Greetings, Tribe!
As the last few weeks of summer are just breezing by, I’m savoring the flexibility in my schedule to run at different times of day and to switch runs from one day to the next. I am keenly aware that I may only have one or two weeks of this, so I must figure out a fool proof schedule for my work and workouts come the end of August.
The last full weekend in July we went to Northwestern to run a little 4.1 mile race (Run for Walk). Temperatures were perfect, for July, and the course was engaging enough to get me to push myself and use it as a tempo run. I did have 17 miles scheduled that day, so after some rest and nourishment I ran 13 more miles along the Lakeshore in Chicago. With the crowds and of course the beautiful scenery, I needed up running much faster than I had intended. Not crazy fast, but fast enough to where I feel more confident that the next time I run in Chicago (for the marathon) that I won’t bomb.
We are inching closer and closer to race day and I’m becoming more aware of little pains and various parts of my body getting tighter. Some of it I know is in my head, some of it is because I need shoes with more forefoot cushioning for runs longer than 10 miles, and some of it is that I need to stretch more. After my friend Bryce invited me to a yoga class a couple of weeks ago, I realize how much more Zen I am and how much better my calves and hamstrings felt. While I cannot attend class several times a week (darned work!), I have found a couple of great Youtube teachers to spend time with in between my yoga class at Butler University. As hard as it is to slow down, I think I need to. It’s true what they say: You must go slow to go fast.
Happy trails, friends!
In Search of My Running Tribe 