Patience; the new endurance sport.

I had to trick myself into running today. I could not pull it together before 7:00.  Mondays are hard for me.  Last night the thunder and lightening drew a heard of children into my bed (and these are not small children mind you).  I laid in bed and told myself that I'd go 'just 4'.  I passed Sarah who was just finishing as I was just starting.  Then, once I was out and running, I said, I'll just see how I feel about 5, then 6.  I also told myself I'd just do the best I could. But then I started eyeing those little triangles at every 1/16th and I told myself, I'll just push a few.  Then I started pushing every other one -- only just a little faster than my regular pace so I wouldn't have to slow down so signficantly to recover.  So I paced 6 miles at about 8:40. NOW, I'm ready for the week. Bring it on. 

How about that sweating today?  It's like running on the East coast almost.  I can never whip up rivulets of sweat here in Utah.  But my body-o-baromoter is saying low pressure and high moisture.   Today is the day I break down and buy a Garmin.  I know it's not such a big deal to not know the difference between eight and nine miles-- but I would like to be able to time splits without breaking my brain.  I can't add, muliply and divide when I run.  I can't do it when I don't run.  I pushed two fast miles, and 6  1/16ths (so 3 fast miles all together) and the best I can come up with is an 8:40 average (this includes 2 stops... I always have to factor in stops).  Playing with the 1/16ths has been entertaining.  I'm not a numbers person, but it would be fun to play around with times/speed/distance on occasion-- see if I can knit all the smaller fast pieces together into a longer, faster run.  The Garmin will come in handy especially since I'll be doing long Saturday runs again with Catherine.  I'll run 6 before I meet up with her, and we'll hopefully do 3 or 4 together.  But I have to confess....I feel like an enabler, running with her so soon after the birth of her baby.  Is it healthy? I keep telling myself she's nearly half my age and strong so she'll be ok--plus she NEEDS this because she just quit her job at the BYU law school to stay at home....

 Saw Sasha & Company counting out and pacing Michelle (?) this morning-- man those guys work so hard and go so fast. I wish you all could see them.  It's inspiring.

Matthew 5:30 If thy left hand (the one wearing the Garmin) offend thee, cut it off and cast it from thee. For it is profitable that one of thy members should perish and not that the whole body should be cast into Hell.

Could anything squelch the love of running MORE than a Garmin?  Who knew I actually run a 12:00 minute pace so frequently during a run--even if the average time is 9:00 m/m.  I ran anywhere from 8:00 to 12:15 m/m.  Wearing a Garmin is exactly like carrying a bathroom scale to the fourth of July and forcing yourself to weigh in right after the bar-b-que. 

So aside from the creeping knowledge of my schizophrenic speed patterns, I will grow to respect the Garmin.  But for today, we are not friends.

I couldn't run until the horrible heat of the day (it's 95 degrees and hot sun).  In addition, I enjoyed the wonderful company of (dragged along) my two children on bicycles who would rather be playing with friends.  I drank a lot of water, and in the end, the kids were glad they came. They enjoyed learning about the Garmin too (which I got to function better to my liking).  Thanks to all for the very excellent suggestion.  I may set the laps for .25 or .50 in the future, but for now I'm measuring mile splits and trivia:

8:32    Hot sun let's get this over with fast.

8:20   Shady, I am still fresh, let's run a little harder.

9:10  Bright direct sunlight to the end of the road (95 degrees + hot pavement and no shade).

9:08 Bright direct sunlight back up the road (95 degrees + hot pavement and no shade).

9:40 Shady, I am dehydrated now.

9:24 Let's finish this up , I'm sick of this heat.

57:32 minutes/9:04 average/6.35 miles/586 calories

I do not want to run that Ultra in Death Valley next month (134 miles?).  You know near Baker?  That place with the 'World's Largest Thermometer,' 'Bun Boy' and the 'Crazy Greek'?  You know!  That place near the valley floor where that giant thermometer gets up to 137 around 4-5:00 in the afternoon's in August? THAT's the place.  I'm not going to do that.

It was a beautiful, serene morning on the trail.  I got up early enough the sun was still behind the mountain a good long while.  Summer takes on this sort of self-satisfaction, like a women 7 months pregnant.  Full of life, and tranquil about her place in the cycle of life.   Speaking of self-satisfied pregnancies....Tommorrow I'll be running with Catherine for the first time since SHE DITCHED ME to have a baby!  Can you believe? (sweet,beautiful baby girl born April).   Also I asked Sarah to run a few miles with me today (she's 5 months along).  She's concerned about her slowness... I was excited about a few 12:00's (which right now feels kin to eating an ice cream cone), but that girl, with the cutest round tummy ever, pushed me for four miles at a 10:00 minute pace.  It was fun to pass those 4 miles together.  Have a great day Sarah!

P.S. I love having 'permission' to not take friday's off anymore.  In fact, I love running 6 days a week, and I'm enjoying doing 6 or more miles every day. That must be the weirdest, most obessive thing I have ever said. But I thought I was doing myself a favor going less days, less miles.  I'm over the initial tiredness of the new mileage, and feeling better about my overall abilities.  I'm sure it will go in cycles, but two weeks in, I feel great.

8:52/8:34/8:28/8:12/8:45  on my own and 10:45/10:52/10:46/10:22 with Sarah (9:02 miles back home w/o Sarah).

I parked 3 miles from where I was meeting Catherine so I could warm up before we met on her end of the trail. I got in 3.5 before we met..  Then I knew I'd have 3 or more in case she could only hack a  few miles.  She's just been given 'medical' clearance to run (2 months post baby).  But I still feel like an enabler.  I made myself feel a little better by talking with her sternly about taking a good absorbable calcium, drinking huge quantities of water, and  getting enough sleep. She's one of those obsessive over-acheivers and needs to chill if she wants to balance both nursing and running.  I think I've persuaded her to blog here so other post-partum running moms can give her tips about how to stay strong and encourage her to get sleep (which I know is impossible with a little baby).  Geez, can you tell I feel guilty taking her out running?  It's not my fault!  She wanted to!  I wanted to take her maybe 4, but no, she said "I feel ok, let's do 6!"  Who can resist an offer like that I ask you! I keep trying to remnd myself that, she's half my age, and an accomplished athelte.  There are lots of marathoners and tri-atheletes out there right now running at 8 months pregnant--this is Utah after all isn't it? We are obsessive pioneer stock with no more plains to cross.  We WANT to run, we NEED to run.  I just don't want her hobbeling up to me when she's  80 complaining about her osteoperosis and her icky dentures (cause her teeth fell out due to lack of bone density lost to nursing while running).  I guess I saw a lot of that in South America and it still kind of haunts me.  Anywho....Sasha was way up on that end of the trail, running hard and fast.  He has a way of running that you can tell it's him from about a mile a way.  He probably didn't drive all the way across the valley to get that far up the canyon like I did.  Whenever I feel like a hero for doing a long run on a Saturday, I have to remind myself that serious runners do that many miles every single day.  If I'm headed toward an Ultra next year sometime, I will too eventually. We'll see how it goes up to St. Geroge.   50 miles this week -- it doesn't feel any different than 40 from the week before.  I'd like to keep this up to see if my body likes doing this over time.