Mind Fart - July 13, 2012

Before today, it was just a guess, but I am now convinced that one of my arms is longer than the other. 

This is actually annoying me a lot. 

If short on time, go for intensity

Yesterday, I had a busy schedule but found out I had a little bit of time to go on a run. However, I was being indecisive on whether or not to run. The thing holding me back was that there was no time for at least four miles - and a short run at this point really bothered me. It felt like a step back in my progress. 

But something in this marathon training must be working, because my attitude eventually shifted. So I only have twenty minutes? I thought to myself. Ok, I'll make the most of those twenty. And so I set out on my second interval training run (ever). I ended up averaging an 8.5 min/mile for two miles - and was pretty proud of that. 

And I've come a long way! You see, my first interval training run (ever) happened during one of my runs with Chris. This was no coincidence. He suggested it and I may have been grouchy at him for that for the rest of the night. The run wasn't that long but after we stopped, I was beat. I was also disappointed that we didn't do three miles that night - it was just a measly 1.8. But Chris reassured me that it was not a bad run. "Our run was short," he said that night, "but we still got a good workout by making use of that time and pushing ourselves." I saw the sense in this comment but was too tired to embrace it. 

Now, I see myself slowly making friends. Recently, there were a couple of blog posts on the interwebs that served as inspiration on pushing yourself. Reading these, I'm understanding that the most difficult workouts ARE what you want. I was valuing long runs a bit more because of the difficulty in getting through them - but I will now add intense short runs to the list as well.

Training Mode & Motivation

Sure, some time has passed since my last post. But my life has been no different except for learning to plan around my training. I've been trying to get myself to run three to four times a week along with one strength-training (ballet cardio) workout, but with the hot and humid weather, it's been difficult to get motivated. There were two consecutive weeks where I did manage to nail the aforementioned training schedule, but then the next week saw me only run once.

Still, this is definitely the most active I've been in a long time, where this marathon training is basically demanding of me at least four workouts a week. I haven't followed a schedule like that since my sophomore year of high school, where I was taking up to six ballet classes a week. More and more, I realize how inactive I have become since high school - and even though I did not become a great ballerina, I realize how much more fit I was back then.

So I try to remember my more disciplined ballet days as a way to get motivated to shape up and leave this marathon with as few injuries as possible. Another motivation has been the build-up of the summer Olympics and the coverage of many Olympic athletes. I've read blurbs on Ryan Lochte and Nastia Liukin (recently retired, bless her heart) - and as I read about their training schedules, I see their determination that has led them to stick to the practices to be able to compete. Insane talent and power helps too - but as I'm not seeking Olympic levels of recognition, I think their determination and discipline are what hits me most.