best time this month and 36 seconds off my usual pace. I was *really* killing myself the whole time. My AT was killing me when I got home and the sciatic pain was almost unbearable.
I thought surely I was keeping an 8-10 minute pace and I would come home feeling like Super Woman. But no…. I came home feeling like I’d torn my body down for no good reason.
So I ate a pile of rice, topped with roasted chicken and bowl of grapes for dessert and allowed myself to wallow in self doubt and pity while I watched an episode of “How I Met Your Mother”.
Next time will be better. Whether I actually improve my time, or I take it easy and enjoy the run.
Everyone has days when the body just isn't able to meet the brain's expectations. 36 seconds is a lot. I know that, when I was training for long distances, I'd settle into a comfortable pace and my body would get used to it. When I wanted to go faster, my body balked at being pushed from its comfort zone. It's basic, but I learned that our bodies can develop a pace memory which is why it is important to mix in speedwork every now and then. 2.5 minutes is nothing to look down on. It's possible that your body is still a little fatigued from your 10 miler. Enjoy your next run.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Frank! That makes me feel LOADS better. I just read so many blogs where women older than me are doing 10 miles, five times a day at an 8 minute pace.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to be out there doing something, but it's frustrating when I'm really trying and still can't seem to do as well as I;d like.
I need to get back on the track and focus on the short interval training. Thanks for the advice!