A Tired Monday-Morning Run

This weekend marked my third week in a row of missing the Saturday morning run with the Runner's World group. I hate to miss, especially since it the one and only day each week I run with them, but family medical issues prevented it from happening this past Saturday. I did however get in my 9-mile run, but had to do so on Sunday. Went to church Sunday morning, which put me running between 11:00 and 12:30 in the afternoon. It was 94 degrees, and I noticed that shortly after I got home from my run, KJRH had issued a heat advisory. I ended up walking probably the equivalent of a mile, simply because the heat and humidity had completely sapped my strength. (All the more reason to stick with the Runners World group for my long runs. Sure, 5:45 is early in the morning, but much more bearable with regard to conditions.) I don't think I have ever sweat so much in my life! And I could feel the heat from the pavement through my shoes. There was hardly any breeze at all, so my only respite was the shade provided by the trees that line the track. Unfortunately, from Memorial to Mingo and Mingo to 91st, there are hardly any trees. That is where I began walking.

Despite the fact that I ran my long run yesterday afternoon, I still wanted to get up today and start the week with my regular 6-mile. My legs felt like spaghetti as I began to jog away from my car. I ran the eastern trail to Elm and back. After the fourth mile, my legs felt very fatigued. I began thinking about the entry I posted last Wednesday about the mental aspect of distance running, and I remembered Dave's comment that "Running when you are already tired seems like a good idea." So I tried simply to embrace the fatigue and use it as an opportunity to build endurance and get myself into a better place mentally. Seemed to work out just fine. Now, I'm contemplating a 6-mile the day after my long run every week. This would probably involve adding a day, as I love to run on Mondays and do not want to give up that day just for running on on Sundays (following my regularly scheduled long run). We'll see how things go this coming weekend. But one thing I can say for sure at this point: I will be out there at 5:45 with the FOB Four this Saturday.

7-13-09
Distance: 6.01
Time: 52:30
Avg. Mile Pace: 8.43

7-12-09
Distance: 9.01
Time: 1:35:54
Avg. Mile Pace: 10:37