Rough Week

This week was the first negative week of training. There is no doubt that there will be harder ones ahead, but heres what happened:

Tuesday brought 7+ inches of snow, which required me to hop aboard a torture contraption that is more commonly known as the treadmill. I hate that machine, but I suppose I will need to get used to it if the first few weeks of December are any indication of whats to come this winter.

Thursday was also a new adventure for me, as I had to run through snow/slush/ice. Fortunately, Dan purchased running Yak Tracks for me as a gift, so I decided to strap them on, rather than climbing aboard the treadmill again. Yak Tracks are definitely not something I would enjoy running in all the time, but they certainly helped to prevent a slip and fall on the slushy, icy ground below. My route was more of an obstacle course than an enjoyable mid-week short run. The sidewalks were only partially clear and many intersections came with the surprising snowbank that I needed to climb over.

This weekend's long run had two great surprises: 50 degrees AND a new Garmin Forerunner 220 watch from my lovely husband! I figured that all three runs this week couldn't be horrible, but boy was I wrong. I had beautiful weather and 8 miles ahead of me, but the miles ticked by slowly. My body felt heavy, tired and my mind was clouded with negative thoughts as I sloshed through slushy puddles. Somehow I managed to get through all 8 miles.

As I reflect on Saturday, I think of the saying "running is mental." I ran the 8 miles that I needed to. It wasn't pretty, but its miles logged in the book. I wanted to stop and walk several times along my route, but knew that I couldn't. I'm training for a marathon, after-all. There is no playing catch-up now. We are 18 weeks away from the 118th Boston Marathon.

So, lets tie this week's training back to the reason I'm running: The patients at Spaulding don't have the option to give up. They can't say "well, I'll try it again next week." They keep going...and so will I. With that said, please consider supporting my fundraising efforts to benefit Spaulding Rehab Hospital. Your generosity truly makes a difference! Click here to make your contribution.