Training Day: Winter Weather Struggles

 

Today is the last official long run before my half marathon, ready or not. 

I’m exactly one week away from running in the Cowtown Marathon in Fort Worth. Before today, I hadn’t run outdoors in at least 4 weeks and I needed to suck it up and embrace the icy breeze. I’ve doubled (probably tripled) my running total for each week since I decided to participate in this thing. What was the impetus for choosing a race so early in the year, when the weather is likely still chilly? Because I needed a jogging goal beyond my usual twice per week obligations.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m pleased with my consistency but sometimes you need to step it up. I haven’t trained for a race in over a year, content to keep a regular regimen. It felt like I needed a little extra push this time. My speed exactly where it was a year ago. Also I wanted to do something in the Dallas area were my brother lives. I try to visit a few times per year. It’s nice to have another reason to go.

The treadmill has taken the brunt of my workouts lately. I only run outdoors on Saturday, Sunday if I can’t do Saturday. The reason is simple. I like to train before work which limits my time. I can do up to 5 miles if I get an early start. Mostly I run 3 or 4 because it’s what the training programs call for. I live in the city and running outside, early and in the dark is not my idea of exhilarating. There is way too much traffic and I don’t have time to head to the river or a suburban park like Lafortune.

Treadmill workouts are a bore but they’re convenient. The last few weeks have been miserable for being outdoors in the morning. So maybe I could’ve put in one or two early runs and dealt with the cold and wind? Yes, but I wimped out. I had a treadmill option anyway. I needed to get at least one more long run in before next Sunday. I managed almost 10 miles today which was a small miracle considering how windy and miserable I was. How many times did I want to turn back? I lost count.

The early morning gusts nearly blew me off the path. I lost a little time that way I’m sure. Timing wasn’t my biggest goal however. I needed to put in the distance and not sweat the per minute small stuff. I took the difficult route because I needed the hills. It’s been almost 2 months (probably) since I chose that path. It showed. I had to stop a few times, too winded and dizzy to continue. After a little water a half granola bar I righted the ship for a while. Somewhere along the way I stopped again to rest, already disappointed with myself.

I kept thinking ‘This is weird. I haven’t felt this exhausted in a long time. What gives’? The truth is I’m not sure. Weather, lack of outdoor training, lack of hill training or is something else to blame? For the first time I considered maybe eating something before I run next time. I don’t now and never have. I like to run on empty. It’s what I’m used to. But the dizziness is kind of a new thing. Maybe it’s just all the extra training I’ve been up to.

On my work cubicle wall is a 12 week training program for the half marathon I downloaded from a running website. I started at the 5 week mark, checking off the days with different distances on them. Middle days like Tuesday and Wednesday are 3 or 4 mile days at varying paces. The fastest I was actually able to run was at 8:30 per mile for 3 miles. Anything further than that is just too much for me. My goal for the Cowtown half marathon is still just under 2 hours but after the last few big days, I’ll be fine with just over 2. I figured I’d be at a much quicker pace by now but I haven’t been able to keep the under 9:30 for more than a few miles. My watch might be a little off but it’s not that far off.

But like always I won’t lose my mind if I can’t quite get there. I’ll just reassess and train earlier next time. I’ll have a race update next week. Can’t wait!