This week saw several firsts for me.
It was not a first however, when I pushed it on Wednesday evening's run when Kathie said "GO". It was not a first that I fretted and lost a sizable amount of sleep over an illness of Sean's. It was not a first that I couldn't tell myself to just say no, so I did more than was wise, pushed boundaries more than necessary.
I am, afterall, me.
Today, is Monday, it is my first day off of running in ten days. Please, please do not ask me to run today. As aforementioned I can not, probably would not, say no. I admitted to Todd yesterday that I am a tad bit overly obsessed at the moment (meaning a step up from my normal levels of obsession), I knew today's forced rest would mentally do me in. It's how I found myself on the blogger dashboard so bright and early this morning.
You see that is one of the firsts. I have never, in my four years of running, run more than six days in a row. But last week was a packed social week and seeing as most of my socializing is now spent running I couldn't really cancel. Ok, yes I could have, but it was that I rather didn't want to I suppose. But I knew the risks associated with such recklessness, I spent the week running easy with only minor exceptions (I can't say no to Kathie's taunts because I secretly love it when she taunts me to push it on a run with her). But prone to injury I spent most of my runs talking yet tuned into listening to my body. This is acceptable but consider yourself warned it seemed to whisper. I did my best to listen. I had most of my runs planned out the week ahead so I knew early in the week to reel it in, take it easy or pay the price.
Friday, my usual rest day, was spent on an adventure with Horton's running class. I have a small list of desired runs to get in before MMTR in two weeks. It's been on my fridge now for weeks. It says 'Tobacco Row x2'. Most of the list is still unscratched. On Friday I was thinking of skipping the run when Todd pointed out how little of the to do list had been accomplished heading into my taper, aimed to begin Sunday. I grabbed my headlamp and hit the road. I am glad that I joined to group. Horton encouraged us to use the full moon and not our headlamps on the run. I found myself running the majority of the way up alone, in the dark, a first of sorts for me. Darkness and running alone are usually two of my largest looming fears, but on Friday I found it freeing, refreshing. I rather enjoyed myself. And at least now the list is down to 'Tobacco Row x1'.
I did push a little harder than planned on the uphill of the Tobacco Row run, which was nearly five miles uphill in one direction, but if there's anything I aspire to be at the moment it's the uphill runner I was a year ago. Going into Masochist this year I know I'm not in as good of shape as last year and that is mostly because my uphill running is not where it was then, mostly due to my fretful calf. Coming down however, I reeled it back in, better to be properly frightened when Horton jumped out in the dark scaring Jamie and I.
Saturday Todd and I missed the Deep Hollow Half, the first time both of us have missed this run since we began running. Sadly it was scheduled for the same day as the Stephenson Youth Run our kids do every year. One of the races had to be bumped from our schedule. That evening, to get our running fix in, we headed to Explore Park near Roanoke for a four mile night run we had registered for weeks ago.
I will possibly have more to say about this event later, but basically, it was going to be a fun run for me, seeing as I knew I was on my eighth day of running. But a mile or so in, on the first uphill, I found that I actually wanted to run a little harder than planned. This deciding halfway into a race that I actually want to race only to be let down with the outcome, unfortunately NOT a first. We still managed to have a good evening despite my reactive bad temper for being who I am.
Going into Sunday we were going to do our last long run (over 20 miles) for MMTR. However, Todd has an itchy rash he believes to be a case of Poison Ivy, and wasn't really up for the idea of hours of running on his painfully distracting itchy feet. We notified Jeremy that we weren't going to be able to make it. He was nice about it, tried to tell me to just come along alone but I knew I was looking at too many days running and would be far too slow for him, I knew I needed to make it through the day and into my taper as healthy as possible so I was frightened that going with him would mean me pushing the pace and skirting the lines of an injury. Jeremy, being a rather nice guy, decided to come to Candler's with us instead. His changing his plans to run with us, that may be a first? ;) Not sure about that one. We had a good run of about two hours on Candlers with Jeremy, Micah and Phil.
By the end of Sunday's much shorter than twenty miles run, I was so thankful to officially begin my taper period for Masochist (don't ask me what I'm doing for a taper, I have no IDEA what I am doing, I just know that is has officially started) that the slight tightness everywhere was haunting me and my decision, now too late to change, of running so many days straight. I know there are people with much more impressive running streaks, but even nine days seemed to wear me down further than I'd anticipated. One thing is evident; much like running fast, running streaks are not for me. I found that my mileage was much less than I would have thought because I was being careful not to overtax the already taxed legs. I ran no more mileage than the six day week before but without rest. I suppose I'm glad I tried it, to see for myself that more days doesn't equate, at least for me, to more mileage. And no rest, even if easy, still means no rest, and that is not a good idea for this girl or her legs. And it definitely didn't help with running intensity. I am still figuring out who I am and it is definitely not a streaker. I prefer fewer days with more mileage. I understand this approach isn't for everyone, but I just prefer it. I find my body thanks me and plays better by it. In addition, my plantar fasciitis, which had gotten surprisingly better after Western States, is back with a vengeance. I have even been wearing the 'boot' to bed the last few evenings.
I am hoping I played it safe enough to come out the other end virtually unscathed, but I am sore today in places I would really rather not be sore. Namely, my calves, the part of my body keeping me on my toes this year. I have no intentions of running more than about five days in a given week in the near future. I quite believe that five days are really about the maximum my legs can take and remain healthy. I only even considered this short streak because I knew my body had a base and that the mileage over the planned period was no more than the previous week. Despite the miles being similar though, the legs are still quite a bit more fatigued.
Masochist is my goal race at the moment. Since the Odyssey Trail Running Rampage 40 in September I have been slowing peaking with this last week's goal of aiming for fatigue. Hopefully, the plan will not backfire and result in injury, I am thinking more rest and recovery this week will play the biggest role in this plans overall success.
I will go ahead now and admit, for the sake of reflection later, that Masochist is important to me to a fault. Despite not feeling in as good a condition as last year, I am hoping to pull off a good day in two weeks. How exactly I am going to carry this out is still up in the air. Hoping that the fact that I am aiming at Masochist will mean something for the day. When I focus I can usually perform better. That and getting my stomach to cooperate are the biggest factors going into that big scary race two weeks from now.
I really am trying, though it may be hard to prove after this revealing post, to be smarter. At the same time I have to test the waters occasionally to see what in fact works for me. After this week I can say that running more (at least as far as days per week) does not, at least at the moment, seem like a good idea for me.
-Alexis
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