Okay - so I started this blog in the good faith that I would actually be running at some point. So far, three posts and no running. This stupid sore throat issue I'm having is preventing me from hitting the trail or the treadmill. Sick = no running.
This is a lesson though. I've done so well on the build up to this point, I wonder how this will affect my return to the track both physically and psychologically. Psychologically, I wonder if I can get back to the mindset of success. I don't want to be thwarted like so many other exercise plans I missed a week or two on. Physically, I don't want to push it, but I want to be back to as close as I was when I got sick. Otherwise, I'll be behind on training. <---- That statement is a bad one.
It makes me think that I'm not doing well, when I actually am. I'm a 300 lb guy who started running for 1 minute and then walking for 2 minutes to actually catch my breath. Now I run for 20 minutes flat out. It's hard, sure, but I'm not dead on the ground at the end. So, I guess it's the physical that worries me more.
The lesson: Don't let frustration get the better of you. Don't do something you regret - i.e. don't quit and/or don't push so hard you injure yourself.
Update on Time: No change, duh.
Update on Distance: See above.
Update on Weight: Well, unsurprisingly, this illness has limited my ability and desire to eat, so in the last 7 days, I've lost 11 lbs. Not healthy weight loss I'm betting, but my current weight is 287. Just so we're honest.
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First, great blog, Scottums! This is a really fun read! We are all so proud of you, especially me. You are such an inspiration (and still a balm)!
ReplyDeleteSecond, ugh, I hate it when this happens! Being sick and not being able to run sucks ass. I feel you, baby.
Third, on being sick and falling behind: Don't give even one more thought to "falling behind" on training. There is NO falling behind. The training plan we're using is simply a way of letting you know how much to push/not push yourself to gain improvement every week. It helps you get better over time, and that's its ONLY function. Matching up with the schedule for the week is NOT important, nor is being in a certain place by the end of the planned length of training. At this point in your running career, the only thing that matters is progress over time. Forget everything else.
Trust me, baby, all of us training for this half marathon are going to get sick, get sick of running, get too busy, get hurt, etc. over the next few months. None of us will consistently be in the same place at the same time. The challenge will be to avoid comparing ourselves to each other as a way to rank our progress. Wrong, wrong, wrong. The key is to use each other for inpiration, information, and most of all for support. None of us will be at the starting line in June in the same place, training-wise. The goal is simply for all of us to arrive there at all, and to have fun trying our hand at this crazy race!
Remember, you and I have run together for several months now, usually at least once a week. We're at different places, training-wise. But we still had a ball every time! So, there's living proof that keeping pace with each other's training isn't at all relevant to having fun running with friends. And that's what this thing is all about!
Right? Right!
Ok, so this is a long comment. Oh well, you know me.
Practical advice: Running when you're sick at all is counter-productive. It keeps you sick longer, which you know, but it also gives you absolutely zero training value. Many studies show that you will not improve, and will not even maintain, fitness if you work out while your body is trying to combat illness. Stay out of your running shoes until you're feeling good. When you take your first run back, cut your pace back to a very slow pace, and make your goal 15 minutes rather than 20. If you feel good and lively at 15, go to 20, but if not (and expect not), end at 15 and give your body a couple days to recover. Keep this up every time you run until you feel strong at 15. Then go to 20, and then progress up. You don't need to step back through the time ladder to get back to 20 minutes - you'll probably just need a few runs to get back up at 20 and then off you go again. Point is, you'll bounce back much faster easing back in than you will pushing hard.
Love you!
Kara