30:56. The time it took to run 3.1 miles this evening. 30:56! Three weeks ago, I ran this distance in 26:09. This evening’s run was a bit humiliating, a bit humbling, but much needed.
In a period of three weeks, I have not been running as often as I had before the 26:09 5k. Life happened. No races entered. No goals to train for. Oh, and a few things that also made it a bit uncomfortable to run.
The excuses:
Two and a half weeks ago I went to see a dermatologist due to a funky looking mole. He looked at it, said it probably wasn’t anything to worry about, but he wanted to take it off… so that’s exactly what he did. Â (This particular mole was in an area that isn’t normally visible even if I’m just swimming trunks.) Knowing the possibility of removing this thing and potential recovery time, IÂ ran 3.3 miles in under 30 minutes about an hour before the appointment. Â (It’s amazing how a good run can help clear one’s mind)
The following week, I started the P90X program. WONDERFUL program and highly effective. The problem for me was when ‘Ab Ripper X’ turned into ‘Ab Puller Ouch!’ The first week went by and I felt great. The second week started with me not even being able to do one push up due to an ‘X-treme’ pain in my lower abs. It was at this point I decided that I should probably take it easy for a while.
Since the, I have jogged, hiked, and surfed, but nothing that pushed me too much… until tonight.
Abs feel ok, incision area feels back to normal, legs…. lungs… Where did they go?
Here is the set up for tonight’s run: (Please have a laugh at my expense!)
Wake up after having a couple tasty beverages last night
Panera Bread for lunch
Taco Bell Volcano Nachos for dinner <—-NOT a good idea before a run!!!!
Kids head to bed, wife rests her eyes, and I hit the pavement. It very quickly dawns on me that I can’t run my normal pace. After the first five minutes, my app is telling me I have only covered 0.4 miles!?! What? Have the GPS satellites changed positions? Â What is this 10:40 minute/mile pace?
Legs feel like lead, pace and stride don’t feel right, breathing isn’t as easy as I have known it to be, the warmth of the nacho’s telling me they may need  TUMS, and the sweat that is pouring out of me all tell me that this run isn’t what I had become accustomed to. It was the necessary run to get things moving again.
After becoming frustrated with myself, I had to be honest with myself. It has been a while since I have had a decent run. It has been a while since I put good food/fuel in my body. It has been too long, and this was the start of getting back into my old cycle.
I kept putting one foot in front of the other, slowed the pace when I felt like I was working too hard, and put the miles in. Not the prettiest or most rewarding run, but one that I will remember.
This evening I have learned, if you fall behind on running, it’s time to lace up the shoes and get right back at it. No one can achieve their personal best without practice. It’s time to start training for a new personal record. Humiliated and humbled by a run, but still able to run longer than I was able to last fall when I started the C25K program, I look forward to my next run and returning to where I was three weeks ago. 26:09 NOT 30:56.
Happy Running!
