Rough Running

Well, with just over three weeks to go to a half marathon, I have to say that I don't really feel prepared. My trip to New York City this past weekend tore a big hole in my long distance running preparation. I did get in three runs of four to five miles last week, one this past Tuesday, and a three miler last night. The three miler felt pretty good, as did a run or two last week. But my last run of last week, and in particular, my Tuesday run this week, were real struggles. I ran by myself in the city after work, in areas with lots of hills. I had hoped my friend Lelia and I could coordinate schedules and I would have her companionship, but it didn't work out that way. So I was by myself with no one to chat with. For some reason, it seemed to matter more with these two hilly runs.

I did achieve a bit of a milestone last week though. While running across the "Nickel Bridge," I actually passed cars! Yes - I am not making that up - I passed a bunch of cars! Of course, once the police officer motioned them into the opposing lane to get around the accident, they passed me right back. And the hills that I ran brought my temporary sense of triumph back to earth.

My run Tuesday just seemed really rough. I enjoyed the setting very much, running through Maymont and then along the Northside Trail to the Nickel Bridge and back to the park from there. But I just seemed worn out and did way too much walking. I also swallowed a gnat, which about made me throw up when the damned thing kept struggling in the back of my throat. I felt discouraged when I finished. But then, I thought about it and decided that at least I did it. Slow is better than no. I enjoyed the nice scenery along the way, got some fresh air and exercise, burned a fraction of a millimeter off my waist line. Yeah, I walked a little more than I wanted to, but so what?