Not a Good Idea

Maybe it's just a phase, but if you asked me today, I would tell you I will never consider running a marathon in January again. It requires a certain toughness to run on a normal day. Today, the high was 30 degrees. It was dark by 5pm. With the wind chill, it was 10 degrees at 6pm. Needless to say, I crapped out on my run. Does it count that I drove my route in search of LED Christmas Lights? The rest of December looks about the same. I peak on my mileage during Christmas week. We'll be in Colorado, surrounded by snow, trying to run a 20-miler. Good luck with that. My parents have a treadmill, I guess I could try 20 miles on that. (Kill me now.) ************************************************************************************* This weekend, we head to DC. I need to run 12 miles this weekend to feel even remotely on track for January's Rock & Roll Marathon. I am hoping the interesting sights of the nation's capital will keep me distracted. Hell, it's 50 degrees there right now, that should help. ************************************************************************************* Last week, I ran a 10K in Mesa, AZ for Thanksgiving. I really wanted to finish in 68:30. If you are trying to set a PR, I don't recommend drinking a bottle of wine and getting five hours sleep the night before. Through mile 4, I was on track with my pace. During mile 5, the heat started to kick my ass, as did the dehydration. (Clearly I am difficult to please since I complain about it being too cold above and now too hot.) I ultimately finished in 70:09. I was frustrated with my time until I realized I beat my previous PR by over 3 minutes. While I am still slower than I would like, I feel myself getting stronger and I don't quit as easily as I did when I started running in January. I guess I will take those improvements and work for 68:30 next time!