Two Trials

I had some serious time constraints shortening this run, so the speed workout got thrown out for today.  In the end, it was probably a good thing as I wasn’t feeling so great today.  Just a short, easy run today, then I whisked Maddie off school and I went off to work.

An easy day today.  My legs are feeling a bit tired; I’ll probably just hit this one workout today.  Tomorrow morning will be a speed session, so I’d like to be well rested for that effort.  I got out for my run before the much anticipated snow started while Maddie was at school.  It sure looked and felt like snow was imminent; so much for the brief glimpse of spring that we saw yesterday.

Today was an exciting day for everyone involved with Two Trials, as we surpassed the $30,000 in our fundraising efforts.  It has been inspiring for all of us to see how our vision of the fundraiser that was born in November has grown.

Maddie had a challenging day today; she said to me,”I just don’t feel very good today.”  I find a lot of days are like this; often she doesn’t have one specific complaint, but she just generally doesn’t feel well and her energy is low.  I tried all sorts of tricks to try to raise her spirits, but met with little success.  I just feel so sorry for her, and it is really hard to watch and feel like I can’t do much to make it better.  I’m sure that our love, support, understanding, and positive attitude have a positive effect, but I guess I just hope for a little more.  All I want is for her to feel doing what kids do, like running around with her friends on the playground at school, going swimming at the community center in the afternoon or even just playing at home.  So many of her afternoons and evenings are spent curled up in our Adirondak chair with pillow and blanket next to our woodstove.

I can remember when she was first diagnosed that I longed for the day when she will feel like running around and playing like kids her age do.  I see glimpses of that from time to time, but still look forward to the day when that kind of activity will be the norm.

An easy 6 miles this afternoon.  I felt stiff and tight most of the day after yesterday’s effort.  I was hoping that a few easy miles this afternoon would help.  Maddie was asleep in her room, so I wasn’t subjected to any animated TV today.  Oprah was the best available option on the 3 channels that I get.

Today was one of the those days that really makes you think that spring is coming.  I left the house at about 9:15am for an easy recovery run after yesterday’s long effort.  The sky was bright blue, and the sun actually felt warm on my face.  Granted, I was still wearing long tights and a long sleeve shirt, but I quickly eschewed the hat and gloves.  There was a lot of melting snow all around me, and I could, in fact, see some bare ground amid the patches of ice and snow.  I was shocked back into reality when I returned home and heard all the banter about the big storm coming on Tuesday.  I guess we’re going to get another whopper.  The translation is that inland will get about a foot plus and those of us poor coastal folks will get 3-6″ followed by a lovely combination of sleet and freezing rain.  Yippee!  You gotta love living on the coast of Maine.

Here’s a recap:

Total miles: 23 (with 1 X 6 miles at marathon pace)

Total amount of sleep in the last two nights: 16 hours (which is more than the combined total of last Saturday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday).

Weather – cold, but very comfortable.

Ounces of gatorade consumed during run – 20oz. (mouth and face were too cold and fluids were too cold to consume much more).

Other runners seen on the roads: 2 plus a guy walking a dog!

Biggest motivator during the last two miles:  Knowing that my post-long run chocolate milk and a huge meal were waiting for me at home.

High point of the run: crossing over the Westport Island bridge with its amazing water views.

Low point: Needing to make a “pit stop” and having to negotiate an icy snowbank to reach the woods.  Luckily, I managed some fancy footwork and didn’t fall down the hill into the woods.

How this run fits into the big picture:  It’s the longest training run to date with 6 miles at MP.  Good to build on for the upcoming weeks.  I’d hoped to do a few more miles at MP, but didn’t quite have it today.  As I look at the calendar, I’ve still got several more long runs before the big day.  I think this run puts me in a good place and the training continues to move along on schedule.

An easy day today looking ahead to tomorrow’s long run.  It was a brisk, cold morning, and an easy 6-miler was a great way to start the day.  I thought about doing another workout this afternoon, but in the end I opted for some extra sleep and some relaxing at home.

Medium-long run today.  Maddie went up with her grandmother to Belgrade Lakes for the weekend; she’s rebounded well from several days of not feeling very well.  Once she headed off, I got out for a 14-miler.  It was a cold morning, and I could feel the predicted snow’s impending arrival.  As I turned on to Chewonki Road for the last 2 miles of the run, the snow began and several snowflakes made a direct hit into my eyeballs.  Overall, it was a good run today; I had pretty good energy despite not enough sleep.

A quick 4 miles in the afternoon.  I wasn’t too motivated, but happy I got out to stretch the legs a bit.

Maddie was up at 12:30am, 2:00am, and 3:30am. At the final wake-up, we were up for good. So, by 6am as I started to drag, I thought a run might energize things. The six miles went by quickly and I felt surprisingly good. How I’d prop my eyelids open for the rest of the day was the next question on my mind. Read the rest of this entry »

Easy, relaxing 6 miles this afternoon.  My legs felt very good, and I actually had good energy.  I’ve been finding lately that I’ve got low energy in my afternoon workouts, due in part, I presume, to my lack of sleep/disordered sleep patterns.  We’re hoping that since Maddie’s off the dexamethasone (for the next couple of weeks at least), we all will start getting better rest.