Well I've been busy.
I'll have to look back at my training calendar to actually remember all of it. I've gotten very lax in posting.
February after my PR at the winter half I finished out my training for the marathon in April. I completed my training without much of a problem. I ran my 20 miler for a virtual race/charity for National Down Syndrome Society supporting a friend of mine. I wanted to make it a meaningful run. My 20 miler is usually meaningful because it is a lot of miles, but I wanted to make it more than that for this training cycle.
For a while training for the marathon went on as normal. I felt great. Taper was great. Then something weird happened. Leading up to my third marathon I felt unsure about wanting to do it. I ended up doing it on my own not the day of the marathon I signed up for. Somewhat long story behind that involving thunderstorms and an existential crisis.
So I'll go with the shorter version. The week leading up to the race, others were talking about the possibility of rain. I become annoyed when the weather is discussed because it starts that fear feeling about the worst possible weather. As the race got closer, it became more evident that we would likely have a downpour and/or lightning the day of the race. I started to get really angry that I had trained for months for the day of the race to get here and it to be a dangerous situation like this. I had previously run a race last spring as you might remember (if you've been reading this for a while) that resulted in a black flag situation, lightning and mass chaos. I didn't want that again. I didn't want to run 26.2 miles in that. After much changing my mind and being wishy washy, I asked for a sign about 3am day of the race that I shouldn't do it. I don't know if I actually believe in signs. I probably just wanted confirmation of my already made decision. But the lightning, loud thunder and downpour immediately following that question in my mind answered it for me.
I would find absolutely zero joy in running in rain and thunderstorms for 26.2 miles. I had no desire to be stranded on a bike path which is where the race was held with virtually nowhere to go if this happened and the race was cancelled. So I said no. And I was mad at myself. But I had to say no because my heart wasn't in it.
Instead of going into my complicated thoughts I had that day... about why I run and if I even care about doing this distance again, to why I was here on Earth, and other 3am thoughts... I will just say it was the right choice for me.
You see, running this distance, even if you've already done it 2 times before is still quite daunting. And it's even more daunting thinking about horrible weather and being stranded in lightning on a bike path 13-ish miles out in the middle of it all.
On April 20 about 5 days later I decided to run from my house to a few cities nearby and making the distance 26.2 so that I could claim I had run a 3rd marathon. And so I did. And it was amazing. Weather was perfect, I had very little doubt in my mind and it was exactly what I needed. I had a weird calm that day and executed my plan perfectly. I had little or no wall until about mile 23. Then it was the smallest wall ever. Like a child's wall made up of building blocks that you just push over. My pace slowed but that was it. Probably because I was running home. I knew there was all kinds of food at my house. A friend was even kind enough to come out with me on her bike and follow me for 4-5 hours on her bike. She was absolutely incredible to do this for me. She even brought me water and snacks. This is why I love other runners, we will do the most amazing stuff to support each other.
And this is another reason why I need to volunteer at more races. Because other people are there for me, I need to try harder to be there for them.
Following this little adventure, I was set to run the 5k in my city's spring series of races again. Usually I would opt for the half marathon, but after doing the marathon and knowing this was coming up again I thought 5k was a good choice. I ended up doing better than expected. Seems that running a lot of miles for weeks somehow helps you run faster. Whatever the reason, I was pretty excited for this and really enjoyed the time with my out of town friends and the party afterward.
Next was a trail race. I would be doing a 12k in the hills of Athens, Ohio. I have been wanting to go back to the trails for a while. This was the perfect choice, as the day turned out to be very hot. I probably could have handled the 25k but the 12k was maybe mentally better for me. I ended up falling and hitting my head during the race. You really have to watch your footing on these trail runs. I know what happened, I started to daydream and lost my focus. I can even remember my exact train of thought when I fell. I thought I saw the elusive Thunderbunny that the trail was named after. I started to think about whether there was actually a Thunderbunny or not, and if so what this bunny would look like. Then I placed my foot just the wrong way on the trail, tripping forward and downhill against a rock, root, or who knows what. There was the knowledge of eating dirt, followed by checking if anything had actually been damaged except for my pride. I wasn't bleeding somehow, no teeth missing, just some dirt. My body instinctively rolled up in an odd way to protect myself. So I got up and kept going. A group of runners just ahead of me had heard me fall, and gave me a baby wipe. I figured if I didn't see stars or feel that bad, might as well keep going. Finished it up and then took it a little easy the rest of the day. I did stop at a few scenic place on the way home that I couldn't resist. I enjoyed it a lot and will be back to that trail, but maybe not running it. I definitely found the area interesting. I also love how welcoming trail runners are. They will help you if you fall and generally are great people. Not that road racers are bad people. They are also generally very kind. But road racing is so much more competitive. And no one usually falls.
Following this race I had a few weeks break until a very hilly and tough half marathon that I did with a family member. It was her first half and I wanted to be there for her. She did really great and I was proud of her. I did this race a few years back (May 2016) and it was good to share the love (or do I mean the pain) of this tough course with someone else. It was extremely hot again (as is usually the case for this race) and the hills are never very forgiving to one's body. This time there were no locusts on the path falling from trees. But there was roadkill. But also great spectators and a very friendly city.
So that brings me to now. Summer is here and I have no actual goals. I still want to see if I can do better on my half marathon time which will require some more speed training. I also want to continue training in heart rate zone 2 which has helped me make some speed gains. I have already signed up for a few more races but not planning a marathon or longer for a while. I'm not saying never again because I know I can never promise myself that. And I want to get more trail running in. Because it is a totally different experience that connects you with a natural environment. I love running in cities but also on trails. Maybe I need both.
