Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Random Observations from Mile Ten

Well, the half-marathon is 5 days away, and I've done my longest run yet in preparation. I plan to just take it easy until the big day (with a spinning class and maybe a short run in between, to keep the legs moving), so I'm effectively finished with my training. Wow.

That said, it seems as though once you start crossing the threshold into "distance" running (and I'm sure it's different for everyone), things start behaving differently. Here's a few things I've noted as time has gone by:
  1. I don't really need music, as long as I'm outside. I wouldn't have expected this, being Overstimulated Chick, but there's a nice ebb and flow between enjoying the scenery and just letting your mind wander. No... I haven't kidnapped and hidden the "real Jen" -- why do you ask?
  2. The more I run outside, the more I despise treadmills. Boring, boring, BO-RING! 3 miles, OK. 4 miles, sure. 5 miles and up?... Tedium. 10 miles? Pure torture. I had to grab a treadmill with a TV and watch something on Discovery about the Titanic just to get my mind off the distance counter. No terrain changes, no scenery changes (unless you count the folks swimming laps in the pool), and no breeze to cool you off. Before last year, I'd never run outside... now I think I'll go cuckoo this winter.
  3. My knees have gotten stronger the more I run. THAT surprised me. Happily.
  4. At ten miles, EVERYTHING chafes. Ow.
  5. Running in the rain isn't half bad.
  6. I have officially skipped ice cream (ice cream!) to go for a run. Wait... maybe I have kidnapped the real Jen.
  7. I get all giddy setting all these goals for myself (in the form of registering for various races). I realize I probably wouldn't push myself without the goals, and I get the added benefit of them being fun, too. For the most part.
  8. There's quite a bit of camaraderie among other runners, which has been fun to be a part of... little things like signing up for races together, trading tips (stretching, training, um... bra shopping), and just waving hi to folks as you run past.
And all you need is a good pair of shoes and the outdoors.

This is fun... I think I'll keep it up. :-)

2 comments:

Unknown said...

If you find yourself thinking, "Hey, I just ran 15 miles! Yeah!", do a quick double check to make sure it isn't also 15 miles back home.

Although, on a treadmill...the scenery will still be the same on the return trip.

(Drive your running route, and video tape it. Then, get a big screen TV and play it next to you on the treadmill. Just don't drive at 55 miles an hour...)

Jen said...

The gym frowns on me bringing in my own big-screen TV. The nerve...

And I actually *have* gone out a bit farther than I originally decided and had to make myself turn around so that I can actually make it home. But that was one particular situation where I was running up to a farm and wanted to see the rooster that was yelling at me. :-)