There are always going to be good runs and bad runs, just like you have good days and bad days. I have noticed that after a race, if I run later that same week I usually have a series of bad runs. Most logical people don’t run the week after a race, but I am not most people. Anyway, if you are like me and do this, just be prepared for some poor performance runs.
My method, when I return to running that week, is to do slow short runs and cross train a lot. On Wednesday, I ran 3 miles on a treadmill. Because I was on the treadmill, I had to run faster for a short period of time, which was a bit annoying. The treadmill run was hot and sweaty and not any fun at all. The next day was Thursday and I ran outside. Well, Thursday happened to be one of the windiest days so far this year. I wore a significant amount of wind-proof clothing, which helped. However, when you are a bit tiny, a strong gust of 20 mph wind will take you out. I do like running in the wind through, because running into the wind makes you significantly stronger. I have always liked working hard in every aspect of my life and it’s nice when I am forced to work really hard on a run. So Thursday’s run was another pretty poor running performance as I could only churn out 2.5 miles, before throwing in the towel. After the struggles of Wednesday and Thursday, I decided that Friday should be a full cross training day. I had hoped that that break would have improved the weekend runs, but oh boy was I wrong.
Saturday was a nice enough day for running, but it was a busy day for me. By the time I got around to going for the run, I realized I only had time to run 1.5 miles. Kind of a pointless run. To top it off, I brought my dog that hasn’t run with me in months and was not enjoying the run at all after 5 minutes into it. So I had encountered another pointless run. I finally decided that Saturday’s run was the 3rd bad run in a row, and things come in threes (according to some people), so now I should be good. I decided to plan on doing just 4 miles on Sunday. Sunday was a cloudy, but bright day. I ran without the dog to make sure I didn’t get held up. I wore appropriate clothing for the weather. I even brought a bottle of water with me. Slight detour here, the other day I bought a Nathan hand-held water bottle to run with and it is AMAZING! Every runner should have one. At mile 2, I slipped on some slushy ice and went careening into a ditch of mud. I ended up running about 4.8 miles that day, but the whole second half of the run I was covered in mud. Thank god I am not like other girls in that I like dirt and don’t mind getting messy. By the end of the run, I was so tired from falling, running, and fighting the wind. I felt totally beat up and very tired. So apparently the 3’s rule, doesn’t apply to me, Sunday’s run also went down as a “crap” run.
Like I have said in earlier posts, it’s all about learning to roll with it. However, these “bad” runs made me think very seriously about how experiences like these can severely deter people from the beautiful art of running. So many people start running and have a few crap experiences, decide they hate it, and never try it again. It makes me sad when people tell me that they really hate running. I think all serious runners will tell you that what they love about running is that neutral, semi-conscious state you fall into during a long distance run. That mental state is more calming than a hot tub, a sauna, a back rub, the spa, whatever, all of it; running is actually more calming than any lounging-about activity. However, you have to run for more than just a few minutes to get to that state. I usually don’t get into my “groove” until mile 4 and my brain doesn’t go into “sleep” mode (aka - neutral, semi-conscious mental state) until mile 5 or 6. This makes shorter runs just uncomfortable. The higher the distance a person runs, the longer it takes to get there, I believe. When I was running 50-60 mile weeks, I couldn’t get into my run till mile 9 or 10.
My long winded point here is that it’s definitely important to keep trying, keep pushing, and keep running. It’s worth it.
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