Run Like a Popsicle

Time to get serious about Boston. I'm not trying to PR or anything but I also don't want to feel like hell for 2 weeks after the race. So.... no more sleeping in an days that I am scheduled to run. Here's how I know I'm serious:

Scott needed to be at school super early this morning. (He's doing a fundraiser this afternoon/evening for his multimedia program.) I failed to get up for my run on Thursday because I thought Scott's alarm was set for 4:45AM and it wasn't. Also, even if I had gotten up, there was too much shoveling to be done to have run anyway. As it was I woke up at 5:45 and shoveled for 45 minutes. Cardio? Maybe, but not 5 miles at tempo (what I like to call "kinda fast but not ridiculous") pace.

Soooo.... last night I put the alarm in the bathroom and set it for 4:35AM so I would have to get out of bed to shut it off. It worked. I was out the door by 4:45. It. Was. Cold. After about 3 minutes on the road (and still in my warm up pace) I couldn't feel my fingers. I was ready to turn around and head home. The elliptical would be a decent workout for today. Then, I once again thought of Polly and fighting like a girl and using the opportunity to test my mettle. I told myself if I couldn't feel my fingers after 1 mile then I would turn around and do 30 minutes on the elliptical to make up for the lost miles. Just before my Garmin watch went "beep beep" I could officially feel my fingers. So, I picked up the pace and "rocked on".
Soon after the feeling in my thighs disappeared but that wasn't part of the bargain so I kept on.

It's interesting that today two cars passed me on my run. On a normal day (when I leave the house at 5:15 or 5:30) there are usually six or eight cars. I know, still practically nobody.... but when you bargain with yourself in terms of "I'll run hard until the next car comes by".... it's a BIG difference.

I was pretty pleased with my pace:

Mile 1 (warm up): 9:12
Mile 2: 7:50
Mile 3: 8:07 (stopped and walked for about 20 seconds at the 2.5-ish turn around mark)
Mile 4: 7:55
Mile 5 (cool down and not a whole mile - 0.8 miles): 8:50

When I drove Tommy to school at 7:45 the boys and I watched the outside temperature gauge go down and down and down. At the turn around point it was 2-degrees. So, my guess is at 5 in the morning it was, ummm, probably no warmer than that, that's for sure! I was shocked at the temp and very glad I didn't know what I was getting into when I stepped out this morning. I certainly would have bagged it and done the elliptical.... or gone back to bed.

Nine hours later I can still feel the effects of this workout. My skin on my nose and cheeks is red. The tips of my fingers are not feeling things 100%. I just completed a 25 minute yoga workout and although I feel much more aligned and relaxed, my leg muscles were saying "yeah, ummm, no".

So, two lessons learned: I am hard core and can run in just about anything. (HOWEVER...!) I need to check the outside temperature before I leave and dress accordingly!

I am going to sleep SO well tonight. Heading to the chiropractor tomorrow. The appointment is at 9AM and I'm trying to figure out if I can squeeze in a run before hand. I feel like running afterward would be a bad plan. I somehow need to get in a 16-miler and a 6 miler between Saturday and Sunday. Hmmmmm....

We shall see. Hope everyone is finding ways to challenge themselves and find victories in everything they endeavor, even if they're not the victories you set your sights on!