Saturday, March 6, 2010

A Cornucopia of Things

I have a BOUNTIFUL list of things to share with you all.

i.e. A LOT OF things to share with you all.

Topics include:
  • Even Stevens
  • "Mental Health [Running] Days" aka. "Running Hookie"
  • Weekly Recap
  • My treadmill 10k time
Even Stevens is a Disney Channel show I grew up on and where Shia LeBouf got his start. My favorite episode of all time was "Broadcast Blues." I suggest watching this video from 2:15-3:35....(It's funny! And really worth it to fully understand this blog post).



When I was in high school a guy I know actually used cornucopia in a history essay and our teacher circled it in red ink asking him what he really meant by this word. This was about a week after this Even Stevens episode aired and anyone who had seen it about died laughing listening to this kid try to explain himself.

Before I get to my recap for February 25-March 3.... you may have noticed I've been pushing myself pretty hard the past couple weeks (despite having a cold.) Luckily that cold is finally gone! I was quite upset with myself for only doing a nine mile run without stopping last Tuesday. Nine is better than 1,2,3,4,5,6,7, or 8.....BUT it's NOT eleven miles without stopping and I think if I wasn't so damn lazy before a half marathon (actually went on runs longer than 10 miles) I could have a much better time.

I'm not even sure if my last post fully conveyed JUST how frustrated I was with myself. BUT after taking the normal day off on Wednesday, I decided Thursday to play "Running Hookie." People sometimes take "Mental Health Days" from work meaning they don't go to work but they aren't "sick." After my nine mile run I decided I needed a "Mental Health [Running] Day." Thursday I would have done at least 3 easy recovery miles to bring my weekly total to 20+ miles. Instead I drove home to Richmond to see my family and we watched The Office: Baby Episode together.

Last week I ran a grand total of 17 miles. That's the lowest weekly mileage I've had in who knows when. HOWEVER, I'm trying again for an 11+ mile run this Tuesday night and I figured I might as well rest a little before I make this happen.

Last Week:
2 miles
4 miles

11 miles
(9 miles+1 mile+ .5 mi + .5 mi)

That looks so measley, but when it gets to the point where I'm not having fun anymore, that's what I need to do. Take an extra day off to update my iTunes and remember just why I enjoy running.

So Far This Week:

I did 4 miles on Friday. It wasn't a terrible workout. I was mainly concerned that I didn't feel that great.

Today, however, I FELT GREAT. I ran a 10k (on the treadmill) in 1:02:10. THAT'S FASTER THAN MY RACE PR! And honestly I wasn't even pushing it when it came to pace until the last mile. I ran the first 5 miles at a speed of 5.8 or 10:20/mi.

I'm already up to 10 miles for this week! And have plans to meet my friend Meghan at the gym on Tuesday night. One piece of advice I always tell myself is "listen to your body." Typically this applies to joints, bones, and muscles. If something hurts it's time to stop running. However, I used it this past week MENTALLY. I realized I was completely drained and needed to recharge...before a final push (and taper)!

3 comments:

Tricia said...

Great run!

NewbieRunner said...

isn't it funny how one day you feel great and can keep going yet other days it's a huge struggle to keep going....

The Boring Runner said...

Nice work!! Those mental health days (run hookie days) are the best. Luckily or unfortunately at ACN I don't get sick days - so they could care less where I am at.

It is funny how you can sometimes randomly feel so good and crank out your best run ever. It always gets me thinking about what I could do in a race - and it should you too!!