Monday, September 17, 2007

Weekend update

I was blown away by Tea's post about her 70.3 Tri this weekend. I don't know how someone can read that and not want to push themselves and test what they are made of.

My own weekend was nowhere near as exciting, though it was busy and fun. I drank too much Friday night (poker), drank more than a little Saturday night (gaming with friends), but ate well overall (well, mostly) and still got in my long run (another 4.8 mile neighborhood run) on Sunday. I finished the long run with plenty of strength left in the legs, which really makes me feel good about my prospects for increasing my mileage. Next weekend I'll be out of town, so I'm not sure exactly what route I'll run or how long it'll be, but when I get back I'll be running a modified neighborhood loop that goes up over 5 miles. Progress! My shortish-term goal is to get my long run to be 6 miles, and that'll be my baseline to train from for any longer races (like a theoretical half-marathon next fall).

I'm a little nervous about the coming months, just because I'm getting hooked on my long outdoor run. In a weird way, it's the highlight of my weekend. But the streets I run it on are fairly narrow, have no sidewalks, and will not be workable once it starts snowing. As soon as there are snowbanks, this route will be too dangerous to run. I guess I'll cross that bridge when that time comes. But the thought of pounding out 5-6 miles on the treadmill is a bit daunting.

In related news, I'm a card-carrying runner now. I joined a local running club! They offer free coaching, have weekly 5K runs (which are unfortunately 50+ minutes drive away), and help organize other group runs. It will be interesting to see what I can get out of it (other than discounts at the shoe store). My athletic "community" has always been virtual. Bringing it into meatspace is an interesting prospect.

1 comment:

Tea said...

I'm finally getting caught up, and I got a shout out! That's so nice of you to mention my race report.

I think it's GREAT that you've joined a running club. Don't worry about the weather until it happens. take it one day at a time. I've found that getting up early on Sat and sundays in the winter are some of my favorite runs. no one is out, and you just feel good.