weekly check-in

[ilanarama]

Hello, runners? How goes it? Did you race this weekend? Are you racing next weekend? How goes the change of seasons in your part of the world?

Here's your inspirational quote for the week:

"We run, not because we think it is doing us good, but because we enjoy it and cannot help ourselves...The more restricted our society and work become, the more necessary it will be to find some outlet for this craving for freedom. No one can say, 'You must not run faster than this, or jump higher than that.' The human spirit is indomitable." - Sir Roger Bannister

Comments

[gnomad]

Last week I started my All Running All The Time training program and am finding it super hard. I did the workouts for each day but then got to the weekend and it fell apart and hasn't quite come back together yet. I skipped an 'easy 4' day to crosstrain with a 4.5 hr bike ride (planned). Only, the ride sort of wrecked me more than I wanted, and I got to Sunday and knew I wouldn't be able to do a 7 mile run no matter how slow I shuffled (unplanned). I took a much needed rest day and vowed to do a long run on Monday except...I went out and ran 2 miles and found it super hard. IDEK. Anyway, I clocked in at about 15 miles total for the week.

I love training plans. They give me structure and actionable steps toward a larger, sometimes overwhelming goal. But I get...spastic when I skip workouts for one reason or another and I'm driven insane by my own insanity. And there are perfectly good reasons to skip workouts! Yet I freak out like the world is falling apart because I'm now Off Plan and, I dunno, the earth might start spinning backwards or something if I'm Off Plan. *hands*

[ilanarama]

Aw, I'm sorry it's seeming super hard! Is it because it's so much more running? If you're really getting tired all the time, slow your runs down. I know that's hard to do if you feel you're already running slowly.

Here, let me grab the earth and give it a good shove in the right direction. There. Now get back On Plan.

[gnomad]

Hee, thank you. I think it's a comination of more running and harder running. I've been trying to do speedwork at a specific pace and realizing that I'm just not ready for that pace yet. Alas. It's so weird how one day running will feel like the most brilliant thing in the world yet another day it'll feel almost impossible. And the whole time my numbers won't change at all...

[ilanarama]

Hmm, it's generally inadvisable to do both more and harder at the same time. You're supposed to first increase mileage, then intensity. And also, doing speedwork at a specific pace has never worked for me! I mean, I have never managed the paces I'm supposed to hit, ever.

[gnomad]

Ahh, yes, I think I heard of that sensible advice everysomewhere before. I guess I figured since the miles per workout were all things I'd done before adding more days wouldn't be so hard.

I mean, I have never managed the paces I'm supposed to hit, ever.

This makes me feel so much better! ;)