Recently, I deemed Tuesday a "rest day" to give myself a break through out the week. Previously, I had my 2 resting days back to back, which made it extremely difficult to survive through 5 straight days of running. I have not exactly followed that schedule the past couple of weeks and took my rest day yesterday.
I hit the trail today for a 15 miler. I thought it would be a fairly easy since I did so well the last time I attempted 15. Today, it only took a mile for me to realize that this was going to be a bit more of a challenge for myself than before. There were times that I told myself, "Turn around. This is not your typical day to perform a long run. You can do this Saturday instead." But I fought the voice in my head. I liked the idea of not having a long run this weekend. It was ultimately what kept me going. That, and I already posted on my Facebook that I was running 15 miles. It would have been a bit embarrassing to come back and say "Oh, sorry, meant to write 5 miles!"
When I reached Big Slackwater, where the dirt trail turns to concrete, my confidence grew.
Though I was feeling quite tired, the halfway point was in site. I turned around at 7.5 miles, stopping at mile 9-10 for a snack. I felt I was running on empty, but was still able to appreciate the area I was surrounded by. I think I am really lucky to have a trail this beautiful to run on.
To get myself motivated to run again, I took a picture for my Facebook Friends, letting them know I was just 5 miles away from the finish.
Maybe nobody cared, but, I felt that if I kept tabs on my run for the public to see, I would be more obligated to make it to the finish. Even if my iPod decided to die before I got to the end. :o(
I finished in 2:27 and I was feeling every minute of it. I hurried home to stretch and indulge in leftover grilled chicken sandwiches on pretzel buns. Then, I relaxed in bed for about 45 minutes prior to starting my day. I am satisfied that I will not have to do my long run this weekend.
Anyway, I am feeling quite dead right now. Looking forward to more lazy time with Peter, then it's back to work tomorrow! That's okay though...Love my new job :)
When do you do your long runs? Week days, weekends, mix up?
What keeps you motivated to finish a difficult run? Have you ever resorted to your social networking sites?
Who else had a super long weekend from work? Do anything special?
I do my long runs on Sundays. That helps me get my head in the next week!
ReplyDeleteNot a bad way to start any week!
DeleteTypically I will do mine on Saturday, gives me time to recover, should I need it before work on Monday. I figured that because I was home all day on Tuesday, why not do it. Now I can be lazy on Saturday for once :)