Runnin' Down

Route:  Aberdare, out and back

Distance:  3.01 miles

Time:  29:32

This being the first day of my actual marathon training, I expected to be a lot more excited about today’s run than I was.  I have the whole 3 mile run down, but after last week I feel that may be the problem.  Last week all my runs were 3 miles and mentally it was completely draining.  I was not prepared for feeling that way.  Since I first saw the spring training sheet last year I was looking forward to the week of all 3’s, thinking it would be the easiest since there’s no long run.  I’m sure I’ll regret even thinking this when I’m pounding out my 20-miler, but my mind needed to be able to look forward to something different, and the long run involves mental strength that the shorter runs cannot even begin to tap into.

So here I was today, having to put out another 3-miler.  That’s where I’ll be tomorrow and Thursday too.  But this week is different than last week.  That was the end of my spring training.  The marathon training is here.  I was still dreading my run all day.  I tried to think of any way to make the run more interesting, or at least the best way to just get it done and out of the way.  I toyed with running at work, the gym, on Grand, out and back on the trail (I think I’ll try that one tomorrow).  Something is comforting about Aberdare out and back for me.  Running alone isn’t my favorite thing, but that’s the route I settled on for today.  Having to be at Em’s gymnastics class at 6:30 forced me to not even think when I got home.  I threw on my running gear and was out the door within five minutes of getting home.  I figured out how to make an On The Go playlist on my phone, selected my favorites (Justin, Jamie, Chris, Cary) and went out.

I’m having trouble getting over my self-consciousness while running alone.  My pace started out slow and steady, but I kept catching myself speeding up when there was a steady stream of traffic, trying to seem like I’m an even more athletic runner.  Just past the golf course I settled into a nice pace that didn’t feel too slow.  I was carrying a lot of tension in my shoulders, so I tried to turn my mind on relaxing them every few minutes.  At the turn-around point my spirits shot up and it hit me how much I love doing this.  If I weren’t running I’d be lounging and this is better than sitting around wasting my life.  Get This Out Of My System came on, then Rock Your Body and I was having a very strong second half.

At the last half mile Lost! came on and I dug into some energy I had been saving.  I ran the next quarter mile hard, then sprinted the last quarter mile.  I’m not counting on such a strong finish every time, but it sure was a great way to kick off my very first marathon training run.  Woo!