I run very little in the past few week. A week ago, I started back up with a treadmill run. It was difficult but I wasn’t all that surprised. Unfortunately, things haven’t gotten a whole lot easier. My last few runs have been quite the struggle for me, and today was no different.
I made a concerted effort to get away for a run during today’s lunch hour. I decided to take on the a popular running path near my work which referred to as “the dish.” From my office door, around the loop, and back is 5.7 miles. The loop segment is hilly, paved, and always busy.
I shouldn’t have been surprised to find this run a challenge. Actually, I expected that I would be out of breath for the hilly loop segment. But being out of breath right from the start was a bit disconcerting, but that didn’t stop me from giving it a good fight. I plan to keep doing just that until it find my happy pace once again.
I am looking forward to the return of runs that should be easy being, just that: easy. Perhaps it will be tomorrow. Perhaps not until next week. It needn’t matter. Until then, I’ll just put one foot in front of the other and trudge on.
Going from the dreadmill to gravel would be a hard switch for me. The ‘mill makes life easy, unless I’m adding 2-3% grade on it. It like running on a big rubber band. Then running on gravel gives you no bounce back, it just absorbs all that energy from the footstrike. Great for your legs, but tough to run on.
Keep up that 5.7 on gravel and you’ll be kicking butt very soon.
Those “detraining” effects are the pits. Hurts to run many days even when we’re in good shape, the easy days aren’t every day.
But it does come back and look at the bright side your legs will be fresh.
I hope you find your happy pace, again. (I can relate…)
Have a great weekend. :)
I seem to have left my run in Oceanside. I’m sure I’ll find it one of these days but I hate that ‘starting over’ feeling. sigh…. Just remember – it WILL get better.
Running feels nearly impossible lately and I am longing so much for that run where I feel like I am flying and nothing can stop me.
I finally had a good run — kick @ss in fact — yesterday morning before the game. It was REALLY nice.
It’s always like that for me. LOL