Run until the Pain Stops

The Expert is grumpy.  Very, very grumpy. He told me that he’s feeling the effects of this training, and he’s ready for the taper (we’re in the almost 2 week countdown to Augusta 70.3).  That’s because he never really trained for St. Anthony’s (Olympic), or even really Miami 70.3- I swear the dude just showed up and raced a half Iron and afterwards was like, “That was NBD.” Regardless, he’s been kicking it this go-round, and along with his general training awesomeness… he’s a total crabapple to live with.

I don’t think it’s the training – I think he’s been watching season after season of Sons of Anarchy on Netflix and he really wants to be a motorcycle outlaw.  That and I think he’s about to lose his big toenail. Ew.

Training effects people in different ways… I get rundown and pooped too, but I find the cathartic effect  of training to be so worth it… to the point where I will suffer from insomnia, sleep 1-2 hours, and still get up and run.

I was all sorts of freaked out by my second scheduled 70.3, Augusta…but then I signed up for Ironman Coeur d’Alene and really– that has scared me so badly, that I have forgotten to be scared about Augusta.

I am feeling pretty good, decently prepared and ready for the race (Augusta… not Coeur d’Alene).  The taper has sort of begun, but I still had 8 miles to run this morning.  I wasn’t sure how that would pan out, but turns out—it was one of the strongest runs of my life.  I ran a hilly route, and paced at an 11:00 minute mile, which really – is like a jackrabbit for me.  And that’s WITH the Galloway method. Boo-yow… What? I get to walk for one minute every mile AND I pace better than if I run the whole shebang?  A-maz-ing, that’s Galloway for you (thanks, Yoda!).

As I was running, I had alot of things bouncing around in my head, and I was thankful for the run — and the escape that running provides.  Everything hurt inside my head and in my heart this morning… but not until the end of the run did my body hurt worse… so I made a cheesy poster for the occassion.

You know I love the posters. (And so does my Mom!)

It’s so so so true, though.  Something about getting out there and sweating and suffering makes everything else so much more tolerable.  Makes no sense, but I find it to be f-a-c-t.

What also makes no sense is that I am literally wearing a Sweat BEARD in this picture. Gross.

The best part of the run:  a group of teenage boys driving by in a jeep (on their way to high school, no doubt), and yelling, “Run Forrest, RUUUUN!” to me.  Nice.  I was offended at first, and then I realized that these young gents were commenting on a movie that was released before they were born—-so really that movie reference made them some sort of hipster renaissance men… ha.

Coach Carrie also made me realize that alot of my Monday evening self-sabotage probably had alot to do with the fact that I was releasing/turning over my book manuscript to the publisher the next day. I think she’s right.  The good news:  the book is gone, off and now it’s just formatting and making pretty things.  The bad news: I must find something new to stress out about….