Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Looking Back to Look Forward

This morning, our sunrise was scheduled for 7:07am. No amount of positive self-talk was enough to motivate me to get outside to run in the dark cold morning at 6:30. I just wasn't feeling it. And I hate treadmills. Hate.Them. I've only run on a treadmill ONCE this entire year and I'm not changing that now.

So I started wondering how I managed last year. So I went back to my log book to find out.

Observation #1) I logged a whopping two days of running in December 2009. On Dec 30 and 31. The rest of the month...nothing. Looks like I was working through the push-up challenge, but not running. Okay, that's not going to work for me. Need to figure out something else.

Observation #2) In Jan 2010, I ran on Friday, Saturday, & Sunday. Did walking during the week. I presume that is due to the dark cold mornings. While this is not ideal, it is certainly something that I can see working well enough for a few months while trying to stay afloat.

Observation #3) In Feb 2010, I picked up once mid week run, but still ran consecutive days on Sat and Sun. It wasn't until March that I returned to my normal Tues/Thu/Sat running schedule. And this must have worked just fine for me, because I PR'd at my spring half-marathon in April and felt terrific at the finish line.

Okay, now I have a plan. Don't worry so much about the mid week runs for the next few months. Run consecutive days over the weekend if necessary. Keep walking. And have faith. Just one more week of the ever increasing darkness; the days will start getting longer soon enough.

14 comments:

  1. LOL... Yeah, they get longer one second every other day!

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  2. I don't particularly care for the treadmill either, but I am committed to doing thirty minutes per run...

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  3. I need to be better at keeping a log. That is so great you were able to go back a year ago and see what you did.

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  4. I need to be better at keeping a log. That is so great you were able to go back a year ago and see what you did.

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  5. I like how you looked back at what you did last winter to help you get through this winter! Nice job!

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  6. Do what you gotta do! It's so tough with all the darkness.

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  7. I dislike the treadmill too, and I don't have access to one, so really, it's never an option for me.

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  8. We will all make it through this horrible season! Somehow.

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  9. While running on the treadmill isn't my favorite way to get the miles in, right now it's what is working for me because of all the ice and snow outside. It's so great that you have kept a consistent training log!

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  10. i love your honesty. for some reaons I like my mid-week treadmill run for speedwork, it's the only place that I will truly do it and during the winter is the best time for me to make that an option

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  11. I hate all of this darkness, too! I think you are going to do great with sticking to the runs on the weekends! :0)

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  12. Boo and our days will start getting shorter soon. This is exactly why I keep a detailed log of my running. It is so great to go back and compare previous years with now. Stay warm!

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