Warm Soup, Fighting Words, and a Recipe for Lemonade
Some days I have nothing to write about. I turn on my laptop, sip my coffee, and nothing. I can be in the mood, want to write, maybe even need to write, and nothing comes. Nothing. A fragment of an idea here, a notion that never takes off there. Today, though, is not one of those days. Luckily and unluckily - Yes, all at the same time - I have too much to write, too many topics; my brain is one giant run-on sentence. Back in the day, my creative writing professor told us that many writers use movement (a walk, in most cases) to stimulate ideas. I have found that to be absolutely true. Whether it's a walk, run, solo game of ping-pong, spin ride, or tennis match, the result is usually the same - IDEAS, stuff to write, half written blogs or stories bouncing around my brain dying to see the light of day. Well, dying to see the outside of my brain.
If you've been reading my blog posts this summer, you know what day it is. If I'm overflowing with ideas and have far too much to write, it must be long run day. Unless I absolutely kill myself on the run and have zero bandwidth or energy left for coherent thought, that is. Today's run was rough. I was completely cashed at eight miles (of a planned twelve), but tacked on an additional two because - as I posted on Strava afterward - I'm no quitter. Eight miles would have meant that I woosed out, but ten miles is double digits and officially qualifies as a "long run." Ten miles means I'm in a much better frame of mind. I'm happy I didn't give up too early AND I left myself some energy to write this afternoon.
Ok, so here we are. How are you today? Oh, wait. Nevermind. Let's get to it. If you've read this far, you've already given me far more of your life than I probably deserve. What is this blog going to be about, you ask? At this point, I still don't have a clear picture of where it's going. This - as you may have learned with previous blogs - can be good or bad. Let's all cross our fingers and hope it's at least worth the time you're wasting by reading it (Seriously, each and every one of you has something better to do with your time than read my blogs. If you don't, Jesus, find something). Anywho, let's get this thing going.
F***. Where to begin? Alright, how about why my weekly long run went to hell in a hand basket? I promise there will be something near-universally applicable at the end.
My first mistake wasn't waking up. It was checking the weather app on my phone before getting out of bed. At 0430 in Austin, Texas, it was 76F with 100% humidity. Well, f***. By run time, the temp was due to rise to 78F. No estimation on the humidity but I didn't imagine it would suddenly drop into the low 30s. So if I ran, the weather was going to be a challenge. Of course there was no IF. I was running. Period. End of file. No question. No exception. But still...... F*** me. It was going to be like running in warm soup.
My second mistake (Keep in mind it's not yet 0500) was eating a new kind of protein bar. On long run day. I had several of my tried-and-true favorites, but chose to go with the new one. Idiocy. I theorized that it was higher in calories and I might need an extra caloric boost (Plus my anorexic brain rationalized that I'd burn those extra calories off better today that another day). It was high in protein, moderate in fiber, and low gluten. What could go wrong? Heartburn at Mile 5. That's what. In the middle of Mile 9, I thought I might barf my breakfast for the first time EVER while running (For the record, the record still stands. No barfing).
My third mistake - which was really probably my first mistake since it's something I should have done yesterday BEFORE today's run - was not pre-hydrating properly. I biked, climbed, and played a highly sweat-inducing tennis match yesterday and, with the exception of my usual daily water intake, I did nothing special to rehydrate and thus pre-hydrate. Even worse, after the match, I went to a special event at a friend's store, caught a buzz off a small glass of wine (not as much of a telltale sign of dehydration as you'd think), and spent $70 I didn't have to spend. Had it not been excessively humid today, I might have been ok enough to finish my planned twelve miles...
My fourth mistake, completely related to Mistake 3 above, was doing WAY too much the day before a long run. Spin. Climb. Tennis. 16,000 steps worth. Not exactly an easy day. My legs were tired from the jump this morning and I never really felt like I found a good groove. Before last week's very success long run, I took an light day - a quick half hour on an elliptical at the gym and an equally quick lift.
Interestingly, my fifth mistake is related to Mistakes 2 and 4 above. I'm not sure I ate enough yesterday to satisfactorily stoke the fires for a long run. I burned a lot of calories and didn't compensate for it nor did I factor in the demands of today's run. I realized this about the time I was choosing which protein bar to eat for breakfast. We've already discussed how well that went.
My sixth mistake (Yes, there's actually at least one more) was not spending enough time mentally preparing for the run. In previous weeks, I've gotten up early enough to really dig into a particular mental strategy (Do I need to say from which book I draw my inspiration? Ok, I'll mention it. Let Your Mind Run by Deena Kastor. Duh). Each and every week, it's the mental stuff that gets me through the toughest parts of the run. Today I desperately wanted to quit after eight miles. That I held on for two more I can attribute to the thirty seconds I spent with the book this morning ("Stay positive" was what I came away with...and I'll have you know I never once cursed the weather) and the barest residual from last week ("Find a word that serves you." Fight. And damn if I didn't fight through those last two miles). Still I can't help but believe that the run would have gone a lot better if I'd spent my usual half hour or more mentally preparing.
My seventh mistake was barndooring off a boulder and plummeting eight feet into the crash pad below me the day before a long run. I popped right up and kept climbing. Hell, I even played a doubles match later in the morning. I assumed (Great, right?) that I was no worse for wear. Until I woke up in the middle of the night with a monster stiff neck. Apparently my neck stopping my head from hitting the pad has negative consequences. I can't say my neck hurt while I was running this morning, but it sure was stiff and turning my head sure wasn't (and still isn't) all that pleasant.
I can sum up all of my mistakes with one word - Overconfidence. Last week's success - the fastest twelve miles I've run since the Austin Marathon Half Marathon last February - boosted my confidence and I'm glad it did. That run showed me that my training, even though more than half has been on a Spin bike, is working. I sped right past October and started toying with the idea of running a 1:40 (My 40s PR is in the 1:42 range) before the end of the season. With the right training - long tempo runs, speedwork, and confidence boosting long runs - it's a very real possibility. Even after today's piece of crap run.
And, you know, maybe it's because of today's piece of crap run. Yeah, I cashed out early. Conditions were some of the worst I've run in this summer. Some of those were created by Mother Nature, but the majority were my fault. I was too cavalier. I errantly believed my success last week would somehow wash over into this week. My preparation was half-assed which impacted my focus which impacted my execution.
It won't happen again. It's true that I have a lot of irons in the fire - multiple jobs, multiple hobbies, multiple sports - but I can't use that as an excuse. If I'm going to set my goals high, I have to be willing to put forth the effort to accomplish them. No half-assing long runs or tennis matches or lifting sessions. No spending money that should go into my travel savings. No procrastinating writing. My focus must be absolute. If I'm going to sacrifice... If I'm going to accept the pain... If I'm going to try at all... I have to be all-in. Because otherwise, what's the point?
I'm not saying my "lifestyle" is appropriate for everyone. But here's the thing - I spent a good bit of my life meandering (Seriously, DECADES) and - not-so-shockingly - went nowhere fast. I lucked into what I lucked into and pursed things (women...love...assorted bullshit) that I never should have pursued. Then one day I was forty-eight and people started chatting about mid-life crises and me in the same sentence. If I was truly at mid-life, I needed to do something; I needed to get busy. Like yesterday.
And that's why you're enduring this blog right now. Because I got busy and I'm staying busy. If I only have half of this life left and I frittered away a good share of the first half...WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT I DID...I don't have time for a lack of focus or crappy long runs. Hell, I don't have time for anything that doesn't move me closer to my goals.
Like I said, it's not for everyone. I know some of you are quite content doing what you're doing and I applaud you. But if you're not.......if you're just not...... Don't waste time reading my blogs. Unless they motivate you. Then by all means, keep on. Because what if all of us pursued our dreams? What if we all gave the nay-sayers the finger? Even better, what if there were NO NAYSAYERS because everyone bought in? Man, what if? Where could we go? What could we do? How happy would the world be? Think on that a moment.
And that, my friends, is how you turn a crappy run in warm soup into a ice cold pitcher of lemonde. Never give up. Never quit. Learn from your mistakes.
And always rehydrate.
But not with lemonade.
Or wine.
If you've been reading my blog posts this summer, you know what day it is. If I'm overflowing with ideas and have far too much to write, it must be long run day. Unless I absolutely kill myself on the run and have zero bandwidth or energy left for coherent thought, that is. Today's run was rough. I was completely cashed at eight miles (of a planned twelve), but tacked on an additional two because - as I posted on Strava afterward - I'm no quitter. Eight miles would have meant that I woosed out, but ten miles is double digits and officially qualifies as a "long run." Ten miles means I'm in a much better frame of mind. I'm happy I didn't give up too early AND I left myself some energy to write this afternoon.
Ok, so here we are. How are you today? Oh, wait. Nevermind. Let's get to it. If you've read this far, you've already given me far more of your life than I probably deserve. What is this blog going to be about, you ask? At this point, I still don't have a clear picture of where it's going. This - as you may have learned with previous blogs - can be good or bad. Let's all cross our fingers and hope it's at least worth the time you're wasting by reading it (Seriously, each and every one of you has something better to do with your time than read my blogs. If you don't, Jesus, find something). Anywho, let's get this thing going.
F***. Where to begin? Alright, how about why my weekly long run went to hell in a hand basket? I promise there will be something near-universally applicable at the end.
My first mistake wasn't waking up. It was checking the weather app on my phone before getting out of bed. At 0430 in Austin, Texas, it was 76F with 100% humidity. Well, f***. By run time, the temp was due to rise to 78F. No estimation on the humidity but I didn't imagine it would suddenly drop into the low 30s. So if I ran, the weather was going to be a challenge. Of course there was no IF. I was running. Period. End of file. No question. No exception. But still...... F*** me. It was going to be like running in warm soup.
My second mistake (Keep in mind it's not yet 0500) was eating a new kind of protein bar. On long run day. I had several of my tried-and-true favorites, but chose to go with the new one. Idiocy. I theorized that it was higher in calories and I might need an extra caloric boost (Plus my anorexic brain rationalized that I'd burn those extra calories off better today that another day). It was high in protein, moderate in fiber, and low gluten. What could go wrong? Heartburn at Mile 5. That's what. In the middle of Mile 9, I thought I might barf my breakfast for the first time EVER while running (For the record, the record still stands. No barfing).
My third mistake - which was really probably my first mistake since it's something I should have done yesterday BEFORE today's run - was not pre-hydrating properly. I biked, climbed, and played a highly sweat-inducing tennis match yesterday and, with the exception of my usual daily water intake, I did nothing special to rehydrate and thus pre-hydrate. Even worse, after the match, I went to a special event at a friend's store, caught a buzz off a small glass of wine (not as much of a telltale sign of dehydration as you'd think), and spent $70 I didn't have to spend. Had it not been excessively humid today, I might have been ok enough to finish my planned twelve miles...
My fourth mistake, completely related to Mistake 3 above, was doing WAY too much the day before a long run. Spin. Climb. Tennis. 16,000 steps worth. Not exactly an easy day. My legs were tired from the jump this morning and I never really felt like I found a good groove. Before last week's very success long run, I took an light day - a quick half hour on an elliptical at the gym and an equally quick lift.
Interestingly, my fifth mistake is related to Mistakes 2 and 4 above. I'm not sure I ate enough yesterday to satisfactorily stoke the fires for a long run. I burned a lot of calories and didn't compensate for it nor did I factor in the demands of today's run. I realized this about the time I was choosing which protein bar to eat for breakfast. We've already discussed how well that went.
My sixth mistake (Yes, there's actually at least one more) was not spending enough time mentally preparing for the run. In previous weeks, I've gotten up early enough to really dig into a particular mental strategy (Do I need to say from which book I draw my inspiration? Ok, I'll mention it. Let Your Mind Run by Deena Kastor. Duh). Each and every week, it's the mental stuff that gets me through the toughest parts of the run. Today I desperately wanted to quit after eight miles. That I held on for two more I can attribute to the thirty seconds I spent with the book this morning ("Stay positive" was what I came away with...and I'll have you know I never once cursed the weather) and the barest residual from last week ("Find a word that serves you." Fight. And damn if I didn't fight through those last two miles). Still I can't help but believe that the run would have gone a lot better if I'd spent my usual half hour or more mentally preparing.
My seventh mistake was barndooring off a boulder and plummeting eight feet into the crash pad below me the day before a long run. I popped right up and kept climbing. Hell, I even played a doubles match later in the morning. I assumed (Great, right?) that I was no worse for wear. Until I woke up in the middle of the night with a monster stiff neck. Apparently my neck stopping my head from hitting the pad has negative consequences. I can't say my neck hurt while I was running this morning, but it sure was stiff and turning my head sure wasn't (and still isn't) all that pleasant.
I can sum up all of my mistakes with one word - Overconfidence. Last week's success - the fastest twelve miles I've run since the Austin Marathon Half Marathon last February - boosted my confidence and I'm glad it did. That run showed me that my training, even though more than half has been on a Spin bike, is working. I sped right past October and started toying with the idea of running a 1:40 (My 40s PR is in the 1:42 range) before the end of the season. With the right training - long tempo runs, speedwork, and confidence boosting long runs - it's a very real possibility. Even after today's piece of crap run.
And, you know, maybe it's because of today's piece of crap run. Yeah, I cashed out early. Conditions were some of the worst I've run in this summer. Some of those were created by Mother Nature, but the majority were my fault. I was too cavalier. I errantly believed my success last week would somehow wash over into this week. My preparation was half-assed which impacted my focus which impacted my execution.
It won't happen again. It's true that I have a lot of irons in the fire - multiple jobs, multiple hobbies, multiple sports - but I can't use that as an excuse. If I'm going to set my goals high, I have to be willing to put forth the effort to accomplish them. No half-assing long runs or tennis matches or lifting sessions. No spending money that should go into my travel savings. No procrastinating writing. My focus must be absolute. If I'm going to sacrifice... If I'm going to accept the pain... If I'm going to try at all... I have to be all-in. Because otherwise, what's the point?
I'm not saying my "lifestyle" is appropriate for everyone. But here's the thing - I spent a good bit of my life meandering (Seriously, DECADES) and - not-so-shockingly - went nowhere fast. I lucked into what I lucked into and pursed things (women...love...assorted bullshit) that I never should have pursued. Then one day I was forty-eight and people started chatting about mid-life crises and me in the same sentence. If I was truly at mid-life, I needed to do something; I needed to get busy. Like yesterday.
And that's why you're enduring this blog right now. Because I got busy and I'm staying busy. If I only have half of this life left and I frittered away a good share of the first half...WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT I DID...I don't have time for a lack of focus or crappy long runs. Hell, I don't have time for anything that doesn't move me closer to my goals.
Like I said, it's not for everyone. I know some of you are quite content doing what you're doing and I applaud you. But if you're not.......if you're just not...... Don't waste time reading my blogs. Unless they motivate you. Then by all means, keep on. Because what if all of us pursued our dreams? What if we all gave the nay-sayers the finger? Even better, what if there were NO NAYSAYERS because everyone bought in? Man, what if? Where could we go? What could we do? How happy would the world be? Think on that a moment.
And that, my friends, is how you turn a crappy run in warm soup into a ice cold pitcher of lemonde. Never give up. Never quit. Learn from your mistakes.
And always rehydrate.
But not with lemonade.
Or wine.
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