Boldly running where I've never gone before

                OR        ?

The weather here has been as extreme as it is said to be on Qo’noS, the Klingon home world.  Tuesday it was 52 and sunny, today (Thursday) it is 34 and threatening snow.  It’s enough to make you think you got sucked through a wormhole while you were asleep and deposited on some other M class planet.

Training in Illinois throughout the dead of winter for a Florida half-marathon on January 9 is definitely going to be an adventure!  In the next 37 days I have sixteen more training runs planned, 2/3 of which could be done on the dreaded treadmill if absolutely necessary.  The five long runs, ranging from 8 to 12.5 miles, definitely must happen outdoors because I need to do an out-and-back route after running half the distance away from home or wherever I parked the car in order to assure that I actually finish.  Running little loops around the subdivision makes it too easy to cut a workout short if I feel too tired.   Being stranded several miles away from home base ensures I will complete  the last grueling 20% of the distance.  I once read a quote that said something like “marathoning is not about who is the fastest, it’s about who is the toughest,”  so I will do whatever I have to do to make myself tough.  Especially since I ain’t never gonna be fast!

Sunday, November 29, was a cool cloudy day with a forecast of rain.  I dropped my Dad at the airport after a wonderful few days holiday visit, then sought out a place to run 9.35 miles.  I found it in a nearby forest preserve approximately 5 miles from the Lake Renwick Heron Rookery.  Embracing the out-and-back strategy, I parked the car and took off.  My practice for the long runs is to jog 0.4 miles and then briskly walk 0.1 mile, over and over and over again.  I go slower than my projected race pace because the goal of the long run is to build endurance rather than speed.  I made it from the woods almost to the lake before the rain began to fall.  Fortunately, the clouds dried up after I reached the northernmost point on my route and headed back south again.  By the time the GPS watch had ticked off 8 miles, I was pretty much dragging myself forward.  I finished though, and emerged a little tougher than when I started.

Monday, a cross-training day, I attempted one of my favorite aerobics DVDs, Michelle Dozois’ Rockin Body Cardio Jam, and completed about 40 of the 45 minutes before I was just too tired to go on.  Note to self:  pick something easier the day after a long run.

Tuesday, the most beautiful day of the week, I ran 5.5 miles then did some upper body weights and a short core routine.

Wednesday, I did the cardio portion of Gilad’s 45/45 Split Routine  DVD and got through it without difficulty.  Since I’d done ab work the previous day, I chose only the leg training from The FIRM Sculpted Buns, Hips and Thighs and skipped the long killer abs portions.

Today is Thursday and I am wiped out.  I slept poorly and plan to loaf around all day since it is not a work day.  Tomorrow it’s back to the grind.