Peek A Boo

A friend of mine recently asked me where I find motivation to run when you are blah, especially when the weather is not ideal. I quickly gave the advice that was given to me almost two years ago and has worked pretty well since – go for 30 minutes.

May 2015, I felt utterly defeated after a half marathon. I do not know what happened during those 13.1 miles, but it beat me up mentally to the point I seriously considered never running again.  For months afterwards, my motivation was nowhere to be found and I was looking. Thankfully, I never reverted back to old habits to look for it in the refrigerator (a win).

That summer was hard; my desire to run felt like a daily quiz with only two options. Did I want to: A. Attend a meeting that is poorly run with no purpose with no one you like B. Take out the trash?  After I demanded a recount and proposed option C – none of the above. My inner self came up with plan D – I wanted the exercise, so I kept runs short and low key, no time, no purpose, no anything.  If I did not want to run, I did not. When I did run I made them stress free – I ran socially and without a watch. I walked when I felt like it (it was hot, so it was a lot). Pace was not a concern or a priority.

I did not tell anyone about how miserable I was. I am not even sure how it came up in conversation, but eventually I confided in Drew and Amy. Drew shared some one of his experiences and suggested doing what he does – 30 minutes. Go out for a 30 minute run. If you are not feeling it, stop. If you are feeling it, great! At that point you can either keep going or stop; your choice. Amy made me promise that if it ever happened again to let her know. Thankfully, that summer I ran a lot with Amy, which is always an adventure.

Like the time an easy 7 mile run turned into a 9 mile run with the last few miles on the beach. 

I knew I would feel worse if I just gave up, practicing the 30 minute rule helped immensely. Marathon training during the summer is ridiculous; I diligently stuck to my plan, but it was going through the motions. I was not enjoying the journey, and then September happened. For my birthday, my brother and sister in law gifted me with the Blue Ridge Marathon registration (in case you are like me and scratching your head at how I was not enjoying running, and not enjoying training for a marathon, but I asked and was gifted a registration for America’s Toughest Road Marathon. I get a look of bewilderment a lot, because that still does not make any sense.)  It was around then that the joy for running started creeping back. I do not know if the cooler temps helped, or if by grinding away and for a lack of a better phrase I “stopped caring” about the individual run that I rediscovered the joy; by December/January, the joy was back and even the most horrible run was still fun.

Losing motivation happens. From my very unscientific research, how long it lasts varies. That summer was an extreme. Luckily, since then I have only had a handful of times that I haven’t felt like running. Taking a day off will not derail training. Sometimes the extra rest day is more beneficial.  February is a hard month (at least for me training wise). It still gets dark early. The weather is usually less than ideal. The miles are high.

If and when it happens, know it happens to everyone. Try the 30 minute rule. Tell someone – anyone – everyone. I have always been shocked when I had a less than stellar run and then go through Facebook to read that other people had a less than stellar run the same day. Sometimes just sharing a “yeah, today was horrible, here is to a better tomorrow” helps everyone.

Also, take a break. Have down time. It is good physically and mentally to have a period of nothingness. Recovery is just as important training. This past fall after a hefty (for me) schedule, I had “No Run November.” By the time I finally laced up, I wanted to run again. I missed it. I still got about 30 minutes of activity a day, but it was low impact and low stress. I walked. I swam. I rode my bike.

I have been trying to think of something catchy for the down time after the Blue Ridge Double. I am leaning towards calling it “Running Maycation;” we’ll see if that holds up.

While I am specifically talking about running, if this relates to you on a personal, non-running level, similar rules apply – tell someone! You do not have to go through it alone.

This past week of training brought some new things – my highest mileage week ever! If I did the math correctly, it was a little over 58 miles! I, also, had my longest training run (22 miles; before 20 miles in training). A friend of mine had asked about how much time it takes me, so here is a break down for last week.

Miles (HH:MM:SS)

Tuesday: 9.60 (02:04:41)

Wednesday: 6.15 (01:17:20)

Thursday: 10.32 (02:20:46)

Saturday: 22.00 (05:34:10)

Sunday: 10.06 (02:17:11)

Total: 58.13 (13:34:08- I entered the times into Excel; I am hoping it calculated correctly)