Objective: Endurance, mental strength, negative splits. Weather: High 40's F, breezy at times (Bf. 2-4), wall-to-wall rain until mile 18, showers and sunbreaks after that. I wish I could tell you that my new Asics Storm Shelter Jacket kept me dry today, but no jacket made of anything more breathable than tarp would have done that. I think I was pretty dry for about 90 minutes and then it started to get saturated and the water came through. I would not try racing in it unless the temps were at least 10 degrees colder with rain, but I was pretty comfortable for most of this long, slow run.
I don't usually run with an iPod. In fact, it's quite rare for me these days. But today was my first real weather-challenged long run of the season, and I really wanted to have a positive experience so I did plug in to my tunes. Almost right away, I heard Jo Dee Messina's "Bring on the Rain" and knew I had made a good choice. "...cause tomorrow's another day / and I'm thirsty anyway,/ so bring on the rain." I loved hearing songs like "Heat Wave" while the rain tapped its rhythm on my head, and some Hawaiian music that I took from my DD's Lilo & Stitch CD, reminding me of warm places. I struggled up a hill to "Give Me One Moment in Time" and flew down a hill with the theme to Chariots of Fire. But mostly, it helped keep my mind off the rain and how soaking wet I was. I almost lost my will to finish the workout once, when I stopped in the bathroom around mile 14 and felt just how thoroughly wet my clothing was. It took a great deal of self-talk and Garth Brooks' "Standing Outside the Fire" to get back on track after that, but once running again I was ok. I had a bit of a mental breakthrough today, regarding my goals for the next few long runs and my upcoming marathon in December. You may have noticed I'm changing the heading for my blog: positive thoughts, negative splits. That comes from a story I read once, though I cannot recall where. I have never run a negative split marathon, and up until today I had never run a negative split long run (over 18 miles). I think it might be the only principle that might truly keep me from going out to fast and fading in the end. The first part of the strategy is to work on what Dale was talking about after his marathon: keeping your courage up and practicing the self-encouragement that keeps the pace up at the end when you are tired. The second part, at least for me, is going to be telling myself I will be happy with any finish time at all providing I try to get a negative split. That would mean I have to really assess how I feel by mile 4 or 5 to judge what pace will work for negative splits on that day. Like today, I had to really hold back, even swallow my pride and walk parts of the steepest hills in the first half to save my legs for later. It worked though. I feel like I'm on to something.
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