If I were to choose one word to describe my running week so far, it would be: Challenging. The funny thing is, this week isn’t even over with yet!
When I started coming up with a plan of how my training was going to look like this week, I imagined me hitting all the right notes and making my miles. It was doable. I mean, I knew my weekend was going to be all running-related, even with me not running much, if at all. And I’m okay with that. Deep down I knew, the week needed to at least make up for some of those “lost” miles that I would’ve otherwise had if both Saturday and Sunday were free. Well, this certainly hasn’t happened.
What I’ve come to realize is, this weekend is a big deal. It’s not every weekend the Olympic Marathon Trials will be happening, on top of the LA Marathon going on. Knowing this, I’ve got to release the guilt I feel for missing valuable training time. Fear is surely talking here.
I surely wasn’t going to feel guilty for meeting up with some friends after work on Tuesday evening. This wasn’t a last-minute thing, and it was a special occasion too, as May was visiting from Colorado after having recently moved there and is back in town to run LA. And it was a great evening!
We chatted about running, and training, and ultras, and races we’re signed up for, and living in Colorado. Most of us are marathoners, one of us will join that club on Sunday, some are triathletes, a couple of us are ultrarunners, but all of us are runners. Some ladies I’ve known for many years, some more recently, and others I met that night. It was so much fun; as those times with friends and runners usually are.
So what if I stayed up past my bedtime? So what if I was too tired on Wednesday morning to train? So what if I didn’t make my evening run because I didn’t feel well? Yeah, that happened. I didn’t feel well, but it had nothing to do with the get-together.
Challenges are going to be presented throughout training whether I like them or not. That’s how life is, and that’s the reality of training. Now and then, wrenches are going to be tossed in the fire pit of life and I have to accept it and adjust my next move.
The key here is to try and find out what those obstacles are going to be beforehand and plan, because looking ahead at my calendar, more events are on the radar. But, I’ll be honest, some things popping up here and there are going to be more of a priority than others and I’ll have to say no more often, and I’m okay with that. Others may not be, or as understanding, but Miwok is important to me, and getting the training in, is important to me.
Challenging is what it is, but that’s what ultras and training for them is like, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Thanks for reading and Happy Training!