I haven’t posted this in a while… a workout record! Lately (i.e., for the past couple of years), I’ve been posting to DailyMile mostly out of convenience; But today I’m feeling extra verbose so here goes đŸ˜‰
I had a 10mi training run on Monday and I only felt good the first 5 out of the 9 miles completed. Those final 4 miles were tough and my pace was reduced to a run/walk (mostly walk!) as I felt severely fatigued and was in a brain fog. Generally, when I get into that mood during a run, I go through a checklist:
- Weather — It was sunny but the cool ocean breeze made up for it. I didn’t feel uncomfortably hot (unlike my recent 5k in Pasadena or my half marathon in Chicago back in July); the weather on Monday was warm, but I thought, tolerable.
- Nutrition — I had my water and 3 packets of ClifShot gel, which I consumed every 30 minutes (as usual) for the final hour and a half. Didn’t feel hungry or parched, either. I did only have an energy bar for breakfast (and not my normal protein shake).
- Motivation — The nagging question “Why am I doing this?” almost always just hits me during LA Marathon training (LOL), and not for my “shorter” training runs. Still, I had to remind myself that I want to PR my half marathon in October — the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco — or at least best last year’s time.
- Legs — Felt no pain in my legs, knees, or foot. They did feel slightly heavy, and I was conscious of my landing/foot-strike (was running unshod, as usual).
- Lungs — I was breathing fine (not laboured)
- Sleep — I thought I felt rested. Despite sleeping at 1:30 AM, I had at least 6 and a half hours of sleep and that’s normal. LOL I’ve had less sleep before and did OK at my race/run.
I suppose I haven’t had a “bad” run in a while (or not this bad anyway) that I’m over-thinking it! ROFL. I’m not quite certain why I was bothered by it, either. In hindsight, I’m sure it was a combination of factors; the largest one being my fitness level (which I overestimated — LOL), the second-half sluggishness thanks to what I ate over the weekend (Las Vegas Buffets!), and as much as I didn’t want to accept it, I was just plain tired– having driven back from Las Vegas the previous afternoon/evening.
Whatever.. I’ll chalk that up to an off-day and end this post on a positive note… I am always grateful of where I run and appreciate the beautiful scenery… Below is my favourite view of Bluff Cove overlooking the City of Angels. đŸ™‚
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