The Good, The Bad & The Tuesday

Monday was Memorial Day and I worked. Coach scheduled a run for 6pm from ClubSport but after I got the message he wasn't going to make it, I wimped out. I decided to pdo some paint touch-ups to the downstairs with Rosemary instead. We were all finished and noticed it looked a bit darker. I figured it would match when it dried and we headed out to go grocery shopping for the coming week.

When we got back, it the paint had dried and we realized we used the wrong paint. The place looked like a dilapidated run-down repossessed dwelling. Hmm... so I guess semi-gloss wasn't what we used 4 years ago. A little more digging in the garage "storage" area revealed a lighter-colored satin finish paint. I wanted to redo the job right then but we decided to get some sleep instead.

Tuesday we woke up early. Rosemary headed off on her commute and I changed into my painting clothes. It took me just over an hour to cover the damage with a new coat of paint and it looked just like new. There's some more work to do but I'll wait until we get the NEW color Rose picked out called "spanish sand".

When I went into work, I knew today's run would be a pain in the butt. I ate breakfast and started to debug some code. As 11:30am approached I called Chris to see if we were on for hills. No go. Chris got sick on his trip to Chicago and now I had to somehow convince myself I was still going to do hill-work. I went back-and-forth in my head about running home, eating lunch, going over Old Ranch a few times, maybe do it all on the treadmill at an incline...

Now at 12:30pm I finally unglued my butt from the chair and went over to the gym. I figured I'd finalize my plan once I was there. Well, not until I was getting dressed did I decide I'd head out for Foothill. It was really windy and a bit cold so I put on my long-sleeved shirt and hat.

I stepped outside and started running. My gd-Garmin spent the first mile trying to get my position so my splits will require some guess work. I felt weak and tired as I headed down Stoneridge and Las Positas. The wind wasn't so bad and I wondered if I was over-dressed.

I ran up the first hill (Las Positas to Foothill) and dodged some tree-trimmers and traffic. I made it to the top in 2 minutes which is about a 8min/mile pace. I jogged back down and ran up again. Once I reached the top I turned onto Foothill and headed for the last hill just before Stoneridge. The wind was terrible and I was so glad I wore my long-sleeve. I started feeling (more) tired and my right calf started to bother me. I focused on my leg turnover up and over hill 3.

Two miles to go and my iPod ran out of juice. If that weren't enough, the wind died down and I was really heating up. My sunglasses started to fog. Ugh! Going solo on this run was really proving to be a mental challenge! I know it would just be so easy to STOP but I also know that come race day, every skipped workout or laxed training effort will fuel the doubts in my mind on whether I can run faster.

I made it home (aka the gym). I wanted to relax and shower but opted to first spend 30 minutes stretching (torturing my already sore muscles) on the mat.

Overall, I was tired today but hopefully I'll get some more rest and feel fresh tomorrow.

Business: Ran outside 6.8 miles in 49:36 @ avg. 7:17min/mile pace.
Splits are as follows:
Mile  1: 6:45 (0:06:45)
Mile  2: 6:55 (0:13:40)
Mile  3: 7:07 (0:20:47)
Mile  4: 8:08 (0:28:55)
Mile  5: 7:15 (0:36:10)
Mile  6: 7:08 (0:43:18)
Mile  6.8: 6:18 (0:49:36)

Gut-check
Monday
Breakfast: Lucky charms, 2% milk, banana.
Lunch: In-N-Out 3x2 protein-style, fries, water.
Dinner: Chicken sandwich, fries, Coke, water.

Tuesday
Breakfast: 2 6oz. Yoplait yogurts.
Lunch: Philly cheesesteak protein-style, 32OZ. Gatorade, water.
Dinner: water.

Run. Eat. Sleep. Hill Repeat.

=RUMBLE