Patience; the new endurance sport.

9:43 av.

March is in like lamb. I didn't even need the headlamp.  The moon sat heavy and huge in the western sky.  It lit the whole road and the surrounding fields until the sun began to hit the back side of timp and paint it pink.  There was fog rising off the water and hanging low above the ground. Felt balmy, like spring.   Everyone in Chile I know is accounted.  I have a good friend who has a small country grocery store close to the beach whose whole business was swollowed up by the subsequent tsumani--but her family at least is safe.  Three days later, my in laws are still struggeling for fresh water....still not sure if heading down there right now would help or hinder. 

8:46/8:40/8:49/8:55/9:01/8:33/9:29/9:21/10:21

I gave mile 6 my best effort, but I was dreaming of the inhaler left sitting on my bedside. I could not get a deep breath, I started out pretty clear. But just under an hour of  breathing cold air took it's toll.  It was a good effort.  Although I could feel the roll of fat created last night from Michelle's birthday cake bulging over the top of my running tights....a week of flabby miles combined with being sick actually caused me to gain 4 pounds--compounded by 10,000 calories of the best birthday cake ever known to womankind (blame Marion). 

I was beat today.  Whatever I did yesterday made today doubly hard. So I ran slow since it's my regular run.  Also my Garmin was out of juice, so mercifully, I don't even know how slow.  I'm doing way too much thinking-thinking-thinking since yesterday.  Whenever that happens I wear myself out.  I need to stop thinking.  It's dumb.

Thursday is supposed to be my tempo run.  But by mile 2 (after having to turn back because of the construction on the trail and finding a different route) I could tell it was going to be all I could do to just get the miles done: 9:28/8:50/9:22/9:02/9:06/9:12/10:00/9:31/9:09.   Must be a little anemic.  I haven't been good about replacing my iron source and eating more greens etc. since I stopped eating meat about last year. (I've eaten some, I just don't have the heart for it hardly anymore).  A few days ago, when we were running in the dark, in the pre-light dawn, I saw my big fat owl sitting on a tree above my head. That owl only shows up ever few years.  First time was in 2000, then on the day my Dad died--which was March 4, 2006. Then I saw it again in April 2008.  But he was there around the same spot 3 days ago.  I've been thinking of my Dad ever since.  Particularly since it was 4 years ago today we spent a week in the hospital watching him perform what can only be described as "death sleeping."  Before the stroke, he had the face of Paul Newman and the body of Arnold Schwarzenegger--right up until his 70th birthday.  He was a beautiful, strong man.  I remember Rad telling about her had who died a few years back too.  Grief gets boring and everyone gets tired of it when it extends beyond a year or two.  But the depth and breadth of your loss, last so much longer than that.  It's impossible to not remember the space left unoccupied in your life almost daily for who knows how long.  And then you have to remind yourself how that person made you who you are, and you must be grateful for what was, and what is now 'till we meet again. Anyway, whenever I see those hawks, and the eagle; and like today the owl, sitting in a tree looking down at me, it makes me think of my Daddy (he loved birds of prey, particularly owls) and how he's somewhere looking out for me still in his own way.

I LOVE the snow, but couldn't make myself get outside to run in it in the predawn.  So I ran 5 on the treadmil.  It felt great.  I ran one 7:45 between 3&4, the rest were 9:13's.  I wish I could have run more, it's the best I've felt in many days. It's snowing like crazy still, I'm gonna see if I can take a few runs at lunchtime.  I don't know if I'll enjoy skiing tomorrow after I run 18 miles.  

8:30/8:46/9:12/9:50/9:44/9:32/9:53/9:14/9:48/9:49/9:49/9:21/9:27/9:32/10:04/9:45/9:52/9:50

It's dumb to record all those splits since I wasn't going for speed. I had to run a few before Catherine showed up, and met Sasha & Jeff on the trail who came from behind asking 'how my legs were.' My legs felt fine (in that moment)  it was my lungs I was still warming up.  They invited me to run 6:40 for a quarter mile.  I wasn't expecting that and wanted to be game, but all I could think about was the other 18 miles I needed to run with my bronchitis lungs.  I made it almost the quarter, but I was really trying to get in some air toward the end and wouldn't (not couldn't) maintain it for the last 100 feet.  They continued running and I just behind them for about another mile, then I had to turn around to meet Cathetrine at 7:30.  The reason I put the splits in there was because I need to remind myself how much a (single!) fast quarter mile improves your over all time .  If I can run fast only 1/4 of the time I could sustain a 8:30/8:40 pretty easily.  This is what I practiced in my speedwork last Fall and it worked.  But I've not had the lung capacity or energy to do my speed play for two weeks and I'm paying for it now. I've run strong, but it's not the same as pushing aerobic capacity.   But for today I did get 18 under my belt with Catherine and pushed hard.  The average pace was 9:37 (thanks to those 2 faster miles to begin with).   But I have to say--I'm beat.  I went from 50 miles/week to 30 back to 50.  I just hope when I get over all this crud I'll be able to push my legs/lungs to do what I know has to be done.  If not, I'd just comfortably go slower and slower.  I don't mind running the Utah Valley marathon in 4:25, but I want to finish Boston in under 4 hours.  We'll see.  I really dug deep today just to get that mileage, but I felt way stronger than Thursday.  That felt like progress.