Marathon Training

I haven't been blogging much recently, as this summer has been kicking my ass.  There is simply too much to do and there are too many things to think about.  My to-do lists are procreating in my drawers, it seems, spawning more and more and more things that I need to attend to, and leaving me wondering how another month has snuck by so quickly.  I am just trying to keep my head down, keep going, and keep crossing things off my list(s).

One of the things that has been happening is marathon training.  I have been doing it, sometimes diligently, sometimes not.  This week has been not so great.  Last weekend was my first long run with the Team Oregon Marathon Training clinic, and it was a good choice.  It is really nice to run with a group.  It feels safer, it requires less thinking and planning, and I came away from the run without that horrible hit-by-a-bus feeling that I often get after a long run.  I put in some good miles on Monday and Tuesday, but then Wednesday I twinged a muscle at the gym and took a few days off running.  I also went to a conference in Bend, so I'm sleep-deprived and have that overall sense of unease that I get when I haven't slept in my own bed or run my own schedule for a few days.  I will be running thirteen miles this afternoon, and I don't anticipate it will go well.  But, I'm doing it.

Unfortunately, running has lost a little of its sparkle for me in recent weeks, and I feel a bit like I'm just going through the motions.  I need a run where I feel powerful, where I hit that perfect blend of strength and exhaustion and my brain pumps out endorphins mile after mile until I fall in a sweaty heap to stretch, grinning like an idiot.  I hope I get a run like that soon.

The marathon is in three and half months, give or take, and I'm essentially running half-marathons as my long runs these days.  Soon I'll be in uncharted territory, each week running a distance that is longer than I've ever done before.  Next week is fourteen miles.  Then fifteen, then sixteen, then this crazy period where I alternate between sixteen and twenty mile runs every Saturday until the race, or until I come to my senses.

I have to charge my ipod, lace up my shoes and get out in the world.  Wish me luck.