Boldly running where I've never gone before

…just like Kirk, Spock, Bones, Chekhov and Scotty at the O.K. Corral.  Only not as
the result of a Melkotian death sentence, even if some of my abs videos might feel like it sometimes.

The second full week back into training  has been enlightening as well as encouraging.  The elephant in the room (“how the hell am I going to go from 6 miles to 10 in a month without losing more speed AND without injuring myself”) is a little less scary.  The amount of fitness which has slipped away in the past 6 weeks is a little more obvious.  And the determination to move forward over the next four weeks – regardless – is a lot more deeply entrenched and will serve to shake off the mantle of laziness that sometimes settles on my shoulders.

Races planned for this month are the Rockdale Ramble 10k on April 14 and the Lakefront 10 Miler on April 28.   I have no major travel or social plans.  The weather is generally good for running in April.  I am in a reasonable state of good health, despite the recent flu.  So it’s time for an all out push which, given my age and weight, means longer and higher quality runs rather than more days of running.

After the fairly difficult but confidence-building five miler on Sunday the 25th (on the day I would have done the Shamrock Shuffle in Chicago had I not cancelled the weekend trip there due to the events of the previous month), I had a fairly decent week.

Monday — I did a cardio video with lots of lateral motion which serves to balance out the constant forward motion of running and helps prevent overuse injuries.
Tuesday — I walked about a mile and a half with the dogs, then went out for a sumptuous lunch with a friend.
Wednesday — I ran 2.7 miles.
Thursday — A day off; I worked 12 hours.
Friday — Another day off; I was just too tired, having slept badly the night before.
Saturday —  I ran 6 miles at an average of 14:14 pace per mile.  After starting off slow, I picked up a lot of energy over the course of the run and ended up doing really well.
Sunday — I had a hangover.  Big mistake to drink with friends on Saturday night, but it seemed like the right thing to do at the time.  🙂

So, the goal for the next week will be to work out 5 days instead of 4 and to give a strong effort no matter how I feel.  Sleep is often the determining factor, so getting good sleep will be Job One.