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January 10, 2005
Sunday's Run and Today's Treadmill Run
I did not sleep much on Sunday evening. I wanted to get up and do a rowing test but there was no way I could motivate myself to do so on so little sleep. The team left for the Dartmouth Relays at 6:30 a.m. We arrived in Hanover around 9 a.m. As soon as we got there I took the distance runners who were not competing out for a 6-mile run. We ended up doing a popular 3 and a half-mile course that the Dartmouth men's team usually warms up on for their workouts. As we were heading out to the main road I saw another runner up ahead and took the risk of following that runner. We had a nice run that took us through lots of back roads with great views of nearby trails, golf courses, and distant evergreen trees covered in snow. The roads were very snowy and on the back roads we were able to run in the middle of the road where there was no snow. Once we got to the busier streets we had to go on the sidewalks that were cleared but not all the way to the cement. We returned to the indoor track with 30 minutes so we had to run out and back for about ten minutes each way. It was nice to have the company of the distance runners and nice to finish the run before the main events started. We did have to miss the race walking. The meet was pretty fun to watch and our sprinters did a decent job considering it was their first meet of the season. I had to get up and walk around every hour or so because I got so tired just sitting on the bleachers.
By the time the afternoon approached I was so anxious to hear how Liz had done. I called my brothers in AZ and they told me the news. I was so sad for Liz because I knew she had trained so hard for the marathon and I think she has the worst luck in marathons. However, it reminded me how hard the marathon is as an event. It is one of the most challenging events. There are so many variables that have to go right. Throughout the training phase there is so much fear of trying to balance all of the training so you will not get injured, stay motivated, and peak at the right time. Then once the day finally arrives you just hope for good weather, hope that you are healthy, and hope for a well-organized race. There are so many things that are out of your control. All of these obstacles definitely make the race appealing and intriguing. These things also add a big fear component to the race something that I know exists inside of me. It is really hard to lay it all down on the line and push yourself for 26 miles hoping that at the end you will be spent and not any time sooner. I am really proud of Liz for making the decision she made. I honestly don't know if I would have been able to drop and that would be such a dangerous situation and would do nothing for your overall training. I know Liz will come back even stronger and like many have commented on her blog I am confident that Liz will have an amazing season of running in 2005 because of the strength she built training for the marathon.
This morning I was hoping to get up early and run. I was so beat from 4+ hours of sleep on Sunday I slept in until 8. My day was swamped with work, teaching, coaching, and squeezing in my workout. I began co-teaching an exercise physiology class today which is a 2-hour class that will last for two weeks. This class makes my day packed with the prep work and post class work necessary to make things run smoothly. Following the class I went to the library to fix some books and then went to practice to coach a workout for the distance runners. It was almost 7 by the time I left practice and since it was so dark I did not feel extremely motivated to go outside. I decided to run 8 miles on the treadmill and then lift. I ran 8 miles at 7.30 pace. My legs felt really fatigued but my breathing was fine. I was talking to someone else running on the treadmill running next to me the entire time so the time just flew by. I then lifted for about forty minutes and called it a day. Tomorrow I will be pool running at 7 a.m. and then running with the team in the afternoon.
Posted by mary at January 10, 2005 10:37 PM
Comments
Sounds like a fun but busy weekend! I hope your class goes well :)
Posted by: barb at January 11, 2005 10:58 AM